Speaking to reporters, Leitao said Netflix has assured him that the company "would comply with Quebec's (tax) laws." In a letter to his federal counterpart Bill Morneau, which was obtained by local media, Leitao said he would rather impose the higher harmonized federal-provincial sales tax on Netflix. It could be rolled out as early as next year.
But, he added, "If we cannot come to an agreement, Quebec will have no choice but to act alone." "The status quo is no longer possible, our sales taxes must adapt to the realities of the 21st century, the fairness and legitimacy of our tax systems are at stake," he said. US-based Netflix currently pays no taxes in Canada, and had lobbied against being treated like a traditional broadcaster when the matter was being considered by Ottawa.
The federal government had been under pressure to impose a tax on Netflix, akin to fees paid by local broadcasters, that could be used to fund Canadian programming. But a deal announced in September that would see Netflix spend Can$500 million (US$400 million) over five years to make original films and television shows in Canada allowed it to avoid minimum Canadian content regulations and paying into a government arts fund. Netflix, according to government sources, has about five million subscribers in Canada.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2017