New Home Buyers in Ontario: What the 2026 GST/HST Rebates Actually Mean for You
If you’re planning to buy a newly built home or condo in Ontario, timing matters more than usual right now. Two rebate programs - one federal, one provincial - are currently in effect and, between them, could put tens of thousands of dollars back into a buyer’s pocket. Here’s what’s changed and what it means in practical terms.
The federal piece: the First-Time Home Buyers’ GST Rebate
Bill C-4, the Making Life More Affordable for Canadians Act, received Royal Assent in March 2026. It eliminates the federal 5% GST on new homes priced up to $1,000,000 for eligible first-time buyers, with the rebate phasing out on a sliding scale between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000. At the top end, that’s a maximum federal savings of $50,000.
Importantly, this isn’t limited to future home purchases - it applies retroactively to Agreements of Purchase and Sale signed on or after March 25, 2025, and the program is set to run through the end of 2030. If you signed an agreement anywhere in that window and didn’t think to check your eligibility, it’s worth a second look.
The provincial piece: Ontario’s HST Rebate
Ontario has paired this with its own relief on the provincial 8% portion of HST, also for new homes up to $1,000,000, available for Agreements of Purchase and Sale signed between April 1, 2026 and March 31, 2027. Depending on the specific structure of the rebate applied, provincial relief can add up to $80,000 in savings in some cases, on top of the standard existing new-housing rebate that returns a portion of the provincial HST component.
Put together, a first-time home buyer purchasing a qualifying new home in the right window could be looking at meaningful five-figure savings - but only if the paperwork is handled correctly.
Why this isn’t a “figure it out later” issue
These rebates aren’t automatic just because a home qualifies on price. Eligibility depends on:
Whether you meet the “first-time buyer” definition used by the federal program (which is narrower than most people assume)
The exact date the Agreement of Purchase and Sale is signed
Whether the rebate is credited at closing by the builder or has to be claimed after the fact by the buyer
How the purchase price is structured relative to the $1,000,000 and $1,500,000 thresholds.
Builders’ standard-form agreements don’t always reflect these programs clearly, and errors here are the kind that show up months later as an unpleasant surprise, rather than something you can fix in the moment.
What Deveau Law Recommends
If you’re currently shopping for a new build, or you already have an agreement in place from the past year, it’s worth having a lawyer review the Agreement of Purchase and Sale specifically for how (and whether) these rebates are being applied - before you’re at the closing. This is exactly the kind of detail that’s cheap to catch early and expensive to catch late.
This post is general information about legislation as of mid-2026 and isn’t a substitute for advice on your specific transaction. If you’re buying new construction in Ontario and want your agreement reviewed, Deveau Law is happy to help.