Welcome Tax Calculator Montréal 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 guideThe staircase of brackets that sets the metropolis apart
On the island, welcome tax does not behave the way it does in neighbouring cities. Rather than a single upper municipal bracket layered onto the provincial scale, Montréal stacks several successive steps, each one a notch higher than the last. In practice, the further the tax base climbs, the steeper the slope — and the cutoffs between brackets shift at relatively tight intervals. The way this falls on your purchase depends a lot on what you are buying: a condo in Le Plateau-Mont-Royal, a duplex in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, a detached home in Saint-Laurent, or a plex in Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension. Before locking in a bid, run the calculator above on the actual property.
A snapshot of the metropolitan market
According to market statistics published by Journal Métro in May 2026 using APCIQ figures, the median price of detached homes in the Montréal CMA stood at $645,000 in April 2026 (up 3% year over year), condos at $425,000 (flat), and plexes at $865,000 (up 4%). Transaction volume slipped 7% from April 2025, with a median time on market of about 34 days and more than 20,000 active listings — the highest level since the pandemic. Why it matters here: with the median detached price comfortably above the level where Montréal triggers its upper steps, and plex prices higher still, the welcome tax bill climbs faster than a back-of-the-envelope on the price would suggest.
What moves the amount
As elsewhere in Quebec, the tax is calculated on the highest of three figures: the sale price, the consideration shown on the deed, and the assessment-roll value multiplied by the City's comparative factor in force on the transfer date. The roll is searchable online by address, matricule, or cadastre through the Direction de l'évaluation foncière's Evalweb portal. Montréal stands out for its staircase mechanics: several intermediate steps stack up before the top bracket, smoothing the climb but multiplying the thresholds to watch. Compared to a neighbour like Laval, whose curve is steeper — a single upper municipal bracket kicking in earlier and jumping in one move — the Montréal curve looks gentler on the lower half of the market but extends much further on the upper half. On the South Shore, Longueuil's mechanics stay closer to the classic two-step model. At the higher price points, the island is where the bill rises fastest.
The Residential Property Acquisition Support Program
This is the angle buyers often miss. The Residential Property Acquisition Support Program, governed by bylaw 18-025, grants financial assistance in one of two forms depending on your situation: a lump-sum payment toward the purchase of a new build, or a refund of the welcome tax on an existing property. The existing-property stream is reserved for families with at least one eligible child (under 18 for a first-time buyer in Quebec, under 13 for an existing owner), and a maximum purchase price applies. For new builds, any household type can be eligible, with a bonus available for Novoclimat- or LEED-certified buildings. The conditions matter: the property must become your principal residence, you must remain an owner for at least three years, and the welcome tax bill must be paid in full within twelve months of issuance. Applications go to the Service de l'habitation — earliest 18 months before the deed is signed, latest 6 months after it is recorded in the Quebec land register. If your situation qualifies, add the step to your post-closing checklist and ask your notary to flag it.
Payment, timing and the provincial credit
Once the sale is recorded in the Quebec land register, the City mails the notice — usually within a few weeks for an existing property, and sometimes longer for new construction. The account is payable in a single instalment within 30 days of issuance. Welcome tax does not follow the staggered schedule of the annual property tax account: keep that amount in your post-closing cash, not your down payment. You can pay online through your financial institution (CIBC, National Bank, Desjardins AccèsD, RBC, BMO, TD, Scotiabank, Laurentian Bank) using the reference number on the notice, in person at a Bureau Accès Montréal, or by mail. On the provincial side, a home-access tax credit can refund part of the transfer duties for eligible first-time buyers; your notary is the right person to confirm your situation and apply it correctly.
Useful resources and contacts
Before paying, cross-check your estimate with the official "How transfer duties are calculated" page and the notice you receive. If you have questions:
- 311 line: dial 311 from Montréal, or 514-872-0311 from outside the island — Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Saturday, Sunday and holidays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Service des finances (welcome tax account): email taxes@ville.montreal.qc.ca; mail payments to Ville de Montréal — Service des finances, C.P. 11043, succ. Centre-Ville, Montréal (Québec) H3C 4X8.
- Service de l'habitation (acquisition support program): 514-588-7098; written correspondence to 303 rue Notre-Dame Est, 4th floor, Montréal (Québec) H2Y 3Y8.
- Direction de l'évaluation foncière (roll, contestation): 255 boulevard Crémazie Est, suite 700, Montréal (Québec) H2M 1L5.
The calculator gives you a practical estimate for budgeting; the official notice issued by the City 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