Taxes

Property taxes are levied by the Municipality. Taxes provide the main source of revenue to deliver services supplied by the Municipality, County and School Boards. The interim tax bill is an estimate to raise approximately 50% of your previous year's property taxes. When the current year's budget has been approved and the Province of Ontario provides us with an education tax rate, the final tax bills are issued. The amount of the interim bill is deducted from your final tax bill.

Taxes and payments

Tax bill schedule

Interim - mailed by the first week of February

Installments due: February 28 and April 30

Final - mailed by the first week of July

Installments due: July 31 and September 30

Failure to receive a tax bill does not relieve the taxpayer from payment of taxes nor from liability of penalty for late payment.

Tax rates

2022 Tax Rates

E-billing

You can now receive your tax bill by email. To sign up, fill out the Email Authorization Form.

Payment options

View the Tax Payment Options for more information on payment options and the Applications, Licences and Permits page for applicable application forms.

Penalty/statement fees

Penalty is applicable on the first day of default and on the first day of each calendar month thereafter in which default continues as set out in the Municipal Act. The penalty rate is 1.25% per month or 15% per annum.

The Treasurer and/or other staff cannot waive penalty.

Supplementary and omitted tax bills

A supplementary or omitted tax bill is a bill issued by the Municipality and reflects any additions or improvements made to a property.

Owners of new construction, residential or commercial, will receive a land only tax bill until such time as the value of the construction/addition is determined by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC).

Following assessment, the supplementary tax bill will be issued and is effective from the date of completion.

It can take time for a property to be assessed. Supplementary billings can occur anytime during the year and taxes for the entire waiting period could be billed all within the same year and come due at the same time. For this reason, you are encouraged to start setting aside funds immediately following your construction for the future supplementary tax bills.

In an effort to avoid a delay, you can also phone the MPAC office at 1-866-296-6722 to request an inspection of your property.

Tax certificates

Tax Certificates are available by written request. There is a $50.00 fee per roll number as per the most current assessment roll. If required in less than 48 hours, the fee is $100.00.

Property assessment

The amount of property tax owing on your land and/or building is the result of a calculation based on four factors:

The market value assessment of your property (Municipal Property Assessment Corporation);
The tax class into which your property falls;
The municipal tax rate for that class (set annually by your Municipal Council);
The county tax rate for that class (set annually by County Council);

The tax rate for the Education (school support) portion of that class (set annually by the Province of Ontario).

Request for reconsideration

If you wish to request any changes to property class, assessed value, etc. please fill out a Request for Reconsideration Form through the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

The deadline for completing this form is March 31 of the taxation year to which the application applies.

Request for adjustment (Section 357/358)

Tax adjustments can be requested if one of the following has affected you or your property:

a building destroyed by fire
demolition or otherwise
mobile home unit removed
sickness or extreme poverty
gross or manifest clerical/factual error
building damaged and substantially unusable
ceases to be liable at tax rate it was taxed
exemption due to renovations preventing normal use (minimum 3 months)

Please contact the Tax Clerk at taxclerk@northernbruce.ca for further information.

The deadline for completing this form is the last day in February of the year following the taxation year to which the application applies.

Rebate and deferral programs

The County of Bruce has established a program to provide tax relief to eligible seniors and the disabled. Information on eligibility can be found in County of Bruce By-Law 4087. Please complete the Application form and return it to the Municipal Office.

Charity rebate program

The County of Bruce has established a tax rebate program for eligible charities.

Information on eligibility can be found in County of Bruce By-Law 4088. Please complete the Application form and return it to the Municipal Office. The deadline for completing this form is the last day in February of the year following the taxation year to which the application applies.

Vacancy rebate program

To be eligible for a rebate, the building or section of building must have been vacant and unused for at least 90 days and the following conditions are met:

The entire commercial or industrial building has been unused for at least 90 days.
A suite(s) or unit(s) within a commercial building has been vacant for at least 90 consecutive days and is unused; and clearly delineated or physically separated from the used portions of the building; and capable of being leased for immediate occupation, or
Not capable of being leased for immediate occupancy because it is undergoing or in need of repairs/renovations or is unfit for occupation;
A portion of an industrial building has been vacant for at least 90 consecutive days and is unused; and clearly delineated or physically separated from the used portions of the building.

To apply for a rebate, please complete the Commercial Vacancy Rebate Application.

Exclusions from rebates

No rebate applications will be considered for properties:

where seasonal businesses operate, involving closing the building for a portion of the year
where buildings or portions of buildings are vacant but leased to a tenant
where land is considered vacant (e.g. new buildings that have never been occupied)

Application deadlines

Owners of qualifying properties may submit a maximum of two applications per property per year. Specifically, they may submit either:

one application in respect of all vacancies that occurred on a property during the entire year, due February 28 of the following year, or
one application in respect of the vacancies that occurred during the first six months of the year, due August 31 of the current year, and a second application for vacancies that occurred during the last six months of the year, due February 28 of the following year.

Changing your mailing address

If your mailing address has changed recently, please complete an Address Change Form. Municipal staff will revise the billing files accordingly and send a copy of the change to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC).

Personal information is collected under the authority of the Municipal Act, 2001 for the purposes of creating a record to be used for mailing of property tax, Accounts Receivable invoices, and for electronic or telephone contact by the Municipality for other municipal purposes only.