Just a quick example to show you the seemingly random and confusing aspects of the PST. The following applies to optical retailers.
Taxable items:
* Accessories, optical - sold or charged separately from prescription optical goods
* Cases - sold or charged separately from prescription optical goods
* Chains - sold or charged separately from prescription optical goods
* Cleaning solutions - for lenses and frames
* Clip-on sunglasses - sold or charged separately from prescription glasses
* Contact lens preparations or solutions
* Contact lenses, non-prescription
* Eye drops - for lubricating or re-wetting contact lenses
* Frames - sold or charged separately from prescription optical goods
* Lens wipes
* Reading glasses, non-prescription
* Re-wetting drops - for lubricating and rewetting soft contact lenses
* Sunglasses, non-prescription
Non-taxable items:
* Anaesthetics
* Accessories, optical (e.g. chains or cases) - sold with prescription optical goods for a single price
* Cases - sold with prescription optical goods for a single price
* Chains - sold with prescription optical goods for a single price
* Clip-on sunglasses - sold with prescription glasses for a single price
* Contact lenses and sample disposable contact lenses, prescription
* Drugs and medicines, prescription
* Eye drops (e.g. Murine or Visine) - made for treating, relieving or preventing an eye disease or ailment
* Eye pads, preparations
* Frames - sold with prescription glasses/lenses
* Glasses, prescription
* Lenses, prescription
* Punctal plugs, permanent
* Repairs - to prescription optical goods
Confused? Bear in mind they have many lists like these, imagine the amount of effort required just to set up your cash register. Imagine going to buy a pair of prescription glasses but you forgot to buy the case. You go back a day later to buy the case, now you have to pay PST whereas there would have been no PST had you bought it with the glasses although that only applies if the case is sold with the glasses for a single price.
Prescription contact lenses are non-taxable but the eye drops to lubricate them are. Is that fair? You can create numerous combination that makes no sense just from those lists.
Another example I gave earlier regarding school supplies - namely bags. From the PST legislation: "Bags specifically designed to carry school books and supplies (does not include briefcases, attaché cases, roll bags, backpacks, sport bags or tote bags)" are non-taxable but they don't tell you what bags qualifies.
Some of you may remember going to a store to buy clothing for children and have to fill out a bunch of information to not pay PST. Well here is the relevant piece of legislation: "Clothing and footwear for children under the age of 15 years. See Bulletin SST 009, Children's Clothing". What we end up with however is people pretending to buy clothes for children under 15 and people saying that their kid(s) are growing so fast they have to wear adult clothing while trying to maintain a straight face.