topic Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax in Get Support

Being charged wrong Provincial tax

Oyeyemi — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 12:58:27 GMT

I live in Alberta but I am being charged 13% tax. I should be charged 5% instead.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

BKNS27 — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 09:43:22 GMT

So do you have an Alberta area code on your plan?

Taxes are charged based on your area code. If you want lower taxes, you need to switch your phone number to a new number with an Alberta area code.

Otherwise, you need to pay the extra tax if you want to keep your out of province number.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

Korth_ — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 09:44:45 GMT

Payment vouchers are assessed tax at physical point of purchase. In your province, in another, even on First Nations lands or reservations (tax free if you can present Native Status to the vendor).

Payment through credit card or autopay will assess the tax rate of the "home" province. The province where you activated your account, where your number was block was assigned from. Even if you subsequently move to another province.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

Korth_ — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 10:09:57 GMT

@BKNS27 wrote:
@Oyeyemi
So do you have an Alberta area code on your plan?
Taxes are charged based on your area code. If you want lower taxes, you need to switch your phone number to a new number with an Alberta area code.
Otherwise, you need to pay the extra tax if you want to keep your out of province number.

I might be mistaken because things have been changing rapidly at Public Mobile over the last year.

But my understanding is that you can't reassign your province. You can change your number as often as you like (at no cost, once per 30 days) but will still get Public Mobile's preferred area code from your activation "home" province.

Public Mobile agents might be able to change the "home" province allocation if requested.

Aside from tax rate, it might impact people who (somehow in the 2020s) still don't have Canada-wide calling. They might be unable to dial your "home" province without long distance charges. Even people with Canada-wide calling might have to include a +1 ("Canada international") prefix when dialing your number.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

computergeek541 — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 10:34:49 GMT

@Handy1 Please avoid unnecessarily repeating others.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

HALIMACS — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 11:28:45 GMT

That's interesting @Korth_ , I hadn't thought about it that way.

That sounds plausible, however I also believed the tax structure was determined by Area Code and changes.

Any takers out there (who may have switched their area code) to have found the taxation structure change or did it remain the same?

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

computergeek541 — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 13:03:10 GMT

@Korth_ wrote:
I might be mistaken because things have been changing rapidly at Public Mobile over the last year.
But my understanding is that you can't reassign your province. You can change your number as often as you like (at no cost, once per 30 days) but will still get Public Mobile's preferred area code from your activation "home" province.
Public Mobile agents might be able to change the "home" province allocation if requested.
Aside from tax rate, it might impact people who (somehow in the 2020s) still don't have Canada-wide calling. They might be unable to dial your "home" province without long distance charges. Even people with Canada-wide calling might have to include a +1 ("Canada international") prefix when dialing your number.

I'm aware that Public Mobile did use the term "home province" in the help articlies in a discussion about long distance, but there really was never any such thing as a "home province". This is because Public Mobile strangely allowed ijncoming calls to come in while the customer was anywhere in the country even if the customer only has province-wide calling.

As for having Public Mobile change the "home province", there is no such procedure. BKNS27 is correct that the only determining factor for the tax rate of non-voucher payments is the phone number

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

computergeek541 — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 13:05:58 GMT

@HALIMACS wrote:
That sounds plausible, however I also believed the tax structure was determined by Area Code and changes.

It still is, and has always been that way.

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

computergeek541 — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 18:56:47 GMT

Re: Being charged wrong Provincial tax

Kyle_Robinson — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 18:59:29 GMT

This makes no sense! I am in the same boat.... Canada-wide calling and ported my number from Ontario. Why should I pay Ontario tax rate when living in Alberta!?