The province has announced that Manitobans no longer have to pay the provincial sales tax when they get their personal income tax returns prepared.
“We are keeping our Budget 2020 promise to remove the sales tax from the cost of getting help and advice to file income taxes,” said Finance Minister Scott Fielding. “Our government wants to bring Manitobans some extra relief come tax time and let them keep more of their hard-earned money.”
The exemption takes effect immediately. Manitobans will no longer be charged the seven per cent retail sales tax on the price of getting a personal income tax return prepared – a service that can cost hundreds of dollars. Fielding expects the change to save Manitobans nearly $5.5 million per year.
The minister noted this exemption builds on other steps taken to provide tax relief for Manitobans as part of the $2,020 Tax Rollback Guarantee, such as:
- the continued indexing of the Basic Personal Amount and personal income tax brackets;
- reducing the sales tax rate to seven per cent from eight per cent;
- removing the sales tax from will preparation;
- removing the sales tax from home and commercial property insurance; and
- reducing vehicle registration fees.
“Since 2016, we have returned nearly $700 million to Manitoban households and businesses through lower taxes,” said Fielding. “These measures mean more savings to households each and every year, which is especially important given the financial pressures we face because of the global pandemic.”
The province plans to implement further tax relief measures during this legislative session including the elimination of probate fees on estates and phasing out the education property tax.
