03/20/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 03/20/2024 18:57
SK Budget 2024 announces that it will keep the small business tax rate at 1% until June 30, 2025 (instead of June 30, 2024); the rate will go up to 2% on July 1, 2025. The budget also enhances and introduces several business tax incentive programs to support innovation and investment. It makes no additional changes to provincial sales tax, carbon tax, and other excise taxes.
SK Budget 2024 estimates a deficit of $482.5 million for the 2023-24 fiscal year, compared to a $1.107 billion surplus projected in the previous budget. The $1.5 billion decline is primarily attributed to increased spending in agriculture due to severe drought, as well as in other sectors, like health care and education.
Fiscal projections for the next four years are as follows:
Year | Projected surplus / (deficit) |
2024-25 | ($273.2 million) |
2025-26 | $18.5 million |
2026-27 | $225.1 million |
2027-28 | $339.6 million |
Saskatchewan's small business tax rate is currently at 1% and was set to return to 2% on July 1, 2024. SK Budget 2024 announces the extension of the 1% small business rate to June 30, 2025. The rate is set to return to 2% on July 1, 2025.
2024 small business rates
Period | Provincial small business rate |
January 1, 2024 - June 30, 2025 | 1% |
July 1, 2025 onwards | 2% |
SK Budget 2024 proposes no changes to the $600,000 small business income limit.
Combined federal and Saskatchewan corporate tax rates
Corporate tax rates | 2024 |
Small business tax rate (income up to $500,000) |
10% |
Small business tax rate (income between $500,000 and $600,000) |
16% |
General corporate tax rate | 27% |
Manufacturing and processing tax rate |
25% |
SK Budget 2024 enhances the Saskatchewan Technology Start-up Incentive to:
This tax incentive intends to encourage investment in early-stage technology businesses with head offices in Saskatchewan by providing a 45% non-refundable tax credit to eligible investors with taxes owing in the province. For additional details, refer to the Innovation Saskatchewan website.
SK Budget 2024 enhances the Saskatchewan Petroleum Innovation Incentive by:
This tax incentive encourages innovation in Saskatchewan's oil and gas industry by providing transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax credits for eligible projects at a rate of 25% of eligible program costs. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 introduces the Saskatchewan Critical Minerals Innovation Incentive to provide transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax credits for eligible critical minerals projects at a rate of 25% of eligible program costs.
The tax incentive supports pilot and commercial scaling projects that achieve certain targets such as the management of environmental impacts or the commercialization of by-products or waste, amongst others. This incentive shares the $100 million funding cap with the Saskatchewan Petroleum Innovation Incentive. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 extends the acceptance period for new applications for the Saskatchewan Commercial Innovation Incentive to June 30, 2025. This incentive seeks to enhance intellectual property development in Saskatchewan by reducing the provincial corporate income tax rate to 6% for 10 consecutive years for eligible corporations that commercialize their qualifying intellectual property. The benefit can be extended up to 15 years if at least half of the associated research and development is conducted in the province. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 enhances the Oil and Gas Processing Investment Incentive by:
This tax incentive targets qualified greenfield or brownfield value-added projects in Saskatchewan's oil and gas industry. This incentive provides transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax credits at a rate of 15% of eligible program costs. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 introduces the Critical Minerals Processing Investment Incentive to further support Saskatchewan's critical minerals strategy, in addition to the Saskatchewan Critical Minerals Innovation Incentive. This program provides transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax credits at a rate of 15% of eligible program costs.
This tax incentive is available to all types of new or expanded value-added processing projects in the critical minerals sector of the province. It shares the $500 million funding cap with the Oil and Gas Processing Investment Incentive. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 introduces the Multi-lateral Well Program to encourage new 'multi-lateral' oil well drilling configurations that can potentially increase the rates of oil recovery and thereby enable further development opportunities. This program offers transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax incentives for new oil wells that meet certain specifications. This tax incentive applies to eligible new wells drilled between April 1, 2024 and March 31, 2028. For additional details, see the province's website.
SK Budget 2024 doesn't change the personal rates. The indexed personal tax brackets and the respective marginal tax rates for 2024 are as follows:
Tax brackets | Marginal tax rates |
$52,057 or less | 10.5% |
$52,058 - $148,734 | 12.5% |
$148,735 and over | 14.5% |
Taxable income | 2024 |
Salary/interest | 47.50% |
Capital gains | 23.75% |
Eligible dividends | 29.64% |
Non-eligible dividends | 40.86% |
Health care - SK Budget 2024 invests $7.6 billion in health care (up more than 8% from last year). This funding supports the recruitment, training, and retention of health care workers, capital investments in health infrastructure to create more capacity, and initiatives like the Senior Citizens Ambulance Assistance Program and Seniors' Drug Plan.
Education - SK Budget 2024 provides $4.4 billion in overall funding for education (up 9.4% from last year) to support pre-K - grade 12 schools, early learning, childcare, libraries, and post-secondary training and infrastructure programs. SK Budget 2024 also continues to provide up to $20,000 in rebates for eligible post-secondary graduates who stay in the province to work, under the Graduate Retention Program.
Social services - SK Budget 2024 includes $1.5 billion in funding for social services (up 7.8% from last year). This spending will support the province's homelessness response, increase the existing foster care and extended family care allowance rates, and fund benefits like the Saskatchewan Income Support and Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability.
Agriculture - SK Budget 2024 invests $570.6 million in agriculture (up 4.1% from last year) to fund research and enhancements to crop insurance. $89.4 million will be used to fund strategic initiatives under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership.
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Visit our Budget 2024 hub to learn more about all federal and provincial budgets.