The Excise and GST/HST Rulings Directorate of the CRA released a ruling in October 2015 which discusses the application of the Goods and Services Tax (GST)/Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) to a charity event.  

Some of the issues covered in the letter are set out below:  

  • Whether the fees being charged by a particular charity for an event should be included in the taxable supply test or would be considered tax-exempt.  
  • Whether donations received at the charity’s future fund-raising events would need to be included in the taxable supply test.
  • Whether the tax exemption applicable to the “meals-on-wheels” programs under the ETA applies to the fees charged by the Charity for attending its event.  

Here is a copy of the ruling which provides the analysis from the directorate.