GST/HST Rebate for New Housing Purchases and Substantial Renovations

If you build or purchase a new home, you may qualify for a rebate of a portion of the GST/HST paid on the purchase if the home is purchased for use as the primary place of residence of the purchaser or a relation of the purchaser, at the time that the purchaser becomes liable under a purchase agreement. See link to Tax Court case at bottom. See the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) guide RC4028 GST/HST New Housing Rebate (link at bottom) for more information on this.

The Federal 2021 Budget includes a proposal to remove the condition that where 2 or more individuals buy a new home together, each of them must be acquiring the home for use as their primary place of residence or the primary place of residence of a relation. The rebate would be available as long as the new home is acquired for use as the primary place of residence of any one of the purchasers or a relation of any one of the purchasers. This measure would apply to a supply made under an agreement of purchase and sale entered into on or after April 20, 2021. See GST New Housing Rebate Conditions on the Budget 2021 website.

Guide RC4028 also has information on provincial new housing rebates for the provincial part of the HST, which may be available even if the new housing rebate for the federal part of the HST is not available. The guide also includes information on:

	BC transition tax rebate
	Provincial transitional new housing rebates

If you substantially renovate your home, you may qualify for a rebate of a portion of the GST/HST paid on labour and materials. See the CRA RC4028 information on Substantial renovations, conversions and major additions (link at bottom) for more information on this.

The BC 2012 Budget introduced a grant for new secondary or residential residences.

Quebec has similar rebates for the QST on these transactions. See Revenue Quebec GST and QST Rebate for Owners of New or Substantially Renovated Housing.

Are You a "Builder" for GST/HST Purposes?

If you are building or substantially renovating a home on land that you own, and the house is your primary place of residence, you are not a builder of a house for GST/HST purposes. If you are building a home, or have hired someone else to build it for you, in the course of a business or an adventure or concern in the nature of trade (i.e, you're building the home to sell it), then you are likely considered a builder for GST/HST purposes. In this case, you may or may not have to register for GST/HST, but your sale of the property may still be taxable and you may have to charge and collect the tax. See the CRA guide RC4052 GST/HST Information for the Home Construction Industry (link at bottom).

GST/HST New Residential Rental Property Rebate (NRRP)

This rebate is available for eligible rental accommodation and for land leased for a residence. The rental accommodation or land must be intended for long-term use as a residence.

You may qualify for this rebate if you:

	purchased or built a new residential rental property
	substantially renovated residential rental property
	made an addition to a multiple-unit residential rental property

	converted a commercial property into a residential rental property, or
	leased land for residential purposes (including the lease of sites in a residential trailer park).
	purchased or built a residential complex that is a residential care facility

Tax Court Case: L'Écuyer v. the Queen, 2019 TCC 41 re primary place of residence

Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Resources

RC4028 GST/HST New Housing Rebate

RC4028 information on Substantial renovations, conversions and major additions

RC4052 GST/HST Information for the Home Construction Industry

RC4231 GST/HST New Residential Rental Property Rebate

IT-459 Adventure or Concern in the Nature of Trade (Archived)

GST/HST Memorandum 19.5 Land and Associated Real Property

Revised: July 22, 2021