Image credit: Visit Montreal / Eva Bleu
The Retail Council of Canada, Cadillac Fairview, Hudson’s Bay Company, Global Blue Group, Quadrial Realty Group, Triple Five, Aldo Group, Birx Group and Harry Rosen are calling on the Government of Canada to create a visitor tax rebate (RTV) program to stimulate economic recovery.
This program will allow international buyers to recover GST as well as regional sales tax on purchases they take with them at the end of their trip to Canada. According to the coalition, this measure would increase the number of visitors to the country and the amount of money spent there.
The desired goal is to ensure neutral tax treatment between tourism spending on exported goods and other exports. RTV will also enhance the international competitiveness of the tourism sector and local retailers, as well as increase the country’s retail sales and exports, leading to increased revenue from tourism purchases and a series of macroeconomic benefits.
A decrease in spending has been observed since 2007
The drop in tourism-related spending has already been observed since 2007, when the Canadian government abolished the Visitor Compensation Program. The 5% drop in this sector over the past seven years contrasts with that of other competing countries, such as the European Union, the United Kingdom or Japan, which have seen a 23% increase in spending since this program was implemented in 2012.
“The international context and border closures have exacerbated a very real problem already in Canada of declining tourism spending,” Jean-Christophe Bedos, President and CEO of Birx Group, said in a press release. It is imperative to seize every opportunity to stimulate the Canadian economy. The introduction of this program will greatly benefit the tourism sector, retailers and the wider Canadian economy. »
On July 20, the coalition presented its briefing to Canada’s Tourism Minister and Assistant Minister of Finance, Randy Poissonault, as part of consultations on a federal tourism growth strategy. The implementation of this measure is aimed at ensuring economic recovery in the tourism sector, which has been greatly affected by the global situation in recent years.