Appeals

You have the right to appeal the results of an audit, within 90 days of the notice of assessment or the notice of the disallowed refund claim.

There are two levels of appeal:

1. appeal to the Minister of Small Business and Revenue
2. appeal to the Court

To file a formal appeal, you must serve a notice of appeal on the Minister of Small Business and Revenue within 90 days of the notice of assessment or the notice of the disallowed refund claim. If sent by mail or courier, it must be received by the ministry within the 90-day period. A separate notice of appeal must be filed for each decision being disputed.

The notice of appeal must be in writing and sent to:

The Minister of Small Business and Revenue
PO BOX 9629 STN PROV GOVT
VICTORIA BC  V8W 9N6

Please be sure to clearly state the following:

• your name and address
• the decision in dispute
• the reasons for the appeal
• the facts on which the appeal is based

Once a formal appeal is submitted, the minister will consider the matter, and then amend, rescind, or affirm the decision and notify you.

If you are in disagreement with the Minister's decision, you may further appeal the matter to the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

An appeal to the Court is started by filing a petition under the Supreme Court Rules. The petition must be filed in the Supreme Court Registry within 90 days after the date on the Minister's notification of decision.

The Crown is named in the petition as "Her Majesty The Queen in Right of the Province of British Columbia".

Within 14 days of filing the petition, it must be served on the Attorney General in Victoria. You can:

	leave it with a solicitor on the staff of the Attorney General at 11th Floor - 1001 Douglas Street in Victoria during office hours
	mail it by registered mail to the Deputy Attorney General in Victoria

The address for the Deputy Attorney General in Victoria is:

PO BOX 9280 STN PROV GOVT
VICTORIA BC  V8W 9J7

If you are in disagreement with the decision of the Supreme Court, you may seek leave to appeal the court decision to the Court of Appeal from a justice of that court.

All assessments for tax liabilities, penalties and interest are due and payable even if the assessment is under appeal. If the assessment is later set aside or reduced as a result of the appeal, the excess tax paid will be refunded.