A Vacant Home Tax of one per cent (1%) of the Current Value Assessment of the property will apply to residences that are vacant or deemed vacant. Residential property is considered vacant where the property has been unoccupied for a total of six months throughout the previous year or is otherwise deemed vacant under the City of Toronto bylaw unless an eligible exemption applies.
Further to the below November 2022 SLG Update, all residential property owners in Toronto will be required to submit a Declaration of their property’s occupancy status for the prior year, even if they did occupy it in such year. The occupancy status for 2022 must be declared by February 2, 2023.
All Toronto homes that are declared, deemed, or found to have been vacant for longer than six (6) months during the previous year will be subject to a Vacant Home Tax of one (1%) percent of the Current Value Assessment (CVA) under the current UHT Act. As an illustration, if your property’s CVA is $1,000,000, the tax due would be $10,000 (1 percent x $1,000,000). As mentioned earlier, the tax is determined by the property’s occupancy level for the previous year. You will need your 21-digit assessment roll number as well as your customer number from your tax bill or property tax account statement in order to make a declaration.
Late Declarations
If your property status declaration is not made by the declaration deadline of February 2, 2023, a fine of $250 will be issued. You will have an opportunity to submit a late declaration and based on your response, you may receive a supplementary Vacant Home Tax Notice. Failure to make a declaration will result in your property being deemed vacant. Once deemed vacant, your property will be subject to the tax and you will be issued a Vacancy Tax Notice.
Fines
Being found guilty of breaking any of the following offenses will result in a fine of $250 to $10,000 for each offense, including:
- Failure to make a Declaration as required.
- Making or agreeing in the making of false or deceptive statements in a declaration.
- Altering, hiding, or disposing of any records, in order to evade payment or remittance of tax.
- Making or agreeing in the making of false entries or omission of information.
- Wilfully, in any manner, evading or attempting to evade:
- paying tax
- otherwise complying with the by-law.