By now you should have received a cheque in the mail from CRA which is your Small Business Transition Support Payment for HST. If you aren’t sure why you received the money, it is as a result of the introduction of HST in Ontario on July 1, 2010. The Ontario Government introduced this one time payment to small businesses to help small businesses with costs related to the transition to HST and make the necessary changes to their systems. If you qualify as an eligible business you could receive a transition support payment of up to $1000.
How do you know if you are eligible for this HST Support Payment?
The following criteria are required:
- You were an active GST registrant at July 1, 2010
- You are not a financial institution
- You carry on business in Ontario and have a premises in Ontario through which you conduct your business
- You have GST/HST taxable supplies of less than $2 million dollars in a given 12 month period ending on or after January 1, 2009
The amount that you are eligible for is dependent on your taxable revenues for a twelve month period:
| Total Taxable Revenues for a 12 Month Period | Amount of Transition Support |
|---|---|
| $60,000 or less | $300 |
| greater than $60,000 but not greater than $200,000 | 0.5% of Taxable Revenue |
| greater than $200,000 but less than $2 million | $1000 |
The support payment you receive is considered as income and therefore taxable, so do ensure that you report it on your income statement.
If you haven’t received your payment and believe you are eligible, contact CRA at 1-800-959-5525.
Hi,
I received a transition support payment. I understand it is Income. I’m doing my HST for that quarter now. Should I pay HST on the amount as well?
Greg,
You are correct that the HST transition payment is to be considered income. It should be included in the figure reported on Line 101 of your HST return – Total Sales and Revenue. However, it will have no effect on any of the other lines on your HST return. HST Collected (Line 103) and HST ITC’s (Line 106) will be reported as you normally would. The only other thing which this HST transition support payment will affect is your income tax at the end of your year, as it is considered taxable income.