You Get What You Pay For
If you do not wish to pay for GST/HST advice, you may find that you get what you paid for - you paid nothing and you received nothing of value. If you do not want to pay for GST/HST advice, and you ask a question, you may get:
1. The right answer;
2. An incorrect response after the responder looks for the correct provisions of the Excise Tax Act and regulations thereto and looks for administrative statements by CRA - but cannot find what is needed or cannot understand what information is found;
3. An incorrect response after no inquiry whatsoever because their time is not worth anything - you do not think their time is worth much and that is why you want to pay nothing;
4. A guess at the answer based on gut instinct or pure wishful thinking; or
5. An incomplete answer that does not address the nuances of your specific situation;
I often have this conversation with people who have been audited and assessed. They have called the Canada Revenue Agency and were assessed anyway. They have asked bookkeepers for GST/HST advice knowing that the book-keeper does not know what is the correct name of the GST/HST laws. They have asked employees in the tax department even though they know that the employee did not take a course in GST/HST.
Cyndee Todgham Cherniak is counsel to and in affiliation with the International Trade Law and the Tax Law (Commodity Tax
