GST/HST

GST/HST exemption for behavioural-health services doesn’t run through a single blanket rule — it runs through several separate provisions, each keyed to a different profession, each carrying its own conditions. The matrix below is every route this registry has traced and verified so far, one row per profession, each with its citation, its verbatim statutory text, and the date we last checked it against the primary source.

This page is built to hold more than the federal government. As provincial sales-tax wrinkles or new professions clear verification, they land here as new rows — the table grows; the page doesn’t get redesigned.

4 records traced and verified for GST/HST, across 1 jurisdiction. Every row below carries its own source and last-verified date.

GST/HST — obligations by jurisdiction and profession, each sourced to its primary text and dated to the last check against it.
Jurisdiction	Applies to	The rule	Status	Last verified	Source & citation
Federal	Not limited to a listed profession	Nursing services rendered to an individual within a nurse-patient relationship are exempt from GST/HST. This matters to behavioural-health practice because where provincial law permits a nurse to provide psychotherapy within their scope of nursing practice, CRA treats the nursing exemption at s. 6 as the applicable provision rather than the psychotherapy exemption added in 2024 — so the test is the nurse-patient relationship, not the s. 7 practitioner definition.	In Force	2026-07-31	Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 6 Show statutory text "6 A supply of a nursing service rendered to an individual by a registered nurse, a registered nursing assistant, a licensed or registered practical nurse or a registered psychiatric nurse, if the service is rendered within a nurse-patient relationship." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 6 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14) Regulatory model none Authority basis tax Enforcement body Canada Revenue Agency Enactment date not traced Effective date not traced Penalties — Consent required No Documentation required No Confidence high Record ID ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-nursing
Federal	Psychologist	Psychological services rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service are exempt supplies — GST/HST is not charged on them. This exemption is long-standing and was NOT created or altered by the 2024 Bill C-59 amendment that added psychotherapy and counselling therapy; psychologists were already exempt before it and are unaffected by it.	In Force	2026-07-31	Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7(j) Show statutory text "7 A supply of any of the following services if the service is rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service: (a) optometric services; ... (i) occupational therapy services; (j) psychological services; (j.1) psychotherapy services; (j.2) counselling therapy services; ..." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14). Paragraph (j) sits immediately before the two paragraphs added by S.C. 2024, c. 15, and was not amended by it. Regulatory model none Authority basis tax Enforcement body Canada Revenue Agency Enactment date not traced Effective date not traced Penalties — Consent required No Documentation required No Confidence high Record ID ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-psychology
Federal	Psychotherapist, Counselling therapist	Psychotherapy and counselling therapy services rendered to an individual by a "practitioner" of the service are exempt supplies — GST/HST is not charged on them. On becoming exempt, three consequences follow that practitioners routinely miss: input tax credits are no longer claimable on inputs acquired to make these supplies; a change in use of capital property may trigger a deemed sale and repurchase; and a registrant whose supplies are all exempt is not required to be registered and may close the GST/HST account.	In Force	2026-07-31	Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7(j.1)-(j.2) Show statutory text "7 A supply of any of the following services if the service is rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service: (a) optometric services; ... (j) psychological services; (j.1) psychotherapy services; (j.2) counselling therapy services; (k) midwifery services; (l) acupuncture services; and (m) naturopathic services." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14) Regulatory model none Authority basis tax Enforcement body Canada Revenue Agency Enactment date 2024-06-20 Effective date 2024-06-20 Penalties — Consent required No Documentation required No Confidence high Bill C-59 Record ID ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-psychotherapy-counselling
Federal	Clinical social worker	Social work services are exempt from GST/HST, but under a materially narrower test than the psychotherapy and counselling therapy exemptions. Two conditions must both hold: the service is rendered within a professional-client relationship AND is provided for the prevention, assessment or remediation of — or to assist the individual in coping with — a physical, emotional, behavioural or mental disorder or disability. The disorder may be the client's own or that of a related person the client cares for or supervises otherwise than professionally. Separately, the practitioner must be licensed where the province requires it, or hold equivalent qualifications where it does not. A social work service outside that clinical purpose test is not exempt under this provision.	In Force	2026-07-31	Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7.2 Show statutory text "7.2 A supply of a service rendered in the practice of the profession of social work where (a) the service is rendered to an individual within a professional-client relationship between the particular individual who renders the service and the individual and is provided for the prevention, assessment or remediation of, or to assist the individual in coping with, a physical, emotional, behavioural or mental disorder or disability of the individual or of another individual to whom the individual is related or to whom the individual provides care or supervision otherwise than in a professional capacity; and (b) either (i) if the particular individual is required to be licensed or otherwise certified to practise the profession of social work in the province in which the service is supplied, the particular individual is so licensed or certified, or (ii) if the particular individual is not required to be licensed or otherwise certified to practise that profession in that province, the particular individual has the qualifications equivalent to those..." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7.2 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14) Regulatory model none Authority basis tax Enforcement body Canada Revenue Agency Enactment date not traced Effective date not traced Penalties — Consent required No Documentation required No Confidence high Record ID ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-social-work

GST/HST — obligations by jurisdiction and profession, each sourced to its primary text and dated to the last check against it.

