Property Tax
What is property tax?
Property tax is a levy based on the assessed value of property.
Property tax has two components: a municipal portion and an education portion.
- The rates for the municipal portion of the tax are established by each municipality.
- In a two-tiered municipality, a component of the rate is set by the upper-tier and a component is set by the lower-tier municipality.
- The rates for the education portion of the tax are established by the Minister of Finance and help to fund the elementary and secondary education system in Ontario. Education tax rates are set in Ontario Regulation 400/98 under the Education Act, and are available at https://www.ontario.ca/laws/regulation/980400.
How are property taxes calculated?
Property taxes are calculated using the Current Value Assessment of a property, as determined by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC), and multiplying it by the combined municipal and education tax rates for the applicable class of property.
Who is responsible for preparing my property tax bill?
Your local municipality is responsible for the preparation of your tax bill. Please contact the finance/treasury department of your local municipality. The phone number is located in the blue pages of your telephone directory.
The province introduced a standardized tax bill for use by municipalities which was designed to ensure that each property taxpayer in the province receives a clear and concise summary of his or her property tax responsibility. With this standard tax bill format, taxpayers can more easily compare tax treatment between jurisdictions.
If your property is located in an unincorporated territory of Ontario, property tax is collected through the Provincial Land Tax program by the Provincial Land Tax Office in Thunder Bay.
Who is responsible for property assessment?
For the 2016 reassessment, Assessment Notices are being mailed by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) to all property owners over several months – from April to October 2016. The notices show the updated assessed values as of January 1, 2016 – and the phased-in values – that will be used as the basis for property taxation for the 2017 to 2020 tax years. If changes occur on a property, such as new construction or an ownership change, MPAC mails an updated assessment notice following the change.
An assessment notice is NOT a tax bill – municipalities send tax bills to property owners annually.
Information about the reassessment process is available on MPAC's website.
Information about the assessment review and appeal processes can be found on the:
