Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
The Ontario staycation tax credit does not exist for 2026 or 2027, as far as we can find. It covered stays in Ontario during the 2022 tax year only, paid back 20% of eligible accommodation costs and topped out at $200 for one person or $400 for a family. Ontario's own page is now in its web archive.
What was the Ontario staycation tax credit?
The province announced it in its fall 2021 economic statement as a “new, temporary” credit for the 2022 tax year. The idea was to nudge people toward hotels, motels, lodges, bed and breakfasts and short rentals inside Ontario after the pandemic hit tourism hard.
It was refundable. That means you could get the money even if you owed no Ontario tax. You claimed it when you filed the 2022 return, which for most people meant spring 2023.
How much was the credit worth?
The province set the rate at 20% and put a ceiling on the spending it counted. The table shows the rules as the government described them in 2021.
| Item | Individual | Family |
|---|---|---|
| Rate | 20% | 20% |
| Spending counted, at most | $1,000 | $2,000 |
| Credit, at most | $200 | $400 |
| Tax year | 2022 | 2022 |
| Refundable | Yes | Yes |
Say you spent $1,500 on hotel nights as a single person. Only $1,000 counted, so the credit was $200. A couple with children who spent $1,500 got $300, since their limit was $2,000.
At the small end it worked the same way. A weekend that cost $600 would have earned $120 back, a few bucks short of what most people hoped for, but real money for a family on a tight budget.
Who was eligible for the Ontario staycation tax credit?
Ontario residents who paid for eligible accommodation in Ontario during 2022 could claim it, either as an individual or as a family, and the credit was refundable, so owing no Ontario tax did not rule anyone out. The spending limit depended on which of the two you were: $1,000 counted for an individual and $2,000 for a family.
We did not re-check the full eligibility rules on a current page, because the official page has been archived. For a 2022 claim you made or are unsure about, rely on your notice of assessment and your receipts.
Is there an Ontario staycation credit now?
No. We checked, and the official page for the credit has been moved into the Ontario government’s archive of old web pages. It wasn’t renewed for 2023, and we found no current announcement bringing it back. Tourism groups have asked for a return. A request isn’t a decision. Treat any page that says “claim your staycation rebate today” with suspicion.
We couldn’t confirm whether a late 2022 return can still pick it up. If you never filed for that year, ask the CRA, because we won’t guess at it.
What if you claimed it and want to check?
Your notice of assessment for 2022 shows what the CRA accepted, and your CRA account keeps the record. If you’re not sure you ever claimed it, the software or preparer you used for that year may have a copy of the return. We can’t say how a particular claim was handled, so use those records, not this page, to settle it.
Keep in mind that the usual six-year record period is the safe rule for receipts. A 2022 hotel bill is still inside it until the end of 2028, if you want to hold onto it, though the credit itself is gone.
Which Ontario credits can you still claim?
Ontario has other credits, and they’re less fun than a hotel rebate. The basic personal amount, the Ontario Health Premium and the low-income reduction all work through your return without a special form. Tuition, medical costs and donations count too, and the tax credits calculator shows the federal side of those. It is federal only, so it leaves out provincial amounts.
To see what your year adds up to, use the income tax calculator. On $70,000 of employment income in Ontario it shows $11,133.91 of federal and Ontario tax, about 15.9% of your income. Already had tax taken off at work? The tax refund calculator compares that with what you owe.
Mistakes to avoid with travel and tax
Don’t assume a holiday cost is deductible. For an employee, a personal trip is not a tax expense, and nobody gets a break for staying home instead of flying. Trips made for work are a different question, and your employer’s reimbursement rules decide most of it.
Don’t hold receipts for the old credit hoping it comes back. Keep your records for the normal six years, but a hotel bill from a leisure weekend won’t save you tax on its own.
And be careful with the word “rebate” in ads. Some are about a supplier’s own promotion, some are about a government program that ended. Neither is a claim you make on your return. If you’re planning a getaway budget, the budget calculator is a better place to start than a tax form.
Official page on this topic: Ontario: Staycation tax credit (archived page).
Does the 2026 return, due in 2027, have a staycation credit?
No. Ontario's page for the credit now redirects to the province's archive of old web pages, which tells us it is no longer an active program, and we found no announcement bringing it back. The credit was for 2022, so nothing for 2026 appears on the return you file by April 30, 2027.
What you can still claim is on the Ontario tax page. To see your own 2026 tax, use the income tax calculator, and for the HST on hotel stays see our guide to the staycation and HST in Ontario.
Where we checked
The credit details come from the Ontario government's 2021 fall economic statement, the document that introduced it. In November 2026 the province's page for the credit redirected to its archived web pages. The tax figures in the example come from this site's calculators, which use 2026 federal and Ontario rates. We are an independent site, and no government body is behind it.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an Ontario staycation tax credit for 2026?
We found no current Ontario program. The credit applied to the 2022 tax year only, and the official page now redirects to the provincial archive. Treat any page that says to claim a staycation rebate today with suspicion, and check ontario.ca before you rely on it.
How much was the staycation credit?
It was 20% of eligible Ontario accommodation costs. Spending counted up to $1,000 for an individual and $2,000 for a family, so the most you could claim was $200 as an individual and $400 for a family, as the province described it in 2021.
Was the credit refundable?
Yes. The province said residents benefited even if they owed no Ontario income tax. You claimed it on the 2022 return, which for most people was filed in spring 2023. The credit is no longer available for current returns, and no 2026 or 2027 version has been announced.
What counted as eligible accommodation?
Stays in Ontario at places such as hotels, motels, resort lodges, bed and breakfasts and short rentals. We did not re-check the full list on a current page, because the official page has been archived. Keep receipts for the usual six years if you claimed it.
Can I still claim it on a late 2022 return?
We could not confirm that. The credit applied to the 2022 tax year, and the province has archived its page. Ask the CRA before you rely on it, and file the return anyway, since a missing return can hold up benefits and refunds you are owed.
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