B.C.’s sales tax on vaping products will soon jump from seven per cent to 20 as part of the province’s effort to discourage young people from using nicotine products.
Finance Minister Carole James introduced amendments Tuesday to sales tax legislation and also the province’s Tobacco Tax Act, which will add another two cents per cigarette or gram of tobacco to the cost.
“I’m proud to say that British Columbia is the first province with legislation coming forward to specifically target vaping using its tax system,” James told the legislature. “Bill 45 complements the minister of health’s efforts as part of the recently announced vaping action plan to reduce the incidence of vaping among our province’s youth, and it also responds to products that impose significant health costs borne by all taxpayers in British Columbia.”
Health Minister Adrian Dix announced regulations last week that will limit the amount of nicotine in vaping fluid to 20 milligrams per millilitre, similar to the United Kingdom’s rules. The regulations also restrict where candy or fruit-flavoured vape products can be sold, as all vaping materials are legal only for those aged 19 and over.
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The sales tax hike for vaping products is expected to bring in $2.5 million additional revenue during the rest of this fiscal year, ending in March, and $10 million next fiscal year.
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