Vol. 149, No. 12 — June 17, 2015

Registration

SI/2015-44 June 17, 2015

FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT

Order Amending the Representational Gifts Remission Order and Repealing Order in Council P.C. 88/2969

P.C. 2015-636 May 28, 2015

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, considering that it is in the public interest to do so, on the recommendation of the Minister of Finance, pursuant to subsection 23(2) (see footnote a) of the Financial Administration Act (see footnote b), makes the annexed Order Amending the Representational Gifts Remission Order and Repealing Order in Council P.C. 88/2969.

ORDER AMENDING THE REPRESENTATIONAL GIFTS REMISSION ORDER AND REPEALING ORDER IN COUNCIL P.C. 88/2969

REPRESENTATIONAL GIFTS REMISSION ORDER

1. Section 3 of the Representational Gifts Remission Order (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:

3. Remission is granted of the additional duties paid or payable under sections 21.2 and 21.3 of the Customs Tariff, of the duties paid or payable under the Excise Act, 2001 and of the taxes paid or payable under any Parts of the Excise Tax Act other than Part IX in respect of the importation of a representational gift that

ORDER IN COUNCIL P.C. 88/2969

2. Order in Council P.C. 88/2969 of April 25, 1945 (see footnote 2) is repealed.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

To amend the Representational Gifts Remission Order to allow duty and tax-free importation of representational gifts received by the Governor General, and repeal an obsolete Order in Council P.C. 88/2969 of April 25, 1945, that provides relief from excise duties and taxes on goods purchased or imported by the Governor General.

Objectives

To update the existing taxation framework for the importation of representational gifts received by the Governor General, as well as for the purchase or importation of goods by the Governor General.

Background

Representational gifts received by the Governor General

The Representational Gifts Remission Order (the Order), originally made in April 1975, allows duty and tax-free importation of representational gifts (i.e. any article presented or to be presented by a donor) for “donees” (either received during the course of their official visit outside of Canada or presented by a donor in the course of an official visit to Canada). The list of donees includes the Prime Minister of Canada, a minister of the Government of Canada, a member of the Senate or of the House of Commons, a provincial premier or a municipal mayor.

The list of donees did not previously include the Governor General. It is in the public interest to provide consistent treatment of representational gifts to the Governor General with those given to other Canadian dignitaries. Therefore, the Governor General is added to the list of donees and the remission of excise levies for representational gifts is extended to those received by the Governor General.

Also, references to provisions under the Customs Tariff, the Excise Act, 2001, and the Excise Tax Act found in the Order have been included and/or updated to reflect the current excise framework, which has evolved since these references were last updated.

Goods purchased or imported by the Governor General

Order in Council P.C. 88/2969 provided relief from duties and taxes on goods purchased or imported by the Governor General. This Order in Council, established in 1945, was outdated and several provisions were obsolete. In recent years, measures have been introduced to eliminate the income tax, the goods and services tax and the harmonized sales tax, and the customs duties relief treatment offered to the Governor General. The repeal of this obsolete Order in Council, thereby eliminating the general excise levy remission for the Governor General, is consistent with other tax amendments undertaken by the federal government in respect of the Governor General.

Implications

The Order Amending the Representational Gifts Remission Order and Repealing Order in Council P.C. 88/2969 will not have any impact on government duty and tax revenues.

The amendment to the Representational Gifts Remission Order adds the Governor General to the list of donees, thereby ensuring that the Governor General is treated in a manner consistent with that of other Canadian dignitaries, such as the Prime Minister (i.e. representational gifts received by these individuals are free from excise levies).

Updating the legislative references contained in the Representational Gifts Remission Order is needed to reflect changes made over time to Canada’s taxation framework.

The repeal of the obsolete Order in Council P.C. 88/2969 eliminates the preferential treatment offered to the Governor General and makes the Governor General subject to the same rules in respect of excise levies as other Canadians.

Departmental contact

Lucia Di Primio
Sales Tax Division
Department of Finance
90 Elgin Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0G5
Telephone: 613-369-3769