Excise Tax Increasing on April 1, 2023

Excise duties are a federal tax applied to several products, including alcohol (wine, beer, cider, and spirits), manufactured in Canada for resale.

In 2017, the Government of Canada amended the Excise Act to tie excise duties on alcohol to inflation. On April 1, 2023, the tax will increase by 6.3%, which will be the largest federal tax increase on alcohol in 40 years. Thanks Trudeau - NOT!
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As the tax is first paid by liquor manufacturers, it means you can expect wholesale liquor prices to increase as of April 1. When wholesale prices rise, retail prices for the customer always follow suit. The new tax increase will net $45 million of additional revenue for the federal government off the pockets of customers!

“It is a hidden tax. Most consumers would have no idea there’s such a thing,” CJ Helie, the President of Beer Canada says. “It is imposed at the manufacturer’s level as soon as they make the product. So what that means is that it’s embedded into the price initially as the supplier sells to the distributor, from the distributor to the retailer, or the bar, and so it gets marked up all along the way.”*

What does this mean for customers who make their wine/beer/cider at a ferment-on-premise such as Harvest Wine?  Nothing!  As the excise tax is only on manufactured goods for resale, our customers will not be affected when making it for their own consumption. But, everyone will see prices rise at their local liquor stores and restaurants. 

While prices are steadily rising all around us, this is finally one area where we can out smart the taxman.  MAKE YOUR OWN AND SAVE MONEY!

*information gathered from multiple online sources and from the ABLE BC newsletter.