Quebec welcome tax calculator

The welcome tax (taxe de bienvenue) is the nickname for property transfer duties — droits de mutation immobilière. Every municipality in Quebec is required to collect it from the buyer when an immovable changes hands on its territory. The name comes from Jean Bienvenue, the minister who introduced the legislation in 1976; it is not a welcome gift. The municipality bills you after the deed is registered in the land register, typically weeks or months after closing.

It is progressive, like income tax: each rate applies only to the portion of the tax base that falls inside its bracket, never to the whole amount. On a $700,000 property in Montréal you add 0.5% on the first $62,900, 1% up to $315,000, 1.5% up to $552,300 and 2% on the remainder — $9,349.00 in total. That is the official worked example published by the City of Montréal.

On the tax base, which is the greatest of three amounts: the price paid, the consideration stated in the deed, and the municipal assessment (roll value) multiplied by the municipality’s comparative factor for the year. This is the step most calculators skip: if the roll value times the factor exceeds your purchase price, the higher figure is what the duty is computed on.

An assessment roll stays in force for three years, so the comparative factor brings the value on the roll up to current market value. Each municipality publishes its own each year. In Laval’s official example, a market value of $650,000 with a factor of 1.03 produces a tax base of $669,500 and duties of $10,695.50 — more than a calculation on $650,000 would suggest.

The duty is payable before the 31st day after the municipality sends the account, with interest running after that. Some municipalities allow instalments by bylaw — Québec City, for example, offers three. You do not pay it to the notary at closing: the bill arrives later, which catches many buyers off guard.

The main exemption situations are: transfers in the direct line, ascending or descending (parent to child, grandparent to grandchild) — but not between siblings; between spouses, whether married, in a civil union, or de facto for roughly twelve months; between a parent-in-law and a son- or daughter-in-law; between former de facto spouses within the time limits set by the Act; the transfer of a registered agricultural operation; a tax base under $5,000; and certain transfers between a legal person and an individual that meet the 90% voting-share test maintained for 24 months. An exempt transfer can still attract a supplementary duty (droit supplétif) of up to $200.

The first two brackets (up to $62,900 and up to $315,000) are provincial and indexed annually, so they are identical across Quebec. Above that, each municipality may add its own brackets by bylaw, capped at 3% — except Montréal, the only municipality allowed to exceed 3%, whose schedule reaches 4%. The same property can therefore cost thousands more in duties depending on the address.

Gatineau amended its bylaw effective February 25, 2026. The applicable schedule is the one in force on the transfer date — the day the deed is signed at the notary — not the billing date. On a $550,000 base, a deed signed on or before February 24, 2026 produces $6,360.50, while the same transfer signed on or after February 25, 2026 produces $7,110.50: a $750 difference for one day. This calculator selects the correct schedule from the date you enter.

Yes. Quebec introduced a refundable tax credit for access to homeownership for acquisitions after December 31, 2025. It refunds 100% of the first $5,000 of duty paid plus 25% of the next $3,500, to a maximum of $5,875. You must be a first-time buyer, a Quebec resident, and the tax base must be no more than $1,000,000, with a phase-out starting at $750,000. The credit is claimed on your Quebec income tax return — the duty itself is still payable at closing. It replaces Montréal’s PAAR program.

No — it is an estimate. The calculation uses the official schedules we verify and cite, but your actual amount may differ if the municipality uses a different tax base than the one you entered, if an exemption applies, or if a bylaw changed since our last verification. Always confirm the amount with your municipality.