Under a proposed change to the Québec sales tax (QST) system announced in the Budget Speech of March 23, 2006, it will be possible to claim a partial refund of the QST paid on the purchase or long-term lease (for a period of at least 12 months) of a new hybrid vehicle prescribed by the Minister of Revenue of Québec. At present, the vehicles for which the rebate may be claimed are:
The vehicle must be leased or purchased after March 23, 2006, and before January 1, 2009. The rebate claim must be submitted within four years after the date on which the QST was paid, and the prescribed conditions must be met by the claimant. The maximum rebate is $1,000. In the case of a long-term lease, a rebate may be claimed only once the claimant has paid at least $1,000 in QST, or only at the end of the lease contract.
A rebate claim form is currently in preparation. Until the form is available, persons wishing to claim the rebate for new hybrid vehicles may submit a written request to Revenu Québec, enclosing the original purchase or lease contract and the confirmation of service obtained from the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ). These documents must indicate the manufacturer's name, the vehicle make and model, the fact that the vehicle is new, and the amount of QST paid.
The rebate cannot be claimed by a person registered (or required to be registered) for the QST. Nor can it be claimed by a person who is entitled under another provision of the QST system to a rebate of the QST paid on the purchase or lease of the vehicle.