2016 Ontario Provincial Budget Commentary
On the 25th of February 2016, the Ontario Provincial Government presented its 2016 Budget “Jobs for Today and Tomorrow.”
The deficit for the 2015-16 fiscal year is projected to be $5.7 billion, which is $2.8 billion less than forecasted in the 2015 Budget. The deficit is projected to drop to $4.3 billion for 2016-17 and to be eliminated by 2017-18. Furthermore, the government is also projecting a balanced budget in 2018-19.
The Budget does not include any changes to Ontario’s personal tax rates but certain personal tax credits are being eliminated. In addition, changes to the so-called “sin taxes” are proposed. From a business perspective, although there are no changes to corporate tax rates, there are proposed reductions to certain credits.
As the original Ontario Budget 2016 document is a very detailed 408 pages, you might prefer to read Stern Cohen’s Provincial Budget Commentary available in PDF format on this link.