GST to be suspended on beer, wine, restaurant meals, diapers, kids’ clothes, toys, books & more

The federal government has announced a two-month GST holiday on certain essentials and retail items for Canadians, to last from Dec. 14 to Feb. 15. The items include restaurant meals (dine-in, takeout or delivery), prepared foods at grocery stores, snack foods, beer, wine, cider and pre-mixed alcoholic beverages below 7% ABV, diapers, kids’ clothes and shoes, kids’ car seats and toys, books, newspapers, puzzles and real and artificial Christmas trees.

The GST holiday is part of a multi-billion-dollar affordability package, a joint effort by the Liberal government and the NDP, announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today. The plan also includes $250 Working Canadians Rebate cheques, which will be sent out in April 2025 to working Canadians earning less than $150,000.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chyrstia Freeland announced the details of the government’s GST holiday in a press conference in East Gwillimbury, ON today.

“Inflation is down. We have been close to a year within the target range that the Bank of Canada set, which is why the Bank of Canada is now dropping interest rates faster than most of our peer countries. This allows us to make sure that we are putting money in people’s pockets in a way that is not going to stimulate inflation, but is going to help them make ends meet and continue our economic growth.

“This is something that we’re able to do because Canada has one of the strongest balance sheets in the world, the lowest deficit in the G7, and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7. We have a strong fiscal position and we are putting it to work, with a tax break for all Canadians and with rebates for working Canadians.”

Canadians are getting a tax break. Starting December 14, we’re pausing GST and HST for two months to make groceries, kids clothes, and other essentials tax-free.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) November 21, 2024

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