New property tax exemption for university student housing
The Ontario Government has amended the Assessment Act to introduce a property tax exemption for properties leased and solely occupied by universities to provide student housing. This new exemption to the Assessment Act was effective on January 1, 2025.
MPAC will be contacting universities across Ontario that may be impacted to raise awareness of the new exemption. During our engagement, universities will be encouraged to contact MPAC and provide relevant property information if they have student housing properties that may qualify for a tax exemption.
How to determine property eligibility
To determine eligibility, impacted universities are asked to submit a list of leased student housing properties by December 5, 2025 to studenthousing-universities@mpac.ca.
Once all relevant property information has been collected, MPAC will review the information to determine eligibility and will notify the universities and their host municipalities should any change in tax status occur.
Need help or more information?
If you have questions or need additional guidance, please contact studenthousing-universities@mpac.ca. You can also learn more about the new property tax exemption for student housing that is operated by Ontario universities by exploring the Frequently Asked Questions below. Expand each section for answers and helpful resources.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
A property tax exemption is a provision under the Assessment Act or other legislation that exempts specific properties, owners, or uses from municipal, provincial, and/or education property taxes.
Properties of Ontario universities may be exempt from property taxes when certain conditions are met.
Universities, as defined in the Education Act, are exempted from property tax if they meet any one of the below criteria:
Assessment Act
- Properties that are owned, used and occupied solely by a university;
- Properties that are leased and occupied by a university if the property would be exempt from taxation if it was occupied by the owner who qualifies for an exemption under the Assessment Act;
- Properties that are leased and occupied by a university to provide residential accommodation for students of the university;
- Properties that are leased and occupied by a university for administrative, educational or research purposes, if the property forms part of the main campus of the university; or
Private Legislation
- Some private legislation provides property tax exemption based on conditions provided in the University’s Act.
The Minister of Finance may prescribe additional conditions for exemption under the Assessment Act.
Recently, paragraph 4.0.1 of subsection 3(1) of the Assessment Act was amended to add the application of a tax exemption for properties leased and used by universities to provide residential accommodation to students.
The universities MPAC is contacting are impacted by the new amendments to the Assessment Act because they do not have private legislation, or their legislation does not have exemption provisions. As such, they are impacted by the legislative change to the Assessment Act.
By engaging with the impacted universities, MPAC can work with the university to determine which properties qualify for the new exemption.
MPAC will be contacting universities that either do not have private legislation or whose legislation does not provide for a tax exemption.
In October 2025, MPAC will be contacting impacted Ontario universities with information on how they could contact us if they have properties that may be eligible for a property tax exemption under the Assessment Act. Universities should be prepared to identify potentially eligible properties, provide lease agreements and supporting documentation to support the review process.
For further details, universities can contact MPAC directly at studenthousing-universities@mpac.ca.
Paragraph 4.0.1 of subsection 3(1) of the Assessment Act was amended to add the application of a tax exemption for properties leased and used by universities to provide residential accommodation to students.
