Effective July 1, 2017 certain Road-Building Machines were reclassified as Commercial Motor Vehicles and required licensing and registration under the Highway Traffic Act. Please visit the MTO website for more information, including details about the types of vehicles that were reclassified.
If a road-building machine was acquired before July 1, 2017, owners may be exempt from paying the tax (RST or 8% Ontario portion of the HST) at the time of registration.
In order to claim the exemption at the time of transfer, owners need a tax exemption authorization letter from the Ministry of Finance. If you don’t have a tax exemption authorization letter with you when you register your vehicle, you may be required to pay the tax and apply for a refund, if applicable.
Requests for tax exemption authorization letters must include:
Send your request to the Ministry of Finance by:
Ministry of Finance
Tax Information Office
33 King St W, 1st Floor
Oshawa ON L1H 8H5
Owners must submit this tax exemption authorization letter to ServiceOntario when they register.
Note: Vehicles purchased on or after July 1, 2017 do not qualify for the exemption and will not be issued tax exemption authorization letters.
If a vehicle is purchased on or after July 1, 2017, the 13% RST or the 8% Ontario portion of the HST may be collected by ServiceOntario, if applicable, under the same conditions as other Commercial Motor Vehicles that require registration.
The following table outlines how the tax will be collected at the time of the vehicle registration.
Location of purchase | Seller is a GST/HST registrant | Seller is not a GST/HST registrant |
---|---|---|
Ontario New Brunswick Nova Scotia Newfoundland and Labrador Prince Edward Island | Tax will not be collected by ServiceOntario at the time of the vehicle registration if the vehicle owner provides a bill of sale with the seller’s GST/HST number. | 13% RST will be collected by ServiceOntario at the time of the vehicle registration unless an exemption applies. |
British Columbia Alberta Saskatchewan Manitoba Quebec | The 8% Ontario portion of the HST will be collected by ServiceOntario at the time of the vehicle registration unless an exemption applies. | |
Outside Canada | *The 8% Ontario portion of the HST will be collected by ServiceOntario at the time of the vehicle registration unless an exemption applies. |
*If the Canada Border Services Agency collects 13% HST, no tax will be collected at the time of the vehicle registration.
Please refer to Specified Vehicles or the Canada Revenue Agency webpage GST/HST and motor vehicles for more information.
On or after July 1, 2017, owners of vehicles reclassified as Commercial Motor Vehicles will not be permitted to use (tax free) coloured fuel or be eligible for a refund of tax paid on gasoline used on or after that date.
Telephone: 1‑866‑ONT‑TAXS (1‑866‑668‑8297)
Teletypewriter (TTY) 1‑800‑263‑7776
To obtain a written interpretation on a specific situation, please send your request in writing to:
Ministry of Finance
Advisory Services
33 King Street West, 3rd Floor
Oshawa ON L1H 8H5