Ontario Gasoline Tax Refund Program

Refunds and rebates

A refund is money returned when a person or business paid too much tax or paid tax in error. This includes situations where someone sent more tax to the Minister of Finance (minister) than they needed to.

A rebate is money returned for tax that was correctly paid but is eligible to be returned to a business or individual under a rebate provision.

Apply for a gasoline tax refund

You must submit a completed refund application to the Ministry of Finance (ministry) within four years of paying the tax. Any portion of a claim submitted after this time will be disallowed.

Refund applications and guides to help you fill out refund applications can be found at the Forms and publications webpage.

Supporting documents

You must submit purchase invoices and other required documents with your application:

• Original invoices and other documents will not be returned.
• Legible copies are accepted.

An invoice covering the sale of gasoline must include all the following information:

• the name and address of the vendor and of the purchaser
• the selling price per litre of the gasoline
• the amount of the tax charged
• the quantity of gasoline purchased
• the date of sale
• the location where title to the gasoline changed from the vendor to the purchaser of the gasoline

Proof of payment of the tax charged on supporting invoices is also required.

Additional supporting documents may be required for specific refund claims. The application guides found at the Forms and publications webpage provide information on the type of documents required.

Records must be retained by claimants for seven years for audit purposes.

For refunds under $500

If your annual claim total is less than $500, you are not required to send the supporting documentation with your application. However, you must keep them for seven years and provide them to the ministry if requested.

Direct bank deposit

Get your refund faster with direct deposit.

Download: Direct Deposit Request / Direct Deposit Authorization

Reference number

When you claim a refund, you will receive a permanent reference number. Use this number whenever you contact the ministry about gasoline tax refunds.

Auxiliary equipment power take-off refund

You may qualify for a Power Take-Off (PTO) refund if you use gasoline in Ontario to power auxiliary equipment on a licensed vehicle.

A unit powered from by the vehicle’s engine using gasoline from the fuel tank is considered a PTO function.

To qualify for the refund, the licensed vehicle cannot be mainly used for the transportation of passengers or for recreational purposes.

In most of these cases, it is not possible to accurately measure the amount of gasoline used. As a result, refund allowances are based on the equipment manufacturer's fuel consumption specifications as approved by the ministry. Refund allowances have been established for many PTO operations and are available on request.

For information on the PTO refund, including information for interjurisdictional carriers, refer to the Tax Refund for a Power Take Off.

Auxiliary Power Take Off (PTO) Equipment refund application

Bad debts and lost, destroyed, stolen or contaminated product

You may be eligible for a refund of tax you’ve already paid or remitted if the product was:

• sold and all or part of the sale price has not been paid and has become an uncollectible debt
• lost, destroyed, stolen or contaminated and cannot be sold or used

You must apply for this refund within the four-year limitation period.

For information about this refund, including more details about eligibility and determining refund amounts, refer to the Bad debts and lost, destroyed, stolen or contaminated product.

Application for Refund Bad Debt (BDT)

Application for Refund Loss of Product (PRL) / Overpayment of Tax

Tax Adjustment Form (Aviation fuel)

You may be eligible for a refund if you purchased aviation fuel at a tax rate higher than the applicable aviation fuel tax rate for Northern Ontario.

The refund amount is the difference between the amount of tax paid on the aviation fuel and the tax applicable on aviation fuel in Northern Ontario.

To qualify:

• The aviation fuel must be purchased and transferred into an aircraft’s fuel tank in Northern Ontario.
• The purchase/sale of the aviation fuel must be in the boundaries designated as Northern Ontario.

Northern Ontario includes the geographic areas of:

• Algoma
• Cochrane
• Kenora
• Manitoulin
• Nipissing
• Parry Sound
• Rainy River
• Sudbury
• Thunder Bay
• Timiskaming

Find information about gasoline tax rates.

