HST Rebate Guide
New (pre-construction) homes have HST built into the price — but rebates bring it back down. How it works depends on whether you will live in the home or rent it out.
On this page
- If you'll live in it (end-user)
- If you'll rent it out (investor)
- NEW: First-Time Home Buyer GST Rebate (save up to $50,000)
- NEW: Ontario 2026 HST Rebate (up to $130,000)
- Watch out: make sure the rebate goes to YOU, not the builder
- How to apply for the 2026 rebate — step by step
- The CRA forms & where to claim
- ↳ Free Calculator
- FAQs
If you'll live in it (end-user)
If you (or an immediate family member) move in, you qualify for the New Housing Rebate. In practice the builder applies it for you, so the advertised price is usually "net of HST rebate." You don't pay it separately — it's already baked into your price.
If you'll rent it out (investor)
Investors don't get the end-user rebate at closing. Instead you typically pay the HST up front at closing (often $24,000+) and then claim it back through the New Residential Rental Property (NRRP) rebate after you have a one-year lease in place. Budget the cash flow for this.
NEW: First-Time Home Buyer GST Rebate (save up to $50,000)
A major federal rebate — passed under Bill C-4, the Making Life More Affordable for Canadians Act — can save qualifying first-time buyers up to $50,000 on a new or substantially-renovated home. It works by eliminating the 5% GST (federal portion) of the HST for eligible first-time buyers, and it's in addition to the existing new-housing rebate.
| New home price | First-time buyer GST rebate |
|---|---|
| Up to $1,000,000 | Full rebate — up to $50,000 |
| $1,000,000 – $1,500,000 | Reduced on a sliding scale (e.g. ~$1.25M ≈ 50% ≈ up to $25,000) |
| Over $1,500,000 | No first-time-buyer GST rebate |
Who qualifies?
- You are at least 18 years old and a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
- You are a first-time home buyer when ownership transfers — meaning neither you (nor your spouse/common-law partner) have lived in a home you owned as your primary residence, in or outside Canada, in the current calendar year or the four preceding calendar years.
- You are acquiring the home as your primary place of residence, and you will be the first to occupy it after construction (or substantial renovation) is substantially complete.
- Neither you nor your spouse has claimed this first-time-buyer GST rebate before.
- It applies to agreements of purchase and sale entered into after March 19, 2025; the program is scheduled to run through 2031 (construction beginning before 2031 and substantially complete before 2036).
NEW: Ontario 2026 HST Rebate (up to $130,000)
Ontario announced (March 25, 2026) an enhanced new-home HST rebate that goes well beyond the existing ~$24,000 — a rebate of the full amount of HST for eligible buyers of new homes, up to a maximum of $130,000:
| New home price | Ontario 2026 HST rebate |
|---|---|
| Up to $1,000,000 | Full HST rebate — maximum $130,000 |
| $1,000,000 – $1,500,000 | Flat $130,000 sales-tax reduction |
| $1,500,000 – $1,850,000 | Declining reduction, from $130,000 down to the existing $24,000 |
| Over $1,850,000 | Current 2010 rebate only — maximum $24,000 |
Key windows & deadlines:
- Purchase agreement signed between April 1, 2026 and March 31, 2027.
- Construction begins by December 31, 2028 and is substantially complete by December 31, 2031 (for a primary residence).
- Residential rental homes can also qualify (a separate category): construction began before March 31, 2026, with substantial completion by December 31, 2029.
- Inventory / completed homes can also be eligible for the full HST rebate.
Watch out: make sure the rebate goes to YOU, not the builder
This is the part many buyers miss. Most builder agreements (the Agreement of Purchase and Sale, or APS) are written as "NET HST" — the price already has the old $24,000 (2010) rebate built in and assigns that rebate to the builder. The problem: with the big new rebates, the existing APS wording can be read as giving the extra rebate to the builder (vendor) — not to you.
- Read the HST schedule (often "Schedule H") and the price terms carefully — is the price HST-inclusive or HST-exclusive, and who keeps the rebate?
- Have your lawyer add an amendment so that the benefit of any new or enhanced rebate enacted on or after March 20, 2025 accrues to you, the purchaser — not the vendor.
- A solicitor-review condition (e.g. a few business days for your lawyer to approve the terms) gives you room to fix this before you're locked in.
How to apply for the 2026 rebate — step by step
- Confirm your APS is in the eligible window — signed April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.
- Review the APS HST schedule/terms — is it HST-inclusive or HST-exclusive, and will the builder/developer credit the HST on closing?
- Check the construction deadlines — must commence by December 31, 2028 and be substantially complete by December 31, 2031.
- Keep every document and monitor legislative/policy updates, since the rules are new and may change.
The CRA forms & where to claim
The HST rebate is administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). The form you use depends on your situation:
| Your situation | CRA form(s) |
|---|---|
| Bought from a builder & moving in | Form GST190 + Ontario schedule RC7190-ON (the builder usually files this for you and credits the rebate at closing) |
| Owner-built home | Form GST191 + worksheet GST191-WS + RC7191-ON |
| Investor / rental (NRRP rebate) | Form GST524 (file after you have a one-year lease in place) |
Free HST Rebate Calculator
All the HST rebate programs in one place — these government programs change and open/close over time, so this calculator is kept right here on the same page and updated as the rules change. Pick your situation below.
New-Home HST Rebate Calculator (Ontario)
Estimate your HST rebate on a new / pre-construction home — including the existing rebate, the new 2025 First-Time Buyer GST rebate (up to $50,000) and the new 2026 Ontario HST rebate (up to $130,000). Pick the program that fits your situation.
Estimate only. HST on new homes is complex, case-specific, and the 2025/2026 rebates are brand new. Eligibility (first-time status, primary residence, dates, price) decides what you actually receive — and make sure your agreement assigns the rebate to you, not the builder. Always confirm with your accountant and lawyer. See our HST Rebate guide.