Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
Land transfer tax on an $800,000 home is $12,475 in Ontario, and $24,950 if that home sits in Toronto, because the city adds an identical second tax. Buyers pay it when the deal registers, in cash, and it isn’t something the mortgage covers. That surprise is why the land transfer tax belongs in your budget before you write an offer.
Some provinces skip the tax. Alberta, for one, only charges registration levies, and Quebec, BC and Manitoba each run their own scale. The land transfer tax calculator covers every province and territory, including the first-time buyer refunds.
What does the tax look like on the same $800,000 home?
Here’s one price run through the calculator in several places. These figures are a ballpark: they ignore first-time relief, and they leave out legal and registration fees.
| Where | Tax on $800,000 | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario, outside Toronto | $12,475 | Provincial tax only |
| Toronto | $24,950 | $12,475 provincial plus $12,475 municipal |
| British Columbia | $14,000 | Property transfer tax, before exemptions |
| Manitoba | $13,650 | Land titles fee comes on top |
| Quebec | $10,110.50 | Provincial brackets only, a minimum |
| Alberta | $800 | Registration levy, not a tax |
The Quebec number is a floor, because above $500,000 each municipality sets its own higher brackets and Montreal uses a separate schedule. Ask your notary for the exact welcome tax, or try the welcome tax calculator.
Same price, a spread of nearly $15,000. Where you buy matters more than how you negotiate.
How Ontario works out the land transfer tax
Ontario taxes the price in slices. The first $55,000 is taxed at 0.5%, the slice from $55,000 to $250,000 at 1%, from $250,000 to $400,000 at 1.5%, and everything above $400,000 at 2%. The part of a price over $2 million gets 2.5% instead, if the home is for one or two families.
Work it through for $800,000. That’s $275 on the first slice, $1,950 on the next, $2,250 after that, and 2% of $400,000, which is $8,000. The total is $12,475, the same as the calculator shows.
The price isn’t always the taxable amount. Ontario’s page says the base can include liabilities you take over and some construction costs, though HST on the price itself is excluded.
What does a cheaper home cost?
Run $500,000 through the same slices. The first $55,000 is $275, the next $195,000 is $1,950, the next $150,000 is $2,250 and the last $100,000 at 2% is $2,000. The total is $4,475 in Ontario. Outside Toronto that is the whole bill. A buyer there with no rebate hands over $4,475 at closing, which is nothing to sneeze at when the down payment already stings.
Notice how the tax grows. Going from $500,000 to $800,000 raises the price by 60% but the Ontario tax by about 179%, because every extra dollar over $400,000 is taxed at 2%.
What does Toronto add, and what can first-time buyers get back?
Toronto’s municipal tax uses the same scale as Ontario’s up to $2 million, then climbs much faster on luxury homes. At $800,000 it’s a mirror image of the provincial bill.
First-time buyers can recover up to $4,000 of the Ontario tax, and the City lists up to $4,475 back on its side. We used those amounts. There was a council proposal to widen the city rebate from March 2026, and we couldn’t find the outcome, so check the City of Toronto page before relying on the $4,475.
On an $800,000 Toronto purchase, that cuts the bill from $24,950 to $16,475. On a $500,000 Toronto home the two taxes come to $8,950 ($4,475 each) and the rebates take it down to $475. Not free. Closer.
Mistakes that blow up a closing budget
The big one is forgetting the tax entirely when you work out your down payment. Run it through the closing costs calculator with legal fees and adjustments before you book your mortgage pre-approval.
Second, assuming one scale fits every property. Ontario’s 2.5% band above $2 million and Toronto’s current scale are for one or two family homes. Other property types follow other rules, and our calculator doesn’t model them.
Third, foreign buyers. Buyers who aren’t residents face an extra 25% in Ontario on certain residential purchases, and BC and Nova Scotia add their own surcharges. Ontario’s land transfer tax page confirms the Ontario rate is 25 per cent (the Non-Resident Speculation Tax, raised on October 25, 2022). The non-resident buyer tax calculator shows the difference. The federal ban on foreign buyers is listed as running to 1 January 2027, but we found no official page on an extension.
Buying in BC? The BC property transfer tax calculator handles the first-time buyer exemption, which has its own price thresholds.
Sources, and how we checked them
Ontario’s brackets, the $4,000 refund and the 25% non-resident tax come from the Ontario Ministry of Finance pages. Toronto’s scale is taken from the city’s own MLTT rates page. BC, Quebec, Manitoba and Alberta figures follow each government’s current published rates, checked in September 2026. Rules change in budgets, so confirm with your lawyer or notary before closing.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays land transfer tax, the buyer or the seller?
The buyer. In Ontario the tax is due when the transfer registers.
Can I roll land transfer tax into my mortgage?
Not as a rule. Plan to have it in cash at closing, along with legal fees.
Does Alberta have a land transfer tax?
No. It charges a registration levy on the transfer and on the mortgage, which is much smaller.
How much can first-time buyers in Toronto get back?
Up to $4,000 from Ontario and up to $4,475 from the City of Toronto, based on the City's page in December 2025. Check for any change.
Does the tax apply to a condo?
Yes, it applies to any conveyance unless exempt. The higher scales above $2 million in Ontario apply only to one or two family homes.
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