Filing for a Property Tax Adjustment with Your Municipality

In some circumstances, you may be eligible to apply for a property tax refund, cancellation or reduction with your municipality.

Some examples of eligible scenarios include the following:

• Your property has become unusable or unliveable due to damage or natural disaster.
• Your property has changed its primary use (for example, from a residential property to a place of worship).
• There was an error in the property assessment, resulting in incorrect tax rate being applied.
• There was an error in your property’s classification, resulting in incorrect tax rate being applied.

Your municipality will make the decision

You must follow the process set out by your municipality for applying for a property tax adjustment, and your municipality will assess your application and make the final decision.

Only municipal council has the power to determine if you are eligible for a property tax adjustment.

The Municipal Act on tax adjustments

Sections 357 and 358 of the Municipal Act, 2001 provide municipalities with the authority to cancel, reduce or refund taxes based on specific criteria.

Section 359 of the Municipal Act, 2001 provides municipalities with the authority to increase taxes if there was an undercharge as the result of a gross or manifest error that is clerical or factual in nature.

• Similar requirements are contained in sections 323, 325 and 326 in the City of Toronto Act, 2006 for properties in the City of Toronto.

In order to file an application for a property tax adjustment, you must be one of the following:

• the property owner
• the spouse of the owner
• the tenant, occupant or their spouse
• a person in possession of the land

Process

1. As one of the above, you file an application with your municipality under section 357 or section 358, or the municipality files an application under section 359.
2. Your municipality forwards the application to us for review of the factual information.
3. We provide the municipality with the information it needs to enable municipal council to determine whether a tax refund, cancellation, reduction or increase is warranted in property tax adjustment appeals.
4. If required, we will conduct an inspection of the property.
5. We will also be available to provide information as witnesses to hearings or appeals of tax adjustment applications before the municipal council or the Assessment Review Board.

Contact your municipality if you think you are eligible to apply for a property tax adjustment.