Welcome Tax Calculator Farnham 2026
The exact amount of your transfer duties based on your city's official rate grid, first-time buyer credit included, and city-to-city comparison.
Calculator 2026
Estimate your real estate transfer taxes
2026 First-Time Buyer Tax Credit
Since April 2026, Quebec offers a refundable tax credit covering up to $5,875 of the welcome tax for eligible first-time buyers. The credit reimburses 100% of the tax on the first $5,000, then 25% of the slice up to $8,500. Three conditions apply: you must not have lived in a dwelling owned by you or your spouse during the year of acquisition or the 4 preceding calendar years, the property must be your principal residence, and the dwelling must be eligible. Retroactive to January 1, 2026; advance payment available from October 2026 for credits exceeding $1,000.
→ Read the full welcome tax credit guideA new 2025-2027 roll that resets the calculation anchor
The 2025-2026-2027 assessment roll lifted Farnham's total property base from $1.359 billion to $2.034 billion, while the average value of the city's 2,426 single-family residences rose from $249,434 to $381,623 — a 52.2% jump — as set out on the New 2025-2027 assessment roll page and covered by L'Avenir et des Rivières. For a new owner the consequence is concrete: the taxable base at transfer is the greater of the price paid and the market value (the roll value multiplied by the annual comparative factor). When the roll resets upward, recent transfers cross the rungs of the municipal grid sooner.
What moves the amount, and how to consult the roll
The City lays out its mechanic on the Droits de mutation page, with the greater-of-two-amounts rule and the exemption cases set by statute. To verify the roll value for a specific address, use the Immonet consultation, searchable by address or matricule. The provincial Act respecting municipal taxation frames this mechanic.
A mechanic between Granby's simplicity and Magog's softer slope
Farnham stands apart from several of its neighbours: it inserts an intermediate step between the base rungs and the upper municipal bracket, where the agglomeration of Granby — to which Farnham belongs for APCIQ market statistics — moves straight from the last base rung to the top. At the other end, Magog adds two intermediate steps. Farnham sits between the two: the curve rises in stages, more gradually than at Granby or Sherbrooke, without going as far as Magog's multi-step approach. The nuance matters most for transfers that clear the base rungs — a growing share since the triennial revision.
Local programs worth knowing on arrival
There is no direct municipal rebate on the welcome tax, but the Programs and Grants page lists several supports: cloth diapers, washable feminine-hygiene products, bike racks and the Mayor's Foundation for families going through a tough patch. For a buyer settling downtown for commercial purposes, the Downtown Business Establishment Assistance Program (bylaw 741) sets a targeted rent subsidy. For owner-occupants with modest incomes, the MRC de Brome-Missisquoi is the right doorway to the regional RénoRégion program.
Payment, timing and the citizen portal
The transfer-duty notice is issued after the sale is published at the Quebec land register and is settled separately from the annual tax bill: online banking with the matricule, the counter at most financial institutions, a cheque payable to Ville de Farnham, or in person at City Hall. For the annual tax bill — distinct from the welcome tax — the Taxation page sets out a six-instalment schedule and the Voilà portal opens online consultation from mid-January. The transfer of a mobile home is not published at the register, so the seller must send a dedicated form to the City. Your notary will confirm whether you qualify for the provincial home-access tax credit, governed by the Act respecting duties on transfers of immovables (CQLR, c. D-15.1) and summarized on the Government of Quebec's transfer duties page.
Useful resources and contacts
Before paying, cross-check your estimate with the official notice and the Droits de mutation — Ville de Farnham page, which details the current grid.
- Finance Department: 450-293-3178 — questions on the transfer-duty notice, the tax bill or Voilà sign-up; general email administration@ville.farnham.qc.ca.
- City Hall: 477 de l'Hôtel-de-Ville Street, Farnham (Quebec) J2N 2H3 — exterior drop box for cheques.
- Property assessment roll: Immonet — public access, searchable by address or matricule.
- Online tax account: the Voilà portal — sign up with matricule, account number and first-instalment amount.
- MRC de Brome-Missisquoi: the Farnham page — gateway to regional programs such as RénoRégion.
The calculator above gives a working estimate for budgeting; the official notice issued by the Farnham Finance Department remains the document of record for final payment.
What is the transfer tax?
Commonly called the "welcome tax", the real estate transfer tax is a mandatory municipal tax collected when a property changes hands in Quebec. It is always paid by the buyer, never the seller, to the municipality where the building is located, in the months following the signing at the notary.
Is the welcome tax paid every year?
No. The transfer duty is paid only once, when the property changes hands. Do not confuse it with municipal and school taxes, which recur every year: the welcome tax is a single bill, sent by the municipality after the sale is registered in the Land Register.
How is the welcome tax calculated?
The calculation is based on the highest amount among the following:
- The purchase price paid for the building;
- The amount of the consideration entered in the deed of sale;
- The market value of the building, meaning the value entered in the municipal assessment roll multiplied by the city's comparative factor.
This amount is then subject to a progressive rate scale that varies by municipality. In 2026, the first bracket (up to $62,900) is taxed at 0.5%, the next ones at 1% and then 1.5%, and several large cities add higher brackets (up to 4% in Montreal).
New construction: the tax base is the price before GST and QST.
Calculation example (2026)
For a property purchased in Montreal at a price of $600,000 (tax base):
- $0 to $62,900 (0.5%) :$314.50
- $62,900 to $315,000 (1%) :$2,521.00
- $315,000 to $552,300 (1.5%) :$3,559.50
- $552,300 to $600,000 (2%) :$954.00
- Total to pay:$7,349.00
Calculated with the official rate grid in force in Montreal. Source: Ville de Montréal
Who is exempt from the welcome tax?
The Act respecting duties on transfers of immovables provides exemptions. The most common cases:
- Transfer between spouses: married, in a civil union, or common-law partners who have lived together for at least 12 months (in case of separation, the transfer must occur within 12 months of the end of the union);
- Transfer in the direct line: between parents and children or grandparents and grandchildren (but not between siblings);
- Tax base under $5,000;
- Transfer to a corporation in which the transferor holds at least 90% of the voting shares.
Even when exempt, the municipality may charge a special duty, generally capped at $200. The exemption must be recorded in the notarized deed: your notary claims it for you.
Not exempt? The 2026 first-time buyer tax credit can still refund up to $5,875 of your tax. See the first-time buyer credit guide
Why is it called the "welcome tax"?
The official name is "duties on transfers of immovables", introduced by a 1976 Quebec law allowing municipalities to collect this duty. The nickname is often attributed to Jean Bienvenue, Minister of Municipal Affairs at the time ("bienvenue" means "welcome" in French), but the expression mostly owes its success to its irony: a "welcome" billed to the new owner. Both terms refer to exactly the same tax.
Calculators for nearby cities
Selected year: 2026