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Pay InvoiceProvincial Taxes Briefing
At Issue: Provincial Taxes Briefing Note
Our province needs a competitive tax structure in order to attract and retain business. Tax reform must be a focus for this government, as competition from our neighbouring provinces will be an increasingly important factor for business in Nova Scotia.
What do they have that we don’t?
▪ In PEI and Newfoundland, there is no capital tax
▪ In Newfoundland and Labrador there is a small business tax holiday
▪ Lower corporate tax rates - New Brunswick’s corporate tax rate is 12 per cent, compared to Nova Scotia’s 16 percent
A 2009 Canadian Federation for Independent Business’s (CFIB) report titled, “In Search of Tax Excellence - Where Provinces Rank in Creating a Tax Climate for Small and Medium Business Success”, ranked Nova Scotia’s taxation system as the third worst for business in the country; only Ontario and Quebec ranked lower. As a province we can and must do better.
Business owners were asked to identify the taxes that are most harmful to growth.
Here is a snapshot of how Nova Scotia ranked: (0 being the worst performing province in the category, 10 being the best)
Premiums and Payroll Tax – ranked 7th
Corporate Income Tax – ranked 3rd
Property and Capital Tax – ranked 2nd
Personal Income Tax – ranked 5th
Sales and Excise Tax – ranked 5th
In Search of Tax Excellence - Where Provinces Rank in Creating a Tax Climate for Small and Medium Business Success. (CFIB. April 2009)
Number one was premiums and payroll, second was corporate and income and third was property and capital taxes. Nova Scotia was found to have relatively higher corporate taxes, income taxes, property taxes and capital taxes.
