The role of provincial tax rates is frequently lost in the brouhaha over the negative impact that U.S. tax reform will have on the Canadian economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe difference in U.S. and Canadian corporate tax rates is caused by provincial tax rates that are much higher than state corporate taxes,\u201d says Barry Horne of Halifax, a corporate and tax lawyer who is co-chair of McInnes Cooper\u2019s cross-border group. \u201cIt\u2019s true that Canada\u2019s corporate tax rate is nominally 25 per cent, but there is a 10 per cent federal abatement that allows the province to impose their own taxes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Comparing the nominal federal rate of 25 per cent with the U.S. rate of 21 per cent, then, is misleading. Head-to-head, Canada\u2019s true federal rate of 15 per cent maintains a six per cent advantage over its U.S. comparable.<\/p>\n
And to its credit, the federal government has been proactive in this arena.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the past 10 years, the federal tax rate has declined four per cent to 15 per cent, but the vast majority of provinces have not reduced their provincial corporate tax rate at all during this time,\u201d says Brad Coutts, a financial planner at Nicola Wealth Management in Toronto. \u201cThe only province with meaningful reductions in the general corporate tax rate is Ontario.\u201d<\/p>\n
The fact that Canada still has overall rates higher than those in the U.S., then, lies squarely at the feet of the provincial governments.<\/p>\n
Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, at 16 per cent, have the highest rates. British Columbia (11), Ontario (11.5) and Quebec (11.8) have the lowest.<\/p>\n
Only one U.S. jurisdiction, Iowa, at 12 per cent, has a tax rate higher than the lowest provincial rates. Most states\u2019 rates are below 10 per cent. Nevada, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming don\u2019t have a corporate income tax at all.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo B.C., which used to have the lowest combined corporate tax rates in North America, now has the 24th-highest rate,\u201d Horne says. \u201cNova Scotia and P.E.I. have the very highest.\u201d<\/p>\n
To be sure, tax rates are but one consideration in determining the overall effective corporate rate.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s important to determine how income is calculated in each jurisdiction,\u201d Horne says. \u201cBut having said that, the new accelerated depreciation rules under tax reform give the U.S. an important advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n
“The new rules allow American businesses to immediately expense tangible property that has a life of 20 years or less,\u201d Coutts says. \u201cCanada\u2019s capital cost allowance system in general allows corporations to deduct only a small portion of their asset purchases annually, and the way the declining balance rules are structured, Canadian companies may frequently never get to fully deduct the entire cost.\u201d<\/p>\n
Further complicating a comparative assessment of U.S. tax reform is the fact that four states tax gross receipts rather than income and six states have higher graduated rates.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaxing gross receipts is generally thought to be very punitive because companies could be forced to pay large amounts of tax even when they are not profitable,\u201dCoutts says. \u201cHigher graduated corporate tax rates are thought to be ineffective because they just encourage tax planning that will allow them to split up the company and find ways to lower their taxable income to avoid the higher corporate tax rate.\u201d<\/p>\n