HST VICTORY! The Beginning of the End of a Long Campaign

On Tuesday November 21, the federal government tabled its fall economic statement. In the statement, the government proposed to exempt professional services rendered by psychotherapists and counselling therapists from GST/HST. Legislation will now be introduced and (very likely) passed in the house in the coming months.

This is a huge win after a long and arduous campaign in which the OSRP partnered with and brought new life to the efforts of organizations such as the CCPA and PRPA with our own petition (Stop Taxing My Therapy) and the resulting December 2021 first reading of Bill-C-218. This, along with a parliamentary petition signed by over 14,200 Canadians and a massive letter-writing campaign, led to more debate in Parliament, a second Bill (C-323) which made it to a second reading where it was unanimously voted to the next step. The Tax Free Therapy Coalition built and populated a robust campaign website at www.TaxFreeTherapy.ca which includes media articles and celebrity endorsements. We were able to secure meetings with elected representatives, the majority of whom were surprised to hear about this unfair tax. 

Each and every member of the OSRP should be enormously proud of what has been accomplished by psychotherapists working together with the full support of the OSRP Board. None of this would have happened without you. It is amazing what can be accomplished when we work together. Congratulations!   

You deserve our thanks for your letter-writing, your petition-signing, and your sharing of materials and calls to action. Particular thanks to Andrea D'Onofrio who founded the HST Task Force, Stephanie Woo Dearden, and other members of the HST Task Force and Advocacy Committee past and present who contributed their time, energy, contacts and passion to achieve this important milestone for our profession. At last, we will achieve tax equity with other professionals providing psychotherapy. 

At present, we can't stop charging or remitting HST on our psychotherapy services until the legislation is tabled in a government bill. It is possible that this legislation will include a start date, we just don't know yet, but with our partners at CCPA and PRPA we will continue to press for enactment as soon as possible.

You will be updated as more information unfolds. 

Gratefully,

The Advocacy Committee

PS: If you haven't already signed up to attend this Friday's AGM from 1pm-3pm on Zoom, please do so here.

We want to celebrate together and plan for a victory party   as promised at last year’s AGM

FALL UPDATE

GST/HST BILL 2nd reading

On September 25, MP Stephen Ellis presented the last part of his second reading of his GST/HST Bill C-323. This will go to a vote tomorrow, and then to the HoC Standing Committee on Finance for further debate.

We appreciate all the efforts of OSRP members to write to their MPs to urge them to vote in favour of this Bill, and we are going to ask you to do so again.

Click here for the template of a letter to send to your MP, or you could email or tag your MP on social media, asking them to vote YES to Bill C-323 tomorrow, and support Tax Free Therapy. 

At an August 22 media conference which generated an estimated 1.2 million impressions, RP Lindsey Thomson spoke passionately about the deadly consequences of limiting access to therapy. Thomson’s call to the Federal government to end this tax can be seen HERE.  The Tax Free Therapy Coalition’s Countdown clock to the 2025 (likely) election and need to change can be found HERE.

More than a million Canadians saw, heard or read about this issue following the media conference. The majority of coverage came from CTV television news outlets across Canada, including Vancouver, Winnipeg, Atlantic and Edmonton local news broadcasts (see image below). Coverage also came from online sources, blogs and radio. Known as “earned media” (as opposed to expensive paid advertisements), these impressions are highly valued and indicate how much interest there is nationally in this issue.

These media hits could not be better timed as Canada’s leaders headed to pre-Parliament cabinet and caucus meetings, readying themselves for the Sept 22nd opening of this Parliament. We hope September's house business will include Dr. Stephen Ellis’ Bill C-323: An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (mental health services) completing its second reading in the House. As previously reported here, the NDP has pledged to support it.

Thank you to all advocates who have written, called, and visited their MPs to push for this important measure. Now is a great time to revisit this with your MP – please find an updated letter template HERE. Meanwhile, the Tax-Free Therapy Coalition continues to meet with important policy-makers and advocate for the end of this unfair tax.

Should you wish to join the Advocacy Committee, which meets next via Zoom on September 29th, please do not hesitate to contact us at: advocacy@psychotherapyontario.org

Rachel Fulford & Dr. Natasha Tuletta-Bowman, Co-Vice Chairs, OSRP Board of Directors, Co-Chairs, Advocacy Committee of the OSRP

UPDATE #1:

Unfortunately, all 14, 244 signatories to the HoC petition have by now received a disappointing message from the Finance Minister.
This message is not new and has been received by her constituents and other letter-writers for years. This does NOT mean that our cause is hopeless.

• Many meetings are happening with important decision makers who can affect the status quo, empowered by the support for GST/HST exemption.
• The National Coalition is working on a response to the response.
• There will also be a second reading of MP Ellis’ bill (TBA) and by the way, this response doesn’t kill MP Mathyssen’s bill from future readings either.
• We will update you further when we have more outcomes to share.

UPDATE #2: Your letters to MPs are making a difference.

As reported HERE in the March 28th Central, and ongoing since then, several MPs and their staff have advised Advocacy Committee members that the volume of letters to MPs has been noticed.
 
Important actions and meetings are arising from your HST activism, and we will keep you informed of all new developments.

The Ontario Society of Registered Psychotherapists (OSRP) continues to call on the Federal Government to Take Action now that three parties have expressed support.

Click here to read the Finance Committee's recommendation, echoing bills from two opposition parties, and our press release!

The newly-merged Advocacy Committee + HST Task Force met on Friday April 14, and brought renewed energy to attending meetings with politicians and decision-makers, now that we are all fully briefed on this important issue.

Proposed Next Steps for the Advocacy Committee

• Encourage all members and supporters to write to their MPs AGAIN, cc-ing the Minister of Finance chrystia.freeland@parl.gc.ca to call on government to take action now that three parties, including the Finance Committee, have advocated for GST/HST exemption for all mental health professionals
• Continue coordinating with partners (CCPA, PRPA, Impact etc.) on all Advocacy on behalf of our members, to amplify our voices