Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT)

Section 400.1 of the Municipal Act, 2001, S.O. 2001, c. 25 provides that a municipality may pass by-laws imposing a tax in respect of the purchase of transient accommodation within the municipality.

Ontario Regulation 435/17: Transient Accommodation Tax under the Municipal Act, 2001 came into effect December 1, 2017, allowing municipalities to levy a Municipal Accommodation Tax.

Whitby Town Council approved By-law # 8082-24 establishing a mandatory MAT to be collected as of July 1, 2024.

As a registered hotel or motel operator, you are required to collect and remit a four percent MAT on all room rentals. The MAT is applied on all room rental accommodations of four hours or more and continuous stays of 29 days or less.

The MAT is only applied to the cost of a room used for accommodation. The MAT is not applicable when a room that may or may not contain a bed is being used for displaying merchandise, meetings or entertainment and not being used for accommodation.

The MAT is not charged on other hotel services such as meeting room rentals, parking, food and beverage, room services, internet, and phone charges, provided they are itemized separately on the bill.

The Municipal Accommodation Tax does not apply to the following accommodations:

• Hotel, and motel rooms rented for more than 29 consecutive days.

• the Crown, every agency of the Crown in right of Ontario, and every authority, board, commission, corporation, office or organization of persons a majority of whose directors, members or officers are appointed or chosen by or under the authority of the Lieutenant Governor in Council or a member of the Executive Council;
• every board as defined in subsection 1(1) of the Education Act;
• every university in Ontario and every college of applied arts and technology and post-secondary institution in Ontario whether or not affiliated with a university, the enrolments of which are counted for purposes of calculating operating grants entitlements from the Crown;
• every hospital referred to in the list of hospitals and their grades and classifications maintained by the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care under the Public Hospitals Act and every private hospital operated under the authority of a licence issued under the Private Hospitals Act;
• every long-term care home as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Fixing Long-Term Care Act, 2021 and every hospice;
• a hotel or motel used by the Town or its service providers for shelter purposes;
• a treatment centre that receives private funding or provincial aid under the Ministry of Community and Social Services Act;
• a house of refuge or Lodging for the reformation of offenders;
• a “lodging house” as defined in the Town’s Business Licensing By-law #5545-04, as amended;
• a charitable, non-profit philanthropic corporation organized as shelter for the relief of the poor or for emergency;
• a tent or trailer site supplied by a campground, tourist camp or trailer park;
• employers to their employees in premises operated by the employer;
• a hospitality room in an establishment that may or may not contain a bed and is used for displaying merchandise, holding meetings or entertaining; or,
• group bookings with contracts that are entered into prior to the date that this By-law takes effect.

The Town of Whitby (Whitby) has designated the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association (ORHMA), as its agent, to collect the MAT from Accommodation Providers and remit it to the Town.

ORHMA provides Accommodation Providers with an online “MAT Reporting Tool” that calculates the MAT owing. Required data for this tool are:

• Name of the Property.
• Property MAT contact person name, email, and phone.
• Contact information of Manager, Accountant and Owner.
• Room nights available.
• Room nights occupied.
• Rooms Revenue.
• Rooms Revenue with Exemption/reasons.

For access and information on how to remit payments, contact ORHMA by email mat@orhma.com or call 905-361-0268.

Reporting Due Dates

The MAT report and payment are due every month, within 15 days of the end of the month, according to the following schedule:

MAT & HST Calculations

The MAT is subject to HST. Therefore, Accommodation Providers must charge HST on the MAT, and you will need to pay this HST and your other HST payments to the Canada Revenue Agency.

Sample calculation of the MAT and HST:

• Total room charge/rate: $100
• MAT 4 percent: $4
• Net total of rooms charge and MAT: $104
• HST 13 percent: $13.52
• Total: $117.52

Late Payments and Interest Charges

Interest applies on any overdue MAT payment at a monthly rate of 1.25 percent from the first day after the tax payment is due, up to and including the date on which the tax is paid in full.

Unpaid MAT, penalties and interest due may be added to the tax roll; it may become a lien against the property per Town of Whitby By-law # 8082-24.

Hotel/Motel Registration

To register a hotel/motel or change an existing registration  with Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association for the MAT collection, please get in touch with ORHMA at email mat@orhma.com or call 905-361-0268. 

All guest invoices must include a separate line for “Municipal Accommodation Tax” as of July 1, 2024. The four percent (4%) tax applies only to the room cost portion of overnight accommodation and excludes costs from other services, including meeting room rentals, parking, food and beverage, room services, internet and phone charges, provided they are itemized separately on the bill.

Is the MAT a mandatory or voluntary tax?

The MAT is a mandatory tax that is included in the accommodation payment at the time of booking with the Accommodation Provider.

Is this tax on Whitby businesses, residents and ratepayers?

No. The MAT is neither a business tax nor a resident tax. This tax is paid by guests making accommodation bookings at Whitby-based hotels and motels. The Province of Ontario permitted municipalities to create the MAT in 2017 as a vehicle to provide continued investment in tourism without additional tax burden on local businesses or residents.

How will the revenue collected as part of the MAT be spent?

Tourism is a significant employment and economic driver. The MAT enables the Town of Whitby and the Whitby Tourism Development Corporation to fund destination marketing and tourism development initiatives, including but not limited to investing in tourism infrastructure and the development and promotion of tourism product that positively impact the local economy, without contributions from local taxpayers.

What is the Whitby Tourism Development Corporation?

The Province of Ontario requires the Town of Whitby to share 50% of the MAT with a non-profit eligible tourism entity. The Whitby Tourism Development Corporation is the eligible tourism entity that receives this 50% of funds. It reports annually to Whitby Town Council on its use of the MAT.