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Driving, heating your home and even bingeing on Netflix is about to get more expensive as the provincial government brings in a range of tax hikes April 1.

One of the new taxes is the so-called Netflix tax, which requires “Canadian and foreign sellers of software and telecommunication services” with more than $10,000 in B.C. sales to register, collect and remit provincial sales tax.

The tax will cost the streaming service’s premium subscribers an extra $14.27 a year. Netflix subscribers were recently notified “a recent change in British Columbia’s tax laws” meant the seven per cent provincial sales tax would now be added to monthly membership fees.

Spotify also warned customers of the impending tax, assuring customers their fees would increased by “no more than $1.05 per month,” depending on their subscription plan.

The tax on streaming services and the seven per cent PST on sugary drinks and vaping products were unveiled in the NDP government’s 2020 budget. The taxes were set to take effect last year but were deferred because of the economic impacts of the pandemic. Budget documents from 2020 said the streaming tax was expected to generate $16 million in the province’s 2021-2022 fiscal year. The Ministry of Finance was not able to confirm whether that is still the projected revenue.

The carbon tax also goes up April 1, raising the price at the gas pumps for drivers and increasing home heating bills for those who heat their homes with oil or gas. The carbon tax will increase from $40 to $45 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent, a hike that was also delayed a year because of the pandemic.

Interim Liberal leader Shirley Bond said the new taxes are coming “at the worst possible time” given the restrictions on indoor dining announced Monday, which will result in layoffs for restaurant and hospitality workers, and should be suspended.

“People have just been told many of them won’t be able to work for three weeks and new taxes are being added,” Bond said. “Many people are just barely hanging on.”

Finance Minister Selina Robinson ruled that out.

“We were clear these delays would be in place for one year — until this April, which we confirmed last September to give time for businesses to more time to implement the changes,” she said in a statement released Wednesday.

Kris Sims, B.C. director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said the increased carbon tax is “kicking people while they’re down.”

“People will be paying more to heat, eat and drive to work as of [April 1],” Sims said. “Everyday working people are stretched to their limits right now, so it’s very disappointing to see Premier John Horgan increasing the carbon tax.”

The federation said the carbon tax will cost 9.9 cents per litre of gasoline, 12 cents per litre of diesel and 8.8 cents per cubic metre of natural gas, which will cost drivers an extra $7 to fill up a minivan, $12 extra for a light duty pickup truck and $65 for a big rig truck that delivers food and essential goods.

“These added costs to everyday life add up and when politicians increase the carbon tax, they increase the cost of heating, eating and getting to work,” Sims said.

The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy said in a statement that “putting a price of pollution is the best way to fight climate change” and the carbon pricing funds programs which incentivize businesses to use cleaner energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

— With files from Derrick Penner