Is There a Land Transfer Tax or PST on Buying a Home in Alberta?

If you are comparing provinces, the biggest surprise about buying in Alberta is what is missing. There is no land transfer tax to budget for and no provincial sales tax on the home itself.

That does not mean closing is free of government charges. This article explains what Alberta does not charge, what it charges instead, and where federal GST can still come into play.

This article covers the law of Alberta.

The short answer

Alberta has no provincial sales tax, so no PST is charged on a home purchase; only federal GST can apply, to new homes and certain other cases. Alberta also charges no land transfer tax on a home purchase.

If you have seen a land transfer tax in another province, do not assume the same rule applies here. Alberta's approach is different, and the charges are set by its own legislation.

What Alberta charges instead

Buyers pay Land Titles registration charges based on the value of the land, generally the purchase price. Under the Land Titles Act, the person named as transferee in an instrument that transfers ownership pays a levy of $50 plus $5 for each $5,000 or portion of the value.

If you register a mortgage, the mortgagor also pays a levy of $50 plus $5 for each $5,000 or portion of the principal secured. A buyer paying cash with no mortgage does not pay that mortgage levy.

The rate of $5 per $5,000 applies to submissions received by the Land Titles Office on or after October 20, 2024. Before that date the levy was $2 per $5,000 for transfers and $1.50 per $5,000 for mortgages, so older sources may be out of date. The transfer levy also does not apply to the Crown in right of Canada or the Crown in right of Alberta.

Where GST fits in

GST is a federal tax charged at 5% of the value of the consideration on a taxable supply, and the buyer pays it. For homes, this mostly matters on new construction. Buyers of new condominium units pay GST on the purchase price, and the GST/HST New Housing Rebate can reduce it on a declining scale based on price.

A 1998 CRA policy statement says that on a new home bought from a builder in Alberta, GST is payable on the full consideration at final closing, when possession is transferred, but that statement may not reflect later changes. How this applies to your purchase depends on your contract, so it is worth confirming the timing with a lawyer or accountant. The buyer may assign the rebate to the builder so it is credited against the price at closing.

Resale homes are generally exempt, because the sale of a residential complex by a person who is not a builder is exempt from GST. There are exceptions, for example where the seller claimed an input tax credit on the last acquisition of the home. A resale condo can also attract GST where the seller used it mainly for business or it was substantially renovated.

Rebates that can lower GST on new homes

• New Housing Rebate: 36% of the GST paid, to a maximum of $6,300.
• The rebate is full at a home value of $350,000 or less, reduced between $350,001 and $449,999, and nil at $450,000 or more.
• The home must be your (or a relation's) primary place of residence, so a recreational cottage or investment property does not qualify.
• First-Time Home Buyers' rebate: up to 100% of the GST on a new or substantially renovated first home, to a maximum of $50,000, full at $1 million or less and gradually reduced to nothing at $1.5 million.

A claim for the New Housing Rebate must be made within two years after the base date. The First-Time Home Buyers' rebate is recent and has agreement-date conditions, so confirm current eligibility before relying on it.

What to do next

• Find out whether your home is new or resale.
• If it is new, ask the builder whether GST is included in the price and whether the rebate will be credited at closing.
• Calculate the Land Titles levy from the purchase price using the formula above.
• Have your lawyer confirm any GST exception that might apply to a resale or condo unit.

A lawyer or accountant can confirm which rules apply to your purchase, especially where a seller has business use or a unit was renovated.

Frequently asked questions