Calculate Ontario and Toronto municipal land transfer tax. Includes first-time buyer rebates.
Real Estate · Ontario
Land Transfer Tax Calculator
Ontario land transfer tax applies to most real estate purchases. Toronto adds a municipal tax on top. This tool calculates both, including first-time buyer rebates if you qualify.
This calculation includes Ontario and Toronto land transfer tax only. It does not include legal fees, title insurance, inspections, or adjustments. First-time buyer rebates apply only to principal residences and have specific eligibility requirements.
Ontario · Plain English
Land Transfer Tax in Ontario, Explained
Ontario charges land transfer tax on almost every purchase of real property, calculated on the purchase price using graduated marginal rates. Buyers in the City of Toronto pay a second, municipal land transfer tax on top of the provincial one, which broadly mirrors the provincial brackets. In practice that means a Toronto buyer pays close to double what an identical purchase would cost in Mississauga or Oakville.
Toronto added steeper upper tiers for higher-value residential properties in 2026, so purchases above the $3 million mark now attract materially more municipal tax than the older brackets produced. If you are buying at that level, the difference is large enough to be worth modelling before you firm up an offer.
First-time buyers can claim a rebate of up to $4,000 against the provincial tax, and Toronto buyers can claim a further municipal rebate of up to $4,475. The rebates are claimed on closing through your lawyer, and eligibility turns on details that catch people out: you must never have owned a home anywhere in the world, and if you have a spouse, their ownership history counts too.
Land transfer tax is payable in cash on closing. It cannot be added to the mortgage. That single fact is the most common reason a closing runs short of funds, so it belongs in your budget from the day you start looking, not the week before you close.
This page is general information, not legal advice, and rates and rules change. Speak to a lawyer about your own transaction.
Next Step
Get an upfront quote for your closing
An estimate tells you the shape of the answer. Whether it applies to your situation depends on documents and facts a calculator cannot see. Most matters qualify for a no-obligation initial assessment.
Toronto buyers pay two land transfer taxes: the Ontario provincial tax and the Toronto municipal land transfer tax. Both use graduated marginal rates on the purchase price, so the effective rate rises with the price. Outside Toronto, only the provincial tax applies. Use the calculator above for an estimate on your purchase price, and speak to us before firming up an offer if the number affects your budget.
Can land transfer tax be added to my mortgage?
No. Land transfer tax is a closing cost payable in cash on the closing date. Lenders will not advance funds for it. You need it available in addition to your down payment, along with legal fees, title insurance and adjustments.
Who qualifies for the first-time buyer rebate?
You must be at least 18, occupy the home as your principal residence within nine months of closing, and never have owned an interest in a home anywhere in the world. If you have a spouse, they must also not have owned a home while you were spouses. You must also be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and the claim must be made within 18 months of registration. The provincial refund is up to $4,000 and Toronto buyers may claim a further municipal rebate of up to $4,475. Where a co-purchaser is not a first-time buyer the refund is proportionate, and it can be claimed only once in a lifetime. Your lawyer claims it on closing.
Do I pay land transfer tax on a gifted property or a transfer between spouses?
It depends on the circumstances. Transfers between spouses for nominal consideration, and certain transfers where no mortgage is assumed, may be exempt. Where a mortgage is assumed, tax is often payable on the amount of debt assumed. These transfers are worth a short conversation before you sign anything, because the exemptions are narrower than most people assume.
Buying and selling a home
Related pages
Closing costs, title and the steps between signing and getting the keys.
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If you or a child are in immediate danger, call 911.
This website is not an emergency service. Enquiries sent through a form here are read during
business hours and a reply may take up to 2 business days.
Using this website, submitting a form, sending an email or speaking to us on the telephone does
not make us your lawyers. That relationship arises only when the firm has
confirmed in writing that it has agreed to act, a conflict search has been completed, and a
retainer has been signed.
