That is completely fucked. How is the renter possibly liable for taxes not paid by another person? That’s like going after every customer of a store that doesn’t forward the GST it collected.
Revenue Canada is run by animals. These people have no compunctions about destroying lives with unfair practices.
It is like that, and how it works for GST/PST. If I buy something outside Canada(either website/mail, or in person by leaving and coming back) and that seller doesn’t collect and submit sales taxes then I’m expected to submit those taxes myself.
And why was the landlord allowed to list the gd property and did the CRA put a lien on it? Or was it just cheaper for them to go after the renter instead???
I’m in my 60’s and have never heard of this tax law! This so-called rule had better change quick.
CRA really likes going after the wrong person if somebody isn’t paying their taxes; I’ve had to pay back around 700$ for childcare credits because the provider didn’t give me their social security number (I didn’t know I should’ve asked for it) and disappeared without paying their taxes. It’s not as much as the guy in this article, but it was money I didn’t have at the time, so it really hurt.
Can he sue the landlord? It sounds like he’s already paid way too much to fight this, but it also feels like active fraud on the landlord’s part: “his landlord had given a Canadian address on the deed of sale when she purchased the unit; she had a Canadian social insurance number; and his rent cheques were going to a TD Canada account in Montreal.”
Also, if this is a thing, why the fuck is the CRA letting someone accrue six years worth of arrears before informing them. They should be obligated to notify the renter yearly (at least) or forfeit any interest.
I mean really, all of that is moot, as the rule is completely ludicrous to begin with. It sounds to me like the people who implemented the rule (and the ones defending it) have never been renters themselves. Like you’re supposed to ask a potential landlord for their fucking financials? They’ll laugh in your face and move on to the next sap. Total bullshit.
Bet CRA spent more than $43k on court costs and time to chase down this bullshit. Really doing your jobs, guys. Why don’t you go tax some billionaires instead and actually get some fucking significant money out of it rather than harassing the little guy.
What a wild arrangement. I could be missing something, but from an outsider’s perspective it seems absolutely f***ing bonkers that the person who is making the payment is able to be held responsible for the tax component in any circumstance, rather than the person who is receiving the income.
The only way this makes sense is as a punitive measure against foreign landlords, where the tenant (as the tax payer) gets some measure of ownership over the property, which doesn’t seem to be the case.
rather than the person who is receiving the income.
Yes, this seems deeply fucked up.
From the article:
He also didn’t know that tenants renting from a non-resident are required to withhold and remit 25 per cent of their rent to CRA each month, unless they have a property manager doing it for them, or if the non-resident has made alternate arrangements to pay their taxes.
Why would Canadian law require that? I’ve never heard of a country forcing people to pay other people’s income taxes outside of countries that still have forced inheritance of debt, like South Korea. Makes absolutely no sense. As in this case, the requirement about non-residents is inane, because the renter has no way to assess resident status.
For sure he can, he has legally OVERPAID his rent for years. If he pays the taxes back at the same rate everything should be evened out by the time he’s done.
The owner should forfeit the property if they don’t pay taxes. The only options Canada should have is if they want to gift it to this guy to get a mortgage on it and pay what’s due or sell it to get their money.
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