My Train Conversation About What Is The Excise Tax Act
Yesterday, I took the Via1 train from Toronto to Ottawa to watch the Senators Game. I met interesting people on the train. I met a man and his wife (close to retirement age - but not quite). They asked what I did for a living and I said that I was a GST/HST lawyer.
We had an interesting discussion that I wanted to share with you. The man had never looked at a law before and he thought that the Excise Tax Act (also known as the GST/HST Rule Book) was (or should be) a list of all things and services under the sun in alphabetical order and that each thing/service had a rule saying whether it was subject to GST/HST. The woman thought the Excise Tax Act was more like the Book of Oracles where each good and service had a rule as to whether it was subject to GST/HST. Both ideas of what the law should be was a guide for users.
Both thought that the Excise Tax Act was simple to read and held all the answers in an easy format. "That would be really nice" I responded before telling them that the Excise Tax Act was complicated to read. I went on the Internet and read them the self-supply rules. They looked at me and said "Really, are you making this stuff up?". I said no - unfortunately.
This was a very pleasant and sometimes funny conversation that I had on the train. I learned a valuable lesson that those who do not know as much about GST/HST as I do have different expectations. The public's expectations that the tax laws are easy for people to follow are genuine and hopeful (but not realistic).
Many clients ask for a simple and short answer - this is in part based they also expect that the answers are easy to find and give (some want to save money too and others think lawyers make tax answers more complicated than necessary). There is a disconnect and no easy answer.
Based one my conversation on the train, I am more aware of what is the disconnect between expectations and reality. Maybe the drafters of the Excise Tax Act, regulations, administrative statements should take a train ride, listen to people and ask themselves what they can do to make it simpler.
Cyndee Todgham Cherniak is counsel to and in affiliation with the International Trade Law and the Tax Law (Commodity Tax
