Assignors used to argue about whether their assignment was taxable. Since 7 May 2022 there is nothing to argue about — every assignment of newly built residential housing is a taxable supply.
Excise Tax Act as amended for assignments effective 7 May 2022. Reviewed 28 August 2026.
HST applies to the assignment amount — in practice, your profit. Intention no longer matters: it is taxable whether you bought to flip or bought to live in it and had your circumstances change.
The deposit reimbursement is the part people get wrong. If your assignment agreement separately identifies the amount that reimburses your deposit, that portion is excluded. If it does not, the CRA can treat the whole consideration as taxable — which is the difference the switch above shows, and it is usually five figures.
The assignor is normally the one required to collect and remit the HST, and may need to register for a GST/HST number to do it. Assignees regularly discover at closing that the tax was never collected and the builder is looking to them.
Separately, the CRA generally treats assignment profit as business income rather than a capital gain, so the whole profit is taxable rather than a portion of it. Two different taxes, two different problems, and the agreement wording drives both.
Yes. Since 7 May 2022 every assignment of newly constructed or substantially renovated residential housing is a taxable supply, regardless of the assignor's original intention.
Only if the assignment agreement fails to separate it out. Where the agreement expressly identifies the portion that reimburses the deposit, that portion is excluded from the taxable consideration. Where it does not, the entire amount can be taxed.
Normally the assignor, who may have to register for a GST/HST account in order to do so.
Usually not. The CRA generally treats assignment profit as business income, which means the full amount is taxable rather than only a portion of it.
Open your file tonight — a licensed Ontario lawyer will confirm your exact Land Transfer Tax and closing costs in writing.