Qualifications for First Time Home Buyers
If you qualify for the First Time Home Buyer property transfer tax exemption, Coastal Notary Group will apply for the exemption when we file the property transfer tax return on registration of the purchase of your new home.
To qualify for a full exemption, at the time the property is registered you must:
- Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
- Have never owned a registered interest in a property that was your principal residence anywhere in the world at any time.
- Have never received a first time home buyers' exemption or refund.
Have either:
- Lived in B.C. for at least a year immediately before the date you register the property, or
- Filed at least 2 income tax returns as a B.C. resident in the last 6 taxation years immediately before the registration date.
and the property must:
- Only be used as your principal residence
- Have a fair market value of $500,000 or less
- Be 0.5 hectares (1.24 acres) or smaller
You may qualify for a partial exemption from the tax if the property:
- Has a fair market value less than $525,000
- Is larger than 0.5 hectares
- Has another building on the property other than the principal residence
To keep the tax exemption, you must have:
- Moved into your home within 92 days of the date the property was registered
- occupied the property as your principal residence up to the first anniversary of the registration date
- You may keep part of the exemption if you moved out before the end of the first year.
- If the owner passed away, or the property is transferred because of a separation agreement or a court order under the Family Law Act before the first anniversary of the registration date, you still qualify to keep the tax exemption.
If you qualify for the program, but didn't apply when you registered your home, you may apply for a refund from the first anniversary to 18 months after the registration date.
See the Government of BC link for additional information:
Posted in Frequently Asked Questions