Thursday, January 8, 2026

Canadian travelers may have been overcharged for hotel quarantine stays

Mexico News Daily has received a tip from a reader and former hotel owner that some Canadian hotels misapplied taxes on hotel quarantine packages, and as a result may have overcharged many customers up to CAD $100.

Canada’s quarantine for returning travelers in early 2021 included a mandatory hotel stay. Quarantine packages often cost upward of CAD $1,000, plus tax.

The former hotel owner was himself wrongfully taxed. After speaking with the hotel manager, he was refunded part of the taxes he had paid.

He advised that travelers request an itemized breakdown of their bill from the hotel to see if taxes were correctly applied. The destination marketing fee (DMF) should only be applied to the room, not the entire package. In British Columbia, the same goes for the short-term accommodation provincial sales tax (PST). Gratuities should not be taxed, he said.

• If you paid for one of Canada’s mandatory quarantine hotel packages, were you wrongfully taxed? Did you get a refund? Send us an email to news@mexiconewsdaily.com.

Mexico News Daily

Have something to say? Paid Subscribers get all access to make & read comments.
cell phone user

Starting Friday, cell users in Mexico must link their phones to an official ID

10
Cell users have until June 30 to carry out the registration with their cell phone companies or risk having their service cut off.
Forensic technicians in white cover-alls stand in front of a stretcher and a white van showing the word "Forense"

Mexico’s homicide rate dropped 30% in 2025, preliminary data shows

4
New data shows that homicides fell in 26 of the country's 32 states, with just six states seeing an increase in killings.
Downtown Mexico City

Citi survey: Banks predict 1.3% GDP growth, peso weakening to 19:1 in 2026

0
Growth forecasts for 2026 from 35 banks surveyed by Citi range from 0.6% to 1.8%, though estimates for 2027 range from 1% to 2.8% — a vote of confidence in Mexico's economy post-USMCA review.
BETA Version - Powered by Perplexity