Besides providing a major cash flow boost to the government of
Canada, one of the most significant accomplishments of the goods
and services tax and harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) was that the
law imposed, on almost all businesses, a higher standard for record
keeping. The operation of the GST/HST requires businesses to impose
the tax and allows input credits throughout the production and
distribution chain of a supply (goods or service). For this to
work, suppliers of goods and services need to keep good
records. The Excise Tax Act, the law behind the GST/HST,
specifically requires that sufficient books and records be
maintained to properly support the imposition of the tax and the
allowance of credits. The requirements apply equally to other types
of organizations besides commercial businesses, such as not for
profit organizations and charities. There are no restrictions
placed on the type of records that must be kept by an organization.
They just have to be
