Sales of Corporeal Movable Property
The sale of corporeal movable property (tangible personal property) by a supplier is considered to be made in Québec if the property is delivered or made available to the purchaser in Québec. The property can be made available by mail, courier service or a common carrier hired by the supplier on behalf of the purchaser.
- A registrant operates a sawmill in Québec. It sells lumber to a furniture manufacturer in Québec. The sales contract specifies that the delivery is “FCA purchaser's plant.” The sawmill must collect GST and QST because the lumber is delivered in Québec. However, if the sawmill sells lumber under the same conditions to a purchaser with a plant in the United States, it is not required to collect the taxes since the lumber is delivered in the United States and the supply is therefore considered to be made outside Canada.
- The same Québec sawmill sells lumber to a furniture manufacturer in Manitoba. The sales contract specifies that the delivery is “FCA supplier's plant.” The furniture manufacturer comes to pick up the lumber in Québec or hires a common carrier to deliver the lumber in Manitoba. The sale is considered made in Québec because the lumber is made available to the purchaser in Québec. The sawmill must therefore collect GST at the rate of 5%, but is not required to collect QST. Under the QST system, the sale of lumber is zero-rated for the following reasons:
- The purchaser intends to ship the lumber outside Québec, and does so within a reasonable time after the lumber is delivered by the sawmill.
- The lumber was not acquired for consumption, use or supply in Québec.
- The lumber was not processed, transformed or altered in Québec before being shipped outside the province.
- The sawmill has satisfactory proof that the purchaser shipped the lumber outside Québec
- A business situated in Québec is a registrant. It sells CDs to customers throughout Canada. It must collect GST and QST on orders mailed within Québec, 13% HST on orders mailed to Ontario and 15% HST on orders mailed to the other participating provinces. It must also collect 5% GST on orders mailed elsewhere in Canada.
For more information, refer to the current version of interpretation bulletin TVQ. 22.7-1/R1, Place of Supply in the Case of a Supply by Way of Sale of Corporeal Movable Property, available on the Publications du Québec website.