Confidentiality of enquiries
Do not send confidential or sensitive information through this website or by email until we have
confirmed in writing that we can act for you. Information sent before that point is
not treated as confidential and may prevent us from acting for you, or for
someone else, in a connected matter.
Response times
We aim to reply within 2 business days. Contacting us does not guarantee a reply within any
particular period, does not oblige the firm to act, and does not stop, extend or satisfy
any limitation period, filing date or court deadline.
Our telephone line
Our line is answered 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Outside office hours calls are taken
by our intake service, who record your details and pass them to the firm. A lawyer responds during
the next business day, or sooner if the matter is urgent. Answering the telephone is not the same
as giving legal advice, and no relationship arises from that call.
Who we are and how we are regulated
Law Society of Ontario
Lexaltico LLP is regulated by the Law Society of Ontario under the
Law Society Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. L.8. All lawyers practising in
Ontario through the firm are members in good standing.
Law Society of Alberta
Alberta matters are handled by lawyers licensed with, and in good standing with, the
Law Society of Alberta. A lawyer licensed in Ontario is not thereby licensed in
Alberta, and the reverse is also true.
Immigration regulation
Immigration consulting is provided by Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants
in good standing with the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants under the
College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act, S.C. 2019, c. 29,
s. 292.
Lawyers, paralegals and consultants
Not everyone at the firm is a lawyer.
Licensed paralegals in Ontario may act only within the scope the Law Society
permits, which does not include most family, estate or criminal matters.
Immigration consultants are regulated by the College, not by a law society,
and are not lawyers.
Law clerks and managers support files but do not give legal advice.
Each page and biography states which applies. Ask at the outset who will handle your matter and
under which licence.
Languages
We serve clients in thirteen languages. Every page of this website is written and published in
English. Where anything is provided in another language, the English
version governs in the event of a difference. If you need an interpreter, tell us when
you book and we will arrange one.
Fees
The initial assessment
The no-obligation initial assessment is a brief introductory
conversation. It does not include a review of your documents and does not constitute
legal advice.
The firm charges a fee for substantive consultations, including in civil litigation,
criminal defence and immigration matters. The firm may waive that fee at its discretion.
Any fee is disclosed in advance and credited in full toward your account if you retain the
firm.
Referral fees
Where we refer a matter to another firm, including through LexKonnect, we comply with Rule 3.6-6.1 of the Law Society of Ontario’s Rules of Professional Conduct. Any referral fee is set out in the Law Society’s standard referral agreement, signed by you before the referral proceeds, and no fee is payable to us unless and until the receiving firm has been paid for its work. You are never obliged to accept a referral and are free to retain any firm you choose. No referral arrangement affects the independent professional judgment of any lawyer at this firm.
What is published on this site
Calculators and estimators
They produce estimates from what you type and cannot know the rest. They do not
account for the terms of your contract, statutory exceptions, or the discretion a court will
apply. Do not make a decision on a number produced by a calculator.
Past results
Any outcome described happened on its own facts, before its own decision maker,
under the law as it stood at the time. Past results do not predict or guarantee the result of any
other case.
Reviews and testimonials
Reviews shown here are written by third parties and published on platforms we do not control. Each
describes one person’s experience of one matter. They are not a promise, a
prediction or a guarantee about any other matter.
Links to other websites
This site links to regulators, courts, government sources, professional associations and social
platforms, all operated by others. We do not control them, we are not responsible for
their content or accuracy, and a link is not an endorsement.
Other notices
Limitation periods
Failure to start a proceeding within the applicable limitation period may permanently bar
your claim. In Ontario the general period is two years from discovery
under the Limitations Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 24, Sched. B.
Shorter periods apply to many claims. Seek advice promptly. Nothing on this website extends a
limitation period.
Accessibility
We aim to meet the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
and WCAG 2.1 Level AA. If any part of this site prevents you from reaching us, telephone
+1 416 333 6200 or write to
hello@lexaltico.com and we will provide the information
in another format, at no charge.
