How will the elimination of the HST affect brides-to-be?
Posted October 6, 2012 11:16 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The HST has thrown budgeting brides-to-be for a loop. News1130 is finding out how BC’s return to the old GST/PST system will help their bottom line.
Right now, things like photography and hair and makeup charge HST, but after April 1, 2013, you’ll only have to pay the five per cent GST for those services.
Alicia Keats, a wedding planner in Vancouver, points out weddings are huge expenses and saving seven per cent on services can make a big difference.
“My fee alone to not having to be charging HST and just going back to the GST, which is a huge percentage… it’s a really big impact,” she tells us.
“Whether you’re spending a few thousand dollars to $100,000 on your wedding, every penny counts. Vancouver is a really expensive place to get married in. This little bit of wiggle room for my clients is going to be really helpful,” she adds.
However, things like chair covers, linens, and photo albums will be provincially-taxable.
Geneve McNally with DreamGroup Productions Inc, another planning service in Vancouver, says any wedding professionals that offer a service were PST-exempt before the HST was introduced. However, product-based offerings always charged provincial taxes.
The province has promised to restore all of the original PST exemptions when the HST is eliminated this spring.
Keats says if you’re not sure, you should check with each individual vendor; she adds you can budget for the full 12 per cent; you might be pleasantly surprised with a refund.
