Will the new Digital Services Tax on internet companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Uber, Meta, and others really be paid by Canadians?

[blackbird]

Just wondering if this is just another tax on Canadians via these big internet companies.  The tax applies to any money that internet companies earn from Canadians.  So will these companies just pass this tax along to Canadians in the form of price increases for any services the provide?  If so, what is the point other than the federal government hiding behind these companies while they tax Canadians?  Many will think this doesn't affect Canadians, but if the government puts increased costs on companies serving Canadians, does anyone think these companies will just absorb the costs and not pass them along to their customers in Canada?

This is kind of like the carbon tax put on industries in Canada.  Does anyone really think Canadians will not be ones who end up paying the tax in increased costs of goods and services? 

This is how the cost of living just keeps increasing and making it harder for many to make ends meet.

[LinkSoul60]

Of course we will....like any other tax or cost that business incurs is generally passed on to the customer.  Will it even be noticeable in how we pay it....likely not, but we will.

[herbie]

who did you think will pay the tax, Martians? What a stupid post headline!

[blackbird]

So if we will pay the tax, Trump is doing us a favour for a change.

[Moonbox]

17 hours ago, LinkSoul60 said:

Of course we will....like any other tax or cost that business incurs is generally passed on to the customer.  Will it even be noticeable in how we pay it....likely not, but we will.

They can try to, but paying less tax than competitors is a pretty swell competitive advantage, and if they pass on the cost to customers then they can always find better deals elsewhere.  Let's not pretend that Amazon is doing everything they can to keep costs low for Canadians.  

[LinkSoul60]

15 minutes ago, Moonbox said:

They can try to, but paying less tax than competitors is a pretty swell competitive advantage, and if they pass on the cost to customers then they can always find better deals elsewhere.  Let's not pretend that Amazon is doing everything they can to keep costs low for Canadians.  

Rule #1 in business - be profitable.  It's a small percentage that at the end of the day won't even be noticed.  No competitive advantages or disadvantages though for companies in that digital space, which is virtually everyone.  Granted you could go down to Home Depot, Walmart, etc and avoid that tax....

[herbie]

We're dealing with posters that think WalMart's 'business plan' was #1 to save customer's money, never even ran a lemonade stand by themselves.

We're looking at grabbing a site where the former cafe was planning to sell coffees for less than the Subway Cafe 2 doors away for LESS, only be open from 2-5 weekdays and seat customers with thrift store furniture among painted shipping pallet walls.
Needless to say they didn't last til the end of the month and defaulted on their lease. Of course the town happily took the $200 for a business license and considers that a "win".

People think it's a dumb joke to refer to the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition yet they fail to understand they're a pretty exact interpretation of how capitalist business works in practice.
What I told the owners before they opened:
-say $1500 mo for rent/lease
- $100 for light, $150 for heat, $100 phone/internet,$100 banking
- $20 hr for any staff at all
2 grand a month OUT OF YOUR PROFITS not including contingencies, staff or maintenance.All before you can pay yourself anything for the time and effort. How many cups of coffee do you need to sell per hour for only 60 hours a week to make that much profit? Figure that out first.

Then consider your customer base.

Yeah, I know - I'm stoopid I ran a business for 30 years here and didn't end up like Musk or Bezos. What would I know?

[August1991]

If anyone delivers a service in Canada, they/we should the pay same tax.

We should tax/treat foreigners the same as we do ourselves.

====

I am not a nationalist. 

Canada works because we Canadians get along.

[August1991]

https://www.policymagazine.ca/the-digital-services-tax-standoff-an-own-goal-we-could-do-without/

Perrin Beatty. OC, QC. KC? Heck, what a first name - and titles.

In this case, I agree. 

Edited June 29, 2025 by August1991

[SpankyMcFarland]

Any tax on corporations can end up being paid by customers. Does that mean we should give up taxing corporations? We are a country with an economy, not an economy with a country. 

Edited July 1, 2025 by SpankyMcFarland

[eyeball]

Perhaps Carney's U-turn on the DST is easier to understand in the context of his past occupation as a tax avoider and making the world safe for capitalists.

The fact the DST was the sharp point of an international effort to negotiate a tax system that curbs multinational tax avoidance is a telling one. That's the real reason Trump objects to it. It probably took a couple of lobbyists to talk Biden into objecting but not Trump.

[Aristides]

22 hours ago, eyeball said:

Perhaps Carney's U-turn on the DST is easier to understand in the context of his past occupation as a tax avoider and making the world safe for capitalists.

The fact the DST was the sharp point of an international effort to negotiate a tax system that curbs multinational tax avoidance is a telling one. That's the real reason Trump objects to it. It probably took a couple of lobbyists to talk Biden into objecting but not Trump.

All the tech giants contributed a million each to Trumps inauguration. This was the payback.

[eyeball]

1 hour ago, Aristides said:

All the tech giants contributed a million each to Trumps inauguration. This was the payback.

Carney still had to scrap it.

[CdnFox]

1 hour ago, eyeball said:

Carney still had to scrap it.

Why? The UK didn't.

He just negotiated poorly. Which is unfortunate but he is new at the job and a little of this was to be expected. We just have to hope that improves his skills and maybe gets a few better advisors who can help him. We may have taken the loss here but that doesn't mean we have to take a loss the next time.

[Aristides]

1 hour ago, eyeball said:

Carney still had to scrap it.

It will be back eventually.

[CdnFox]

2 hours ago, Aristides said:

It will be back eventually.

Not much chance of that. Unlike the carbon tax having given it up once the Americans are never going to let him bring it back. And this is bipartisan, biden hated this tax too.

If he was going to give it up he should have given it up and got something in exchange. All he did was roll over and give trump 7 billion dollars for nothing