Small Business and Revenue

How to file your Hotel Room Tax Return

Who needs to file

All registered operators are required to complete and file a regular Hotel Room Tax Return. When you register as an operator, you are assigned a filing frequency based on your projected annual taxable sales and the nature of your business. You are sent a return for each reporting period.

Your Business Number (BN) will appear on the top of the return form. Each business is assigned a BN that identifies it and all its accounts. If the BN does not appear, one will be assigned to you. This number will appear on our correspondence, and you may quote it when communicating with any participating government agency. Please see Single Business Number for a list of agencies and more information.

If you have multiple registrations for different locations, you may find it easier to consolidate them into one account. Under a consolidated account, only one return per reporting period is required to report the sales and taxes for all locations. If consolidation would be of benefit to you, please contact us at 604-660-4524 in Vancouver, or 1-877-388-4440 outside of Vancouver.

If you do not receive a personalized return, you are still responsible for reporting your sales and submitting the tax owing on time. Download and complete a blank return, providing all the information normally shown such as your registration number and return period.

You also are required to file even if you did not make any taxable sales. If you are filing "nil" returns often, please contact us to have your return period lengthened. If you fail to submit a return, an estimated assessment will be issued.

For more information, see bulletin GEN 012, Remitting Tax.

Completing the Form

The Hotel Room Tax Return (FIN 432) is designed to help you calculate and pay your taxes correctly and on time. The return has three main parts:

Information – the front top portion of the form gives important information

Worksheet – the back portion provides a worksheet to calculate the amount of tax you need to pay. It also allows you to work out the commission you have earned.

Remittance Form – the bottom tear-off Remittance Form is what you complete and send in with your payment

Remember, the return is only for tax collected or payable during the reporting period. Any other payments, such as an account payment, must be reported and paid separately.

Please see Bulletin HRT 003, Completing the Hotel Room Tax Return for step-by-step instructions on how to complete the form.

How to Submit your Return

There are different ways to submit your return:

By Mail or Courier

If you submit your return by mail or by courier, please include a cheque or money order, payable to the Minister of Finance, for the amount of taxes owing. DO NOT MAIL CASH.

Mailing Address	Courier Address
The Director, Hotel Room Tax Consumer Taxation Branch PO BOX 9442 STN PROV GOVT VICTORIA BC V8W 9V4	Consumer Taxation Branch Main Floor, 1802 Douglas Street Victoria BC V8T 4K6

Returns and payments can also be delivered in person to a Consumer Taxation Branch office or Service BC – Government Agent office.

By Fax

If you are filing a nil return, where no taxes are owing, you can fax it to us at
250-356-1330. Please make sure to fax both sides of the Remittance Form, with your registration number written on both.

At a Financial Institution

You can submit your return and payment at some Canadian banks, credit unions, and trust companies. Please check with your financial institution to find out if it offers this service.

Financial institutions cannot accept returns printed from the Internet because these forms do not include the bar coding needed by banks for processing. Financial institutions are also not able to accept nil returns (returns where no tax is due).

Both the Remittance Form portion and the worksheet must be stamped and you will receive the worksheet portion back as a receipt. The Remittance Form section will be sent to the Ministry of Small Business and Revenue for processing to your account.

If you are remitting tax on the due date, please ensure the correct date is stamped on your return. After a certain time of day, banks may date their work as though it were processed on the next business day. If this occurs, your return will be considered late. Payments made through an automatic bank machine (ATM) are stamped as of the day they are processed, which may be the next business day. For this reason, we don't recommend using ATMs when making a payment near the due date.

Due Date

As of April 1, 2007, the due date is extended to the 23rd of the month, and your return and the tax owing need to be received by the ministry by this date to be considered on time. The postmark date is no longer accepted as the filing date. The due date is printed on your return.

If your return and payment are not received by the due date, you will be charged interest and your commission will not be allowed. You may also be charged a penalty. See Bulletin GEN 004, Penalty and Interest Charges for Overdue Tax Returns for more information.

Closing or Selling Your Business

If you have permanently discontinued or sold your business, you must check the "Business Closed" box on the front of the Remittance Form and provide the information requested.

Your Certificate of Registration must be returned to the Director, Hotel Room Tax Act, within 23 days from the date of the sale or discontinuance of your business. If you do not do these things, you will continue to receive tax returns from us. If you do not properly close your account, you must continue to file a return.

Getting Help

Please call 604-660-4524 in Vancouver, or 1-877-388-4440 outside of Vancouver.

Municipal and Regional District Tax

All establishments located within approved municipalities and regional districts are required to charge both Hotel Room Tax and the Municipal and Regional District Tax on all sales of accommodation that are subject to tax under the Hotel Room Tax Act.

The Municipal and Regional District Tax must be remitted separately to the Minister of Finance no later than the 23rd day following the end of the reporting period. Separate tax return forms are provided to all operators required to remit the tax.

The process and instructions for completing the Municipal and Regional District Tax Return are the same as for the Hotel Room Tax Return, with one difference: no commission is allowed for collection of Municipal and Regional District Tax. Therefore, there is no box on the form for this amount.

Please see Bulletin HRT 007, Municipal and Regional District Tax for more information on collecting and remitting the tax and for a list of participating municipalities and regional districts.