Consumers and businesses can now verify online, anytime, that the businesses they deal with are licensed or registered with the Government of Saskatchewan for purposes of the Provincial Sales Tax (PST).
"Finance Ministry staff regularly field inquiries from individual consumers and businesses wondering if a certain business is registered for PST," Finance Minister Ken Krawetz says.
"This new online tool allows consumers and businesses to check that very quickly, and will also help businesses operating in Saskatchewan ensure that the businesses they deal with are operating within the rules."
All businesses operating in Saskatchewan are required to be licensed or registered with the Ministry of Finance for PST purposes. Saskatchewan is one of the first provinces to provide this 24-hour service and the new online registry, located at www.skpstregistry.gov.sk.ca, and is searchable by business name. For convenience, the online database also accepts partial name searches.
In addition to the new online registry helping individuals confirm the businesses that they are purchasing from are registered for PST purposes, the new registry will be useful to contractors who are responsible for ensuring their subcontractors are registered with the government for PST purposes. Wholesalers will also be able to use the new registry to verify that the retailers they sell to are licensed by the government, and therefore allowed to purchase goods PST free (the PST would be charged by the retailer on the final sale of those goods to consumers).
"This new registry is the latest in a series of initiatives by the Ministry of Finance aimed at helping Saskatchewan taxpayers," Krawetz says. "Earlier this year, we upgraded our online tax filing system with a number of enhancements that makes filing easier for clients."
Upgrades to the Saskatchewan Electronic Tax Service (SETS) included the ability to add attachments to tax submissions, as well the implementation of same-day corrections to tax filings and email reminders prior to the due date of tax returns.
SETS can be found online at www.finance.gov.sk.ca/taxes/efile/.
