Taxes

The budget includes new tax credits and expanded relief eligibility for small businesses.

The government plans to increase the income threshold for small businesses to receive a tax deduction from $15-million to $50-million in taxable capital. This would provide about 5,500 small businesses with relief of $265-million over four years, the budget says. An eligible business could receive more than $36,000 in tax relief each year as a result.

More seniors could also be eligible for financial support through a proposed expanded eligibility of Guaranteed Annual Income System payments starting in July, 2024. A new manufacturing tax credit, unveiled in a prebudget announcement on Wednesday, would provide a 10-per-cent tax credit up to $2-million for local manufacturers.

The budget calls on the federal government to provide HST relief, through rebates, exemptions or deferrals, for new large-scale housing and rental development projects.