Canada: Parliament suspended until March 2025, effect on tax legislation

Any government bills that have not yet received Royal Assent are considered to cease to exist.

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January 8, 2025

The Prime Minister of Canada on January 6, 2025, announced that the Governor General agreed that Parliament will be suspended until March 24, 2025, and that the Prime Minister will resign once a new party leader is selected. Under Canadian law, when Parliament is suspended, any government bills that have not yet received Royal Assent are considered to cease to exist, and government committees will not sit again until suspension ends.

This development will affect the passage of outstanding legislation and may also influence the timing of the 2025 federal budget. Although no tax bills were currently outstanding, there are several significant tax changes that were announced and, in some cases, released as draft or proposed legislation. These tax proposals cannot be introduced in a bill until the next session of Parliament, assuming the government still intends to proceed with these measures.

Although the next Canadian federal election must take place by October 20, 2025, an election could be called earlier by the government or if a motion of non-confidence in the government succeeds after suspension ends.

Read a January 2025 report prepared by the KPMG member firm in Canada

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