Vacant Home Tax (Toronto)토론토 빈집세

What is it?

The Vacant Home Tax (VHT) is a City of Toronto tax on homes that sit empty. Its goal is to push owners to sell or rent out vacant homes so more housing is available, and the money goes to affordable housing programs.

There are two key points. First, every owner of a residential property in Toronto must file a "declaration of occupancy status" every year, even if they live there. Second, if the home was vacant for six months or more in the year and no exemption applies, the owner pays the tax.

The tax applies only inside the City of Toronto. For a home outside Toronto (Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Mississauga and so on), check that municipality’s own rules. The federal Underused Housing Tax (UHT) is a separate tax.

Who has to declare?

• Every owner of residential property in Toronto, every year, even if you live in the home or qualify for an exemption. Most owners pay nothing as long as the declaration arrives on time.
• Each condo unit is declared separately by its owner. If you own several properties, you file one declaration per property.
• No declaration is needed for property assessed fully as multi-residential, commercial or industrial, for vacant land with no structure, or for a parking space or condo locker.
• A newly built home must be declared only once it appears on the annual MPAC assessment roll.

When and how do you declare?

You declare through the City’s online portal. You need the customer number and the 21-digit roll number (or the address) from your property tax bill or Vacant Home Tax notice. The owner or an authorized representative can file.

The deadline is April 30 of the next year. If no declaration is received by then, the City assumes the home was vacant and sends a Vacant Home Tax bill (Notice of Assessment). You can now declare your home’s 2026 occupancy status, and the deadline is April 30, 2027. You can check your property’s declaration and dispute status on the City’s Property Tax Lookup.

How much is it?

Beginning with the 2024 taxation year, the rate is 3% of the property’s MPAC assessed value (Current Value Assessment). For example, an assessed value of $700,000 means $21,000 for the year (an estimate for reference). Assessed values are based on January 1, 2016 values. You can find your home’s assessed value on your MPAC notice or property tax bill.

The 2025 Vacant Home Tax is paid in three equal instalments on September 15, October 15 and November 16, 2026. The September and October due dates have passed; the last instalment is due November 16. The online banking payee is "Vacant Home Tax Toronto (City)". Even if you are on the pre-authorized property tax plan, the VHT must be paid separately.

Late amounts attract interest of 1.25% on the first day of default and on the first day of each month after that, and unpaid tax is added to the property tax roll and collected like property tax. A false declaration, or not providing information when asked, can bring a fine of up to $10,000 on top of the tax.

The four occupancy statuses

Exemptions for a vacant home

• Death of a registered owner: the owner died in the tax year or the two years before. Can be claimed for up to three consecutive years. Death certificate.
• Principal resident in care: in a hospital or long-term or supportive care facility for at least six months. Up to two consecutive years. A letter from the facility on letterhead and proof of prior residence.
• Major repairs or renovations: the work prevents occupancy for at least six months, all required permits were issued, and the City considers the work is proceeding without unnecessary delay. A project description and copies of the permits.
• Transfer of legal ownership: the closing date was in the tax year and 100% of the property changed hands (not a name change or adding or removing a co-owner). Copy of the transfer deed.
• Occupancy for full-time employment: the owner or spouse works full-time in Toronto for at least six months and has a principal residence outside the GTA. Proof of residence outside the GTA and an employer letter.
• Court order prohibiting occupancy for at least six months.
• Vacant new inventory: a never-occupied new unit actively offered for sale, owned by the developer. Up to two years.
• Secondary residence for medical reasons (from 2024): needed by the owner, spouse or dependant for medical treatment, with the principal residence outside the GTA. The City’s medical treatment certificate form.

Supporting documents are required when you claim an exemption, and you must keep the records for at least three years. The City asks you not to upload personal medical documents or photographs.

Buying or selling: check this before closing

The tax attaches to the property, not the person. A home with no declaration is deemed vacant, the tax becomes a lien on the property, and the new owner is responsible for paying it. So the buyer should confirm before closing that the seller filed the declaration, and the seller should give the buyer a copy of the filed declaration.

Who declares depends on when the sale closed. If the home sold during the year being declared (for example, closing in 2025, declared in 2026), either the seller or the buyer can declare, and the "transfer of legal ownership" exemption applies. If the home sold after the year being declared (closing in 2026, but the 2025 status still has to be declared in 2026), only the seller knows the 2025 status, so the seller must declare. If you bought a home that was never declared, talk to your lawyer.

A home bought under power of sale is sold "as is", so the buyer takes on any Vacant Home Tax, and power of sale itself is not an exemption. Ask your lawyer about a clause in the offer confirming the declaration.

If you disagree with a bill

1. File a Notice of Complaint through the online portal, if the home was occupied, qualifies for an exemption, or its assessed value changed. The deadline to dispute a 2025 bill is December 31, 2026. A supplementary bill issued after an audit must be disputed within 90 days of the date on the bill.
2. If the City asks for documents, send copies within 60 days of the letter date: for example, a driver’s licence, income tax notice of assessment, lease, employment records or insurance certificate, and only what was requested.
3. If you disagree with the complaint decision, appeal within 90 days. The City’s Deputy Treasurer holds a written hearing within 90 days of receiving the appeal and issues a decision letter within 30 days of the decision. That decision is final.

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