The new First-Time Home Buyers’ GST rebate (2026): up to $50,000 on a new home

The First-Time Home Buyers’ GST rebate refunds 100% of the federal GST on a new home valued up to $1,000,000 — a saving of up to $50,000 — then phases out on a straight line to zero at $1,500,000.

The rebate was announced by the federal Department of Finance on May 27, 2025 and enacted in Bill C-4, which received Royal Assent on March 12, 2026. It is now in force.

How much you can save

• New home valued up to $1,000,000: the full 5% federal GST is rebated — up to $50,000.
• New home valued between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000: the rebate shrinks on a straight-line basis.
• New home valued at $1,500,000 or more: no First-Time Home Buyers’ GST rebate.
• One rebate per person, once in a lifetime; spouses or common-law partners count as a single claim.

Who qualifies as a first-time buyer

A home you owned and lived in five or more years ago does not disqualify you.

• At least one purchaser is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, 18 or older.
• The home is your primary residence and you are the first to occupy it.
• Neither you nor your spouse or common-law partner has lived in a home you owned in the current calendar year or the four preceding calendar years (in Canada or abroad).

It only applies to new homes

The rebate covers new or substantially-renovated homes — bought from a builder, owner-built, or a co-op share — the same categories as the existing GST/HST New Housing Rebate. It does not apply to resale homes, which are generally exempt from GST/HST anyway. For most buyers of an existing Woodstock or Oxford County home, this rebate will not apply — but if you are buying a new build, it is a significant saving worth confirming with your builder and lawyer.

How it stacks with the Ontario rebate

In Ontario, HST on a new home is 13% — 5% federal plus 8% provincial. This new rebate targets the federal 5% and tops up the existing federal New Housing Rebate. The separate Ontario New Housing Rebate (up to $24,000 of the provincial portion) is unchanged, so a first-time buyer of a qualifying new home in Ontario can claim both.

The dates that matter

Tax rules change, and the fine print on a rebate this size is worth confirming against the official Canada Revenue Agency page and with your own lawyer or accountant before you rely on it for a purchase. TeamBeckett can point new-build buyers to the right questions to ask.

• Your agreement of purchase and sale must be signed on or after May 27, 2025 and before 2031.
• Construction must begin before 2031 and be substantially complete before 2036.
• An anti-avoidance rule blocks cancelling a pre–May 27, 2025 agreement and re-signing to qualify.