Duty and tax on Wine, Beer, Spirit, Cigar or Tobacco are one of the most complicated thing in life. There are duty/tax at federal or provincial level, and may be on top of each other. I’ll simplify this from a cross-border shopper’s point of view.
If you bring in these goods exceed the personal exemption, you’re expected to pay the following duty and tax.
- Federal excise duty, see the table below
- GST on top of the excise duty (5% for all provinces)
- Provincial liquor mark-up (17% in BC)
- Provincial liquor sales tax on top of all above (10% in BC, 12% in Ontario)
Federal Excise Duty Rates, 2003
Duty |
|
Distilled spirits |
$11.066/litre of alcohol |
Mixed beverages (up to 7% alcohol) |
24.59¢/litre |
Beer |
|
Up to 1.2% alcohol |
$2.591/hectolitre |
1.2% to 2.5% alcohol |
$13.990/hectolitre |
Over 2.5% alcohol |
$27.985/hectolitre |
Cigarettes |
|
Up to 1,361 grams/1,000 |
$27.475/1,000 |
Over 1,361 grams/1,000 |
$29.374/1,000 |
Cigars |
$14.786/1,000 |
Manufactured tobacco |
$18.333/kilogram |
Raw leaf tobacco |
$1.572/kilogram |
Tobacco sticks |
$18.33/1,000 |
Wine | |
1.2% or less alcohol |
2.05¢/litre |
1.2% to 7% alcohol |
24.59¢/litre |
Over 7% alcohol |
51.22¢/litre |
A sample calculation for BC residents can be found here [1]. Importing a bottle of wine at the price of $28 (which include US state tax already), you’re looking at paying $14.55 in tax or 52%.
There are also differences between bulk or packaged wine. If you’re interested, please see the government document here [2].
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