Prince Edward Island Sales Tax Calculator

PEI HST calculator: 15% in one step

Prince Edward Island's sales tax is a single 15% HST, made up of the 5% GST and a 10% provincial part. For a quick calculation, $100.00 plus HST is $115.00. To find the pre-tax price, divide by 1.15: a $69.00 receipt is $60.00 plus $9.00 HST.

For an item that gets a provincial point-of-sale rebate, only the 5% applies. Reverse those totals by 1.05. PEI has three such rebates, so check what you bought before reversing a receipt.

Three point-of-sale rebates that cut PEI HST to 5%

On qualifying goods the store credits the 10% provincial part at the till. The CRA administers all three rebates for the province, and they apply at every stage of the supply chain, so wholesalers do not charge the provincial part to retailers either.

Worked example: what the rebates save a PEI household

Take a family that buys $1,000 of furnace oil and $60.00 children's snow boots, both before tax. Without rebates, HST would be $159.00. With them, the family pays $53.00, saving $106.00.

Fuel choice matters. If the same household heated with propane, the oil rebate would not apply, and $1,000 of propane would carry $150.00 HST. If a supplier forgets a rebate, claim the provincial part from the CRA on form GST189 within four years. The CRA does not pay claims of $2.00 or less.

PEI compared with the other Atlantic HST provinces

All four Atlantic provinces use the HST, but their rates and rebates differ, and that matters if you shop or ship across provincial lines. The table uses the CRA's current rate table and its point-of-sale rebate info sheets (GI-063 for children's goods, GI-065 for books and GI-169 for heating oil).

Common PEI HST mistakes

These come up often on Island receipts and in small-business bookkeeping.

• Reversing a rebated item at 15%. A $63.00 receipt for children's boots holds $3.00 of tax, not $8.22. Divide it by 1.05.
• Expecting the heating oil rebate on all heating fuels. Only fuel oils and kerosene marketed for heating qualify. Propane and natural gas pay full HST.
• Claiming the full HST as an input tax credit on a rebated item. A registrant can only claim the HST actually paid, which is the federal part when the rebate was credited.
• Charging 15% on goods shipped off the Island. Goods delivered to Alberta carry 5% GST, and goods delivered to Nova Scotia carry 14%.

What PEI HST does not apply to

Like the other Atlantic provinces, PEI taxes the same goods and services as the federal GST. Zero-rated supplies, including basic groceries, prescription drugs, feminine hygiene products and most fish and farm products, carry no HST. Exempt supplies carry none either and include residential rent of a month or more, the sale of a used home, doctors' and dentists' services, child care for children 14 and under, and music lessons. Restaurant meals, snack foods, soft drinks, hotel stays, haircuts, legal fees and car repairs all pay 15%.

Running a business in PEI: registration and filing

A PEI business must register for GST/HST within 29 days of passing $30,000 in taxable sales in a calendar quarter or over four consecutive quarters. Taxi and ride-share drivers must register before their first fare. Registrants charge 15% on Island sales and the destination province's rate on goods shipped elsewhere. They file electronically, or pay a penalty, and file a nil return even in a quiet period. Quarterly returns are due one month after the quarter ends.

The CRA's Prince Edward Island Tax Centre at 275 Pope Road in Summerside handles requests to be exempted from mandatory electronic filing and GST/HST rebate applications sent by mail, including a GST189 claim for a point-of-sale rebate a store failed to credit.