Jurisdiction

Applies to

The rule

Status

Last verified

Source & citation

Federal

Not limited to a listed profession

Nursing services rendered to an individual within a nurse-patient relationship are exempt from GST/HST. This matters to behavioural-health practice because where provincial law permits a nurse to provide psychotherapy within their scope of nursing practice, CRA treats the nursing exemption at s. 6 as the applicable provision rather than the psychotherapy exemption added in 2024 — so the test is the nurse-patient relationship, not the s. 7 practitioner definition.

In Force

2026-07-31

Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 6

Show statutory text

"6 A supply of a nursing service rendered to an individual by a registered nurse, a registered nursing assistant, a licensed or registered practical nurse or a registered psychiatric nurse, if the service is rendered within a nurse-patient relationship." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 6 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14)

Regulatory model: none
Authority basis: tax
Enforcement body: Canada Revenue Agency
Enactment date: not traced
Effective date: not traced
Penalties: —
Consent required: No
Documentation required: No
Confidence: high
Record ID: ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-nursing

Federal

Psychologist

Psychological services rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service are exempt supplies — GST/HST is not charged on them. This exemption is long-standing and was NOT created or altered by the 2024 Bill C-59 amendment that added psychotherapy and counselling therapy; psychologists were already exempt before it and are unaffected by it.

In Force

2026-07-31

Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7(j)

Show statutory text

"7 A supply of any of the following services if the service is rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service: (a) optometric services; ... (i) occupational therapy services; (j) psychological services; (j.1) psychotherapy services; (j.2) counselling therapy services; ..." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14). Paragraph (j) sits immediately before the two paragraphs added by S.C. 2024, c. 15, and was not amended by it.

Regulatory model: none
Authority basis: tax
Enforcement body: Canada Revenue Agency
Enactment date: not traced
Effective date: not traced
Penalties: —
Consent required: No
Documentation required: No
Confidence: high
Record ID: ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-psychology

Federal

Psychotherapist, Counselling therapist

Psychotherapy and counselling therapy services rendered to an individual by a "practitioner" of the service are exempt supplies — GST/HST is not charged on them. On becoming exempt, three consequences follow that practitioners routinely miss: input tax credits are no longer claimable on inputs acquired to make these supplies; a change in use of capital property may trigger a deemed sale and repurchase; and a registrant whose supplies are all exempt is not required to be registered and may close the GST/HST account.

In Force

2026-07-31

Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7(j.1)-(j.2)

Show statutory text

"7 A supply of any of the following services if the service is rendered to an individual by a practitioner of the service: (a) optometric services; ... (j) psychological services; (j.1) psychotherapy services; (j.2) counselling therapy services; (k) midwifery services; (l) acupuncture services; and (m) naturopathic services." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14)

Regulatory model: none
Authority basis: tax
Enforcement body: Canada Revenue Agency
Enactment date: 2024-06-20
Effective date: 2024-06-20
Penalties: —
Consent required: No
Documentation required: No
Confidence: high
Bill: C-59
Record ID: ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-psychotherapy-counselling

Federal

Clinical social worker

Social work services are exempt from GST/HST, but under a materially narrower test than the psychotherapy and counselling therapy exemptions. Two conditions must both hold: the service is rendered within a professional-client relationship AND is provided for the prevention, assessment or remediation of — or to assist the individual in coping with — a physical, emotional, behavioural or mental disorder or disability. The disorder may be the client's own or that of a related person the client cares for or supervises otherwise than professionally. Separately, the practitioner must be licensed where the province requires it, or hold equivalent qualifications where it does not. A social work service outside that clinical purpose test is not exempt under this provision.

In Force

2026-07-31

Excise Tax Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15, Sch. V, Pt. II, s. 7.2

Show statutory text

"7.2 A supply of a service rendered in the practice of the profession of social work where (a) the service is rendered to an individual within a professional-client relationship between the particular individual who renders the service and the individual and is provided for the prevention, assessment or remediation of, or to assist the individual in coping with, a physical, emotional, behavioural or mental disorder or disability of the individual or of another individual to whom the individual is related or to whom the individual provides care or supervision otherwise than in a professional capacity; and (b) either (i) if the particular individual is required to be licensed or otherwise certified to practise the profession of social work in the province in which the service is supplied, the particular individual is so licensed or certified, or (ii) if the particular individual is not required to be licensed or otherwise certified to practise that profession in that province, the particular individual has the qualifications equivalent to those..." — Excise Tax Act, Schedule V, Part II, s. 7.2 (Justice Laws consolidation, Act current to 2026-06-14)

Regulatory model: none
Authority basis: tax
Enforcement body: Canada Revenue Agency
Enactment date: not traced
Effective date: not traced
Penalties: —
Consent required: No
Documentation required: No
Confidence: high
Record ID: ca-federal-tax-gst-hst-social-work