FMA TOOLKIT: BUSINESS ACTIVITY OR SERVICE OPTIONS
The FMA provides First Nations with options for determining how best to pay for services.
- Business Activity Taxes:
This authority enables First Nations to tax a variety of business activities conducted on their reserve lands. Sample business activity taxes have been developed for hotels, business occupancy, well drilling and quarry operations. - Fee Laws:
Service fees are an essential fiscal tool for governments providing services, and for governments to provide or support a wide range of services. Service fee laws are collected to directly fund the costs of providing a specific service to residents or users of the reserve.
The FNTC has established Standards for the Form and Content of Business Activity or Service Option Laws. You can find the standards, guides and samples on right sidebar: or below on small screens:
Business Activity Tax Laws (BATs)
First Nations have the authority to make Business Activity Tax (BAT) Laws under the FMA.
This authority enables First Nations to tax a variety of business activities conducted on their reserve lands.
The FNTC has developed sample laws for four BATs:
- A business occupancy tax law for the taxation of business occupancies on First Nation lands in Manitoba
- A well drilling tax law for the taxation of oil and gas well-drilling activity on reserve lands in Alberta
- A quarry tax law for the taxation of quarry activity in British Columbia
- An accommodation operator tax law for the taxation of accommodation operators
If your First Nation is considering developing a BAT Law:
- Contact the FNTC to discuss the process Email FNTC Toll Free: 1-855-682-3682
- Request a FNTC presentation to your Chief & Council and senior staff
If your First Nation has decided to proceed with a BAT Law Development:
- Develop a law development work plan in conjunction with the FNTC
BAT: Accommodation Operator (MB)
- Download BAT Accomodation Operator standards and sample law
- View Webinar: Accommodation Tax (can’t find this one??
BAT: Well-Drilling (AB)
- Download BAT Well Drilling standards and sample law
BAT: Occupancy (MB)
- Download BAT Occupancy standards and sample law
BAT: Quarry (BC)
- Download BAT Quarry Operations standards and sample law
Notification Requirements:
- Download and review Understanding the FMA Notice Requirements
- Provide a s. 6 notice period of at least 45 days
- If there are taxpayers on reserve, the s. 6 notice must be published in at least one of the recommended ways
- Deliver the s. 6 notice to each business located on the reserve that will be subject to the proposed tax
- View Webinar: Notification and Public Input Under the FMA
Submission:
- Download and review Standards for the Submission of Information Required Under s. 8 of the FMA (Submission Standards)
Information required includes:
- Confirmation that its s. 6 notice was delivered to every business on reserve that will be subject to the tax
- Confirmation the First Nation, if required, published the notice in at least one of the additional recommended ways
- Evidence that the law was duly made
Fee Laws
First Nations have the authority to make laws respecting the charging of fees for the provision of services or the use of facilities on reserve lands, or for a regulatory process, permit, license or other authorization.
These fees can be levied in relation to:
- Water, sewer and waste management
- Animal control
- Recreation and transportation
- Any other similar service
Unlike the property taxation powers, service fees are collected to directly fund the costs of providing a specific service to residents or users of the reserve.
Fee revenues are local revenues that must be placed in the First Nation’s local revenue account and expended under the authority of the First Nation’s annual expenditure law.
All fee revenues collected for a service must be spent only on the specific service for which they are collected.
The FNTC has developed Standards for First Nation fee laws based on best practices, while ensuring First Nations have the flexibility to develop fees that will meet the needs of their communities. First Nation fee laws must include certain key elements.
First Nations must prepare and make available to the public a report respecting how fees levied under the fee law were determined that includes:
- The projected cost of the service
- How the cost was determined
- The proportion of the total cost that the First Nation will recover through the fees
If your First Nation is considering a Fee Law:
- Contact the FNTC to discuss the process Email FNTC Toll Free: 1-855-682-3682
- Request a FNTC presentation to your Chief & Council and senior staff
If your First Nation has decided to proceed with Fee Law development:
- Develop a law development work plan in conjunction with the FNTC
- Download and review the Fee Law standards and sample law
Notification Requirements:
- Download and review Understanding the FMA Notice Requirements
- s. 6 notice period is 45 days. If there are taxpayers on reserve, the s. 6 notice must be published in at least one of the recommended ways.
- There are also specific requirements that must appear in the notice.
- The fee law report supporting the fees must be made available to the public and posted on the First Nation’s website
- View Webinar: Notification and Public Input Under the FMA
Submission:
- Download and review Standards for the Submission of Information Required Under s. 8 of the FMA (Submission Standards)
Information required includes:
- A description of the notices that were given and any consultation undertaken by the Council before making a fee law
- Confirmation that the fee law report was posted for the duration of the section 6 notification period
- The fee law report
- Evidence that the law was duly made
FMA TOOLKIT: ADDITIONAL LOCAL REVENUE LAWS AND RESOURCES