Recently the federal government has indicated that it will act in the Parliament to offer an apology for the Chinese Head Tax.

On July 31, 1878, the B.C. Legislature unanimously passed a bill stating that: "This House is of the opinion that Chinese should not be employed upon the public works of the province."

Two laws were passed in the B.C. Legislature in 1884. The first mandated that every Chinese person over the age of 14 years purchase a licence for a sum set at $100. The second stated that it was unlawful for Chinese migrants to enter the province and that a fine of $50 or six months imprisonment would be levied on lawbreakers.

Both laws were disallowed by the federal government.

However, one year later in 1885, the federal government passed the law to impose a Head Tax of $50 on all Chinese immigrants. It was raised to $100 in 1901 and increased to $500 in 1904.

In 1923 the federal government passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which prohibited all Chinese, except diplomats, visiting businessmen and students, from entering Canada.

About 80,000 Chinese immigrants paid $26 million during a period of 40 years, and from 1923 to 1947, both the population and the community's morale declined. This amount of head tax collected is equivalent to the cost of constructing the Canadian Pacific Railway from Halifax to Vancouver, or 13 B.C. Parliament Buildings, which cost about $2 million to build, including all three wings in 1915. In fact, the construction of this building was financed by the Chinese head tax.
 
This apology is long overdue. Finally, a government in Ottawa is making good on their word to address the wrong and black mark in Canada's history.