The Liberal government announced legislation Tuesday that will pave the way for the implementation of a digital services tax, but it contains no date for when the tax will come into effect.
The government first pledged in 2020 to bring in a digital services tax (DST) on big tech companies. The tax would apply to revenues of large firms providing digital services such as e-commerce, social media and online advertising.
Businesses were told at the time that Canada would not impose the DST before Jan. 1, 2024, although when the tax was levied it would impact revenues as of Jan. 1, 2022, according to Finance Canada.
The Liberal government said that it agreed to delay implementing its DST to give time for an international treaty between members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to settle how the tax will be structured.
“We can act unilaterally,” Deputy…
