Cannabis - Canadian Press File Photo

By Charles Lefebvre

Tax changes

Province makes changes to cannabis facility taxation

Nov 13, 2019 | 10:44 AM

EDMONTON, AB —There will be changes to how cannabis facilities will be taxed starting next year.

Kaycee Madu, Minister of Municipal Affairs, announced Wednesday morning that cannabis facilities in Alberta will be taxed as non-agriculture businesses.

“This change responds directly to the concerns of municipalities, who asked for this distinction in provincial tax regulations,” Madu said in a statement. “While cannabis is a burgeoning industry, it is important that cannabis-production facilities – which are heavy users of municipal services – pay their share for those services.”

Prior to the change, cannabis facilities were treated as farm buildings, and received tax exemptions as agriculture operations. A news release from the province says the definition of farming in the regulations has been changed to clarify that it does not include commercial cannabis production.

The tax change, the province says, does not apply to greenhouse operations or industrial hemp cultivation. It also does not affect any other sectors of the agriculture industry. Buildings that house cannabis production will be assessed at market value, and taxed at non-residential rates.

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