Effective July 1, 2021, the Amazon entities currently selling services to sellers on the Amazon.ca store are changing.
This change may affect the taxability of your seller fees on Amazon.ca. More details are provided below.
Some Selling on Amazon (SoA) fees such as per item, order, and referral fees, may be taxable services. Similarly, advertising fees, and Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) service fees, such as pick & pack, and shipping fees may also be taxable. To comply with federal and provincial tax laws, Amazon.com.ca collects and remits sales tax for SoA, Advertising, and FBA fees charged, when applicable.
Amazon offers many services and programs to sellers, and fee taxability varies based on a combination of the type of service(s) purchased, the Amazon entity providing the service(s), federal and provincial tax laws, your participation in Tax Calculation Service (TCS), business information you supply to Amazon, including your federal/provincial registration number, the location of your business, and/or where an FBA service is performed.
To understand the different service fees, see our fee schedules:
Selling on Amazon fee schedule
The different Canadian sales tax are Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST); British Columbia Provincial Sales Tax (BC PST); Saskatchewan Provincial Sales Tax (SK PST); Manitoba Retail Sales Tax (MB PST); and/or Quebec Sales Tax (QST).
Current tax rates are listed in the Federal and provincial sales taxes section of the Canada tax and regulatory considerations help page.
The charts below illustrate when an Amazon.ca seller fee may be subject to sales tax in various Canadian jurisdictions.
Seller business location | Canada GST/HST | PST |
---|---|---|
Alberta |
Taxable |
- |
British Columbia |
Taxable |
|
Manitoba | Not-taxable | |
New Brunswick | - | |
Newfoundland | - | |
Northwest Territories | - | |
Nova Scotia | - | |
Nunavut | - | |
Ontario | - | |
Prince Edward Island | - | |
Quebec |
Taxable |
|
Saskatchewan | Not-taxable (excluding any monthly seller subscription fees which will be taxable) | |
Yukon | - |
If Marketplace Tax Collection applies to your shipment, GST/HST will be zero rated on your Amazon.ca per-order related SoA fees (for example, the referral fee, variable closing fee, tax calculation service fee, and other per-order item fees).
Amazon Advertising (ads) fees (based on your business location) |
||
---|---|---|
Seller business location | Canada GST/HST | PST |
Alberta | Taxable | - |
British Columbia | Taxable (except Managed Ads fees) | |
Manitoba | Not-taxable | |
New Brunswick | - | |
Newfoundland | - | |
Northwest Territories | - | |
Nova Scotia | - | |
Nunavut | - | |
Ontario | - | |
Prince Edward Island | - | |
Quebec | - | |
Saskatchewan | Not taxable (except managed ads fees) | |
Yukon | - |
Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) service fees (based on the fulfilment centre location) |
||
---|---|---|
Order fulfilment centre location | Canada GST/HST | PST |
Alberta | Taxable | - |
British Columbia | - | |
Ontario | - | |
Quebec | Taxable | |
If Marketplace Tax Collection applies to your shipment, GST/HST will be zero rated on your Amazon.ca per-order related FBA service fees (for example, the pick & pack fee, shipping commission, and other per-order FBA fees). |
The following examples illustrate how Canadian sales tax may be calculated on your selling fees:
A seller fee can become taxable or non-taxable without prior warning or notice when a variable change occurs (supplying/updating your own information, and/or Amazon entity change, and/or a legislative/regulatory change).
Canada Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) service fees are subject to Canadian sales tax at the tax rate of the fulfilment centre providing fulfilment service(s), regardless of your business location.
Selling on Amazon (SoA) and advertising fees are typically subject to taxes where the seller is located.
Amazon determines if a particular country tax rule or regulation applies to a seller fee using the business information supplied in your seller account. See your business information, VAT Information page, and/or search VAT, GST, or your country name in Seller Central help to locate additional information.
Seller fees and applicable sales tax for services purchased from Amazon (seller fee) are paid by the seller and are unrelated to any sales tax calculated on products you sell to buyers.
Seller fees refunded in their entirety will include applicable sales tax with the refund. Otherwise, Amazon is unable to refund sales tax collected on seller fees.
Sellers may have an option to claim a tax credit when filing with the tax authority.
Tax credit options will vary by individual seller and we encourage you to work with your tax advisor or tax authority to learn more about your tax filing options. The Amazon Service Provider Network is also an option if you are looking for a tax professional.
At this time, we are unable to automatically process an exemption for a taxable seller fee. If you have a tax exemption for your business, you may contact Selling Partner Support to provide details about your exemption and how it applies to a seller fee. A tax-only refund review will be requested, based on the information you supply.
Fulfilment services are performed based on your participation in the FBA program and are always taxable.
You can manage your FBA settings here. To learn more, visit FBA fulfilment fees. FBA fulfilment fees
Yes. A monthly seller fee invoice will be generated for each service fee type (Selling on Amazon (SOA) fees, product advertising (ads) fees, and FBA fulfilment service) when Canadian sales tax is collected.
Additionally, order transaction detail page will reflect applicable sales tax paid on seller fees.
If no sales tax is collected on your seller fee, a seller fee invoice is not expected.