Designing Property Tax Deferrals in Response to the COVID-19 Crisis

In an effort to provide financial relief to citizens and local businesses in response to the COVID-19 crisis, some Canadian municipalities are introducing or expanding property tax deferral programs.

Designed to provide relief to eligible taxpayers, property tax deferrals allow taxpayers to defer some or all of property taxes for a specified period of time.

Designing Property Tax Deferrals, a resource developed by the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, answers 10 questions that municipalities should consider when designing property tax deferral programs, highlighting some considerations and implications. They include:

• How much of the taxes/payments should be deferred?
• Which payments should be deferred?
• Who should pay for the deferral?

Read Designing Property Tax Deferrals