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If you’ve been putting off some of your holiday shopping with your eye on Canada’s GST holiday, the wait is over — it officially kicks off today.
For the next two months, this tax break will let Quebecers save some of the sales tax on a long list of essentials, including groceries, holiday gifts and restaurant meals.
The federal government announced the GST/HST tax break last month, promising to waive the goods and services tax (GST) and harmonized sales tax (HST) on a specific list of qualifying items from December 14, 2024, to February 15, 2025.
In Quebec, that means GST relief on a range of everyday items and festive buys — which would normally add an extra 5% to your bill. Since Quebec doesn’t use harmonized sales tax (HST) like Ontario, New Brunswick and a few others, we’ll still have to pay the provincial sales tax (PST) rate of 9.975% — but hey, it’s still something.
Here’s the complete rundown of everything you won’t pay any GST on during this two-month tax holiday — starting today.
Children’s clothing & shoes
- Baby gear like bibs and baby blankets
- Kids’ clothing up to girls’ size 16 or boys’ size 20 (or kids’ sizes XS to L)
- Socks, hats, ties, scarves, belts, suspenders, mittens and gloves designed for children or babies
- Footwear for kids or babies with insoles measuring 24.25 cm or less
Kids’ diapers & car seats
- Diapers, liners, training pants and rubber pants for babies or kids
- Certified car seats and booster seats
Books & newspapers
- Printed books and audiobooks (no notebooks, journals, colouring books or catalogues)
- Print newspapers with news and editorials (no digital publications or magazines)
Food & drinks
- Candy, chocolate, chips, granola bars, fruit snacks, pudding, ice cream and other packaged snacks
- Cakes, muffins, pies, cookies, and other sweet baked goods (most savoury baked goods are tax exempt year-round)
- Salads, sandwiches, fruit and veggie trays, meat and cheese platters and other prepared foods
- Carbonated drinks, juice, flavoured beverages and drink mixes
- Bottled or unbottled water dispensed by the supplier
- Alcoholic beverages with up to 7% ABV, including wine, beer, cider and coolers
- Food and drinks served (for dine-in or to go) at a restaurant, cafe, concession stand, etc.
Holiday favourites
- Christmas trees (real or artificial)
- Toys for kids under 14 including board and card games, play sets, dolls and figurines, plushies, building blocks and plasticine
- Jigsaw puzzles for any age
- Video game consoles, controllers and physical copies of games (i.e., video game discs or cartridges)
Happy shopping, Montreal!
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