Quebec welcome tax (transfer duty) in 2026

There is no separate provincial land transfer tax in Quebec. Under the Act respecting duties on transfers of immovables (Loi concernant les droits sur les mutations immobilières), "toute municipalité doit percevoir un droit sur le transfert de tout immeuble situé sur son territoire". The duty is widely called the welcome tax (taxe de bienvenue).

For 2026 the Act sets three marginal brackets: 0.5% on the first $62,900, 1% on the portion from $62,900 to $315,000, and 1.5% above $315,000. The two thresholds are indexed every year to Quebec's consumer price index.

A municipality may, by by-law, set a higher rate on any portion above $500,000. That rate cannot exceed 3%, except in the City of Montréal. The ministry's 2026 page shows the same rule.

Worked example (default brackets): for a $350,000 tax base, $62,900 at 0.5% is $314.50, $252,100 at 1% is $2,521 and $35,000 at 1.5% is $525, for $3,360.50. Québec.ca shows the same calculation rounded to $3,361. On a $500,000 base the duty is $5,610.50.

The big cities add their own bands. Québec City charges 2.5% from $500,000 to $750,000 and 3.0% above $750,000, so a $600,000 base pays $8,110.50. Laval charges 3% above $500,000, and so does Gatineau for transfers from February 25, 2026 ($8,610.50 on $600,000 in either city). From January 1 to February 24, 2026, Gatineau charged 2.5% from $750,000 to $1,000,000 and 3.0% above that. For Montréal, see Montréal welcome tax.

The buyer pays. Article 4 of the Act states: "Le cessionnaire de l'immeuble dont il y a transfert est tenu au paiement du droit de mutation à la municipalité." The duty is owed from the date of transfer. The Land Registry Office notifies the municipality within 15 days of registration, and the municipality then sends a bill.

Payment is due before the 31st day after the municipality sends the bill. After that, interest runs at the municipality's rate for arrears of taxes (art. 11). A municipality may, by by-law, allow payment in instalments. Québec City allows three equal instalments due 30, 90 and 150 days after the bill is sent; bills of $300 or less are due in full within 30 days.

If the deed is not registered in the land register, the buyer must file a disclosure notice with the municipality by the 90th day after the transfer.

Under article 2 of the Act, the tax base is the highest of:

- the consideration actually paid for the transfer, - the consideration stated in the deed, and - the market value of the property at the time of transfer.

When the property is on the municipal assessment roll, market value means the roll value multiplied by the municipality's comparative factor for the year of transfer (art. 1.1). Québec.ca gives an example: a $350,000 sale price and a $325,000 market value ($250,000 roll value x 1.3) give a tax base of $350,000.

Québec City, Laval and Gatineau state that the price paid is taken excluding GST and QST. Comparative factors differ by municipality and year; each city publishes its own. See how assessment works in Quebec.

Quebec refunds much of the welcome tax to first-home buyers through a refundable credit. The Ministère des Finances announced the crédit d'impôt remboursable pour l'accès à la propriété on April 17, 2026, and Revenu Québec administers it from the 2026 taxation year.

Revenu Québec gives the amount as 100% of the first $5,000 of transfer duty paid plus 25% of the next $3,500, up to $5,875. The credit is reduced by 2.35% of the tax base above $750,000 and is $0 when the base is at least $1 million. On a $350,000 home taxed at the default rates, the $3,360.50 duty is covered in full. On a $900,000 home the credit is $5,875 - $3,525 = $2,350.

Conditions include residing in Quebec at the end of the year, buying a qualifying home after December 31, 2025, the individual or their spouse having paid the duty, and the home being a "premier logement" (no home owned and lived in since the start of the fourth preceding calendar year). The credit is also open to an individual who, because of a severe disability, acquires a more accessible home for themselves or a related person with a disability. The credit is claimed with form TP-752.HA on the income tax return. An advance payment for 2026 can be requested in Mon dossier until December 1, 2026. See Revenu Québec and other provinces.

The Act has no exemption for newly built homes. The duty is calculated the same way on a new home as on a resale home. Québec City, Laval and Gatineau state that the GST and QST are excluded from the price paid used in the tax base.

Quebec has no extra transfer duty for non-resident or foreign buyers. The Act respecting duties on transfers of immovables sets the same brackets for every buyer, and the ministry's page on the duty lists no surcharge. Federal rules on purchases by non-Canadians are covered on the non-resident taxes page.

Article 20 of the Act lists the main exemptions, including:

- a tax base under $5,000; - transfers in the direct line (parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren), between spouses, and to certain in-laws. Spouses include married and civil union spouses and de facto spouses who have lived together for 12 months or are parents of the same child. Laval notes that the exemption does not apply between brothers and sisters; - transfers between former de facto spouses within set time limits after separation; - since June 12, 2026, a transfer from an individual to an individual who owns an undivided share of the property and is domiciled there, and a transfer by succession to an individual (S.Q. 2026, c. 18, s. 69).

Article 19 exempts some transfers between an individual and a corporation or partnership in which the individual holds at least 90%, subject to clawback rules. Article 17.1 exempts land that will become part of a registered agricultural operation within a year.

When an exemption applies, a municipality may charge a "droit supplétif" of $200, or the regular duty amount where the base is under $40,000 (art. 20.4).

January 1, 2027: the default thresholds rise from $62,900 to $64,400 and from $315,000 to $322,600, after indexation of 2.4173% (Ministère des Affaires municipales notice of July 31, 2026). The rates stay at 0.5%, 1% and 1.5%.

October 6, 2026: Revenu Québec opened advance-payment requests for the first-home credit, with a deadline of December 1, 2026 for the 2026 year.

June 12, 2026: S.Q. 2026, c. 18 added exemptions for transfers to a co-owner domiciled in the property and for transfers by succession to an individual.

April 17, 2026: Quebec announced the refundable credit for access to home ownership (up to $5,875) for homes acquired after December 31, 2025.

February 25, 2026: Gatineau's 3% rate above $500,000 took effect.

January 1, 2026: the default thresholds were indexed from $61,500 to $62,900 and from $307,800 to $315,000.