The Quebec tire tax is a specific duty of $4.50 or $6.00 per new road-vehicle tire, collected by the seller and remitted to Revenu Québec to fund the province’s scrap-tire management program run by RECYC-QUÉBEC.1Revenu Québec. Specific Duty on New Tires — Billing You pay it whenever you buy qualifying new tires or a new vehicle equipped with them, and it appears as a separate line on the receipt.2Revenu Québec. Interpretation and Administrative Bulletin – The Specific Duty on New Tires
How Much the Duty Costs Per Tire
The rate depends on the tire’s overall diameter, not its rim size. Tires with an overall diameter of 83.82 cm (33 inches) or less are charged $4.50 each, which covers most passenger cars, light trucks, and standard SUVs. Tires with an overall diameter greater than 83.82 cm but no more than 123.19 cm (48.5 inches) are charged $6.00 each, which is the bracket for larger commercial and heavy-duty tires.2Revenu Québec. Interpretation and Administrative Bulletin – The Specific Duty on New Tires
The duty only reaches tires within a defined size range: rim diameter no larger than 62.23 cm (24.5 inches) and overall diameter no larger than 123.19 cm. A tire exceeding either measurement falls outside the duty entirely.3Revenu Québec. Tires and Road Vehicles Subject to the Duty Solid tires and foam-filled tires are covered as long as they meet the size limits.
Buying a New Vehicle
Every new tire mounted on a new car, truck, or SUV is subject to the duty, and so is the spare if the vehicle comes with one.3Revenu Québec. Tires and Road Vehicles Subject to the Duty For a typical passenger car with four mounted tires plus a spare, that is $22.50 added to the purchase price at the $4.50 rate. Dealerships collect and remit the duty the same way a tire shop does, and businesses that lease vehicles long-term must collect it at the start of the lease when the vehicle is equipped with new tires.4Revenu Québec. Registration – Specific Duty on New Tires
Tires That Are Not Charged
Retreaded and remoulded tires are excluded. The duty was paid on the casing when it was first sold new, so the retreading process is not treated as producing a new tire.1Revenu Québec. Specific Duty on New Tires — Billing Used tires follow the same principle: reselling a tire the duty was already collected on does not trigger a second charge.
Because the duty applies only to tires for “road vehicles” as defined by the Highway Safety Code, tires for rail vehicles, power-assisted bicycles, and electrically propelled wheelchairs are not covered.2Revenu Québec. Interpretation and Administrative Bulletin – The Specific Duty on New Tires Very large tires that exceed the size limits, such as those used on heavy mining or construction equipment, are also outside the duty’s reach.3Revenu Québec. Tires and Road Vehicles Subject to the Duty
GST and QST on Top of the Duty
The duty is not itself tax-free. Both the 5% GST and the 9.975% QST are calculated on the duty amount, so the sticker cost per tire is slightly higher than the flat rate suggests. GST applies unless the vendor is an unregistered small supplier; QST always applies, including when the vendor is a small supplier.5Revenu Québec. Purchase of a Road Vehicle Equipped with New Tires
On a $4.50 duty, that works out to roughly $0.23 in GST and $0.45 in QST on the duty portion. A set of four passenger tires carries about $18.00 in duty and roughly $2.70 in additional sales tax on that duty. Small per tire, meaningful across a fleet.
What Sellers Have to Do
Any business that sells new tires at retail, sells vehicles equipped with new tires, or leases such vehicles long-term must register for QST for those activities, even if it is a small supplier or a non-resident business that would otherwise be exempt from QST registration.2Revenu Québec. Interpretation and Administrative Bulletin – The Specific Duty on New Tires A business that only needs registration for the tire duty can stay unregistered for all other QST purposes.
The duty must be shown as a separate line item on every invoice or receipt.1Revenu Québec. Specific Duty on New Tires — Billing Retailers do not keep the money. They report and remit it to Revenu Québec using form VDZ-541.49-V, “Return Respecting the Specific Duty on New Tires.”6Revenu Québec. Return Respecting the Specific Duty on New Tires VDZ-541.49-V The filing schedule tracks the retailer’s regular QST reporting period: monthly and quarterly filers have one month after the period ends, and annual filers have three months after the last day of their fiscal year.7Revenu Québec. Filing a Return and Remitting the Specific Duty on New Tires Missing a deadline or failing to itemize the duty on invoices can lead to administrative penalties.