Premier David Eby announced Friday that the province will pause the planned expansion of the Provincial Sales Tax to professional services, according to a provincial news release. The expansion had been scheduled to take effect Oct. 1.
The pause is a response to new and ongoing international trade disruptions and the economic uncertainty they are creating, the release says. The province estimates it will save people, local governments and businesses about $260 million in 2026-27.
Services that would have become taxable on Oct. 1 include accounting and bookkeeping, architecture, engineering and geoscience, non-residential real estate services such as strata and property management, and security services.
The Squamish Chamber of Commerce welcomed the move in its newsletter, calling the pause an advocacy win and saying local businesses had warned the tax would add costs and red tape.
“There’s a time to stay the course, and there’s a time to adjust. This is a time to adjust,” Eby told delegates at the Union of BC Municipalities convention, according to the release.