Tax Adjustment Form (TAF) refund application

Tax-Exempt Sales (TES)

Refunds are available to:

• authorized retailers on reserves who sold gasoline to eligible First Nations individuals, bands, band-empowered entities and Tribal Councils
• bulk suppliers who delivered gasoline in bulk onto a reserve for the exclusive use of the eligible purchaser and not for resale
• other dealers who made tax-exempt sales

Refer to the Information for on-reserve retailers who sell tax-exempt gas for more information.

Tax exempt sales (TES) refund application

Tax-Exempt Use (TEU)

Gasoline tax is imposed on all grades of gasoline at the time of purchase. A refund of the tax paid may be claimed by the purchaser if you meet all the following conditions:

• you used the gasoline in Ontario for business, industrial or institutional purposes
• you paid tax to Ontario on the gasoline used
• the equipment used is not licensed or required to be licensed under the Highway Traffic Act
• the equipment is not used for recreation or pleasure, and
• you keep all records of gasoline use to support your claim for a refund.

The propane tax was removed as of July 1, 2025. Applications for refunds of overpayments of propane tax paid prior to July 1, 2025, can be submitted by July 1, 2027.

Equipment for which a refund may be claimed

Gasoline tax refunds may be claimed for gasoline used in the following types of equipment:

• farming equipment - unlicensed tractors, combines
• construction equipment - unlicensed bulldozers, graders
• forestry equipment - unlicensed skidders, slashers
• commercial fishing vessels
• construction work boats
• rental boats

Note: Gasoline used outside of Ontario does not qualify for a tax refund. Gasoline used in any licensed vehicle does not qualify for a tax refund.

Taxable and refundable use of fuels under the Gasoline Tax Act

As of July 1, 2025, all uses of propane are non-taxable. Anyone seeking a refund of tax paid on propane prior to July 1, 2025, must submit a refund application by July 1, 2027.

Tax Exempt Use (TEU) refund application

Ambient temperature / volume measurement refund (TEU refund)

Fuel and gasoline taxes are calculated using the same method of volume measurement (ambient or volume corrected) used to calculate the product selling price.

Collectors and wholesalers may provide an ambient temperature allowance to your customers to offset the tax differential where a customer buys product measured on a volume corrected basis but dispenses only on an ambient temperature basis. The ambient temperature allowance is:

• 0.35% for gasoline tax
• 0.25% for fuel tax.

Retailers that dispense product on an ambient temperature only basis may apply for a refund of tax differential where your supplier has collected tax on a volume corrected basis and no ambient temperature allowance has been provided by your supplier.

If you paid more tax than necessary because of a difference in volume measurement method – that is, if you did not receive the allowance – you can apply for a refund. Refund applications may be filed as often as monthly.

Refunds must be claimed within four years of the date the tax was paid.

Tax exempt use (TEU) refund application

Retailer refund for gasoline lost through evaporation, temperature changes or minor spillage (TEU refund)

Eligible gasoline retailers may claim a tax refund in the form of an allowance of 0.21% of the tax paid on gasoline sold at retail. This refund allowance represents the tax paid by the retailer on gasoline lost through evaporation, temperature changes or minor spillage.

An eligible retailer must meet all the following requirements:

• have paid tax to their supplier on gasoline purchases
• not be a collector or an employee of a collector designated under the Act
• be licensed under the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000

The refund allowance is calculated only on the quantity of gasoline sold at retail, but not on gasoline:

• purchased on consignment, unless the retailer is responsible for and pays the consignor for all consignment losses
• used in unlicensed equipment by the retailer
• sold at wholesale

Inventory records and receipted invoices showing the quantity of gasoline and the date upon which gasoline tax was paid must be submitted with the refund application.

Tax exempt use (TEU) refund application

Contact us

For more information, refer to the Act and related regulations or contact the Ministry of Finance by:

• phone: 1-866-ONT-TAXS (668-8297) (1-866-668-8297)
• email: commodity.tax@ontario.ca
• mail:
  Ministry of Finance
  Account Management and Collections Branch
  33 King Street West
  PO Box 625
  Oshawa, Ontario
  L1H 8E9