Most provinces charge a land transfer tax when you buy a home, worked out in bands like income tax. Toronto and Montreal add their own on top. It’s paid on closing, usually through your lawyer or notary, and it’s one of the biggest closing costs after the down payment.

Examples

Purchase	Tax
$850,000 in Ontario (outside Toronto)	$13,475
$850,000 in Toronto	$26,950
$850,000 in Toronto, first-time buyer	$18,475
$800,000 in British Columbia	$14,000
$800,000 in British Columbia, first-time buyer	$6,000
$700,000 in Montreal	$9,349
$400,000 in Manitoba	$5,650

Ontario and Toronto

Ontario charges 0.5% up to $55,000, 1% to $250,000, 1.5% to $400,000, 2% to $2 million, and 2.5% above $2 million for homes with one or two single-family residences. Toronto’s municipal tax uses the same bands up to $2 million, then since 1 April 2026 rises in steps from 4.4% above $3 million to 8.6% above $20 million, so buyers in Toronto pay roughly double.

First-time buyers: a refund of up to $4,000 from Ontario (no tax on the first $368,000) and up to $4,475 from Toronto.
Foreign buyers: the 25% Non-Resident Speculation Tax applies across Ontario, and Toronto adds a 10% municipal tax.

British Columbia

Property transfer tax is 1% of the first $200,000, 2% up to $2 million, 3% up to $3 million and 5% above that on residential property.

First-time buyers: no tax on the first $500,000 (saving up to $8,000) for homes worth up to $835,000, with a partial exemption up to $860,000.
Newly built homes: no tax at all up to $1.1 million, partial up to $1.15 million.
Foreign buyers: an extra 20% in Metro Vancouver and other specified areas.

Quebec and Montreal

Quebec’s transfer duties, known as the welcome tax, are 0.5% up to $62,900, 1% up to $315,000 and 1.5% above that in 2026. Municipalities can charge more on the upper part of the price: Montreal charges 2% from $552,300, 2.5% from $1,104,700, 3.5% from $2,136,500 and 4% from $3,113,000. The tax is billed by the municipality after the sale rather than paid at closing.

Manitoba and the rest of Canada

Manitoba charges nothing up to $30,000, then 0.5%, 1%, 1.5% and 2% above $200,000. Alberta and Saskatchewan have no land transfer tax, only land titles fees. New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island charge a property transfer tax, Nova Scotia’s municipalities charge a deed transfer tax (1.5% in Halifax), and Newfoundland and Labrador charges registration fees. The calculator doesn’t cover these yet.

Sources

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