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BC Real Estate Codex · Foreign Buyer

BC + Federal Foreign Buyer Rules

Federal Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act (in force through January 1, 2027) + BC's separate 20% Foreign Buyer Additional PTT in 5 specified regional districts.

In this domain

  • · Federal foreign buyer ban (extended to Jan 1, 2027)
  • · CMA + CA geographic scope (Vancouver CMA, Abbotsford-Mission CMA)
  • · Exemption categories (PR, refugee, work permit + 183 days, designated-institution student, etc.)
  • · BC Additional PTT — 20% in 5 specified regional districts
  • · Penalty: up to $10K + court order to sell

Facts in this domain (3)

  • Federal Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act

    ca.foreign_buyer_banv3

    Federal Act prohibiting most non-Canadians (and entities controlled by non-Canadians) from purchasing residential property in Census Metropolitan Areas (CMA) and Census Agglomerations (CA). Originally effective January 1, 2023; extended TWICE — first to January 1, 2025, then to January 1, 2027. Applies to most BC urban areas including the Vancouver CMA (covering Metro Vancouver) and the Abbotsford–Mission CMA (covering the Fraser Valley urban core). Excludes residential property of 4+ units. Penalty: up to $10,000 fine plus court order to sell.

    Effective
    2023-01-01
    Last verified
    2026-05-08
    Re-verify by
    2026-11-08
    Full Codex entry →1 historical version →
    Verified sources (3)Click to expand

    Every claim on this page is sourced to a primary government, regulator, or industry-association URL. We re-verify quarterly; the verification dates below show when each source was last confirmed against the live government page.

    Fact ID: ca.foreign_buyer_ban · v3View in Codex →
    Spot an issue? Report an inaccuracy · How we verify

  • BC specified areas for Foreign Buyer Additional PTT

    bc.foreign_buyer_specified_areasv1

    BC regions where the 20% foreign-buyer additional PTT applies. The list expanded geographically Feb 21, 2018 from Metro Vancouver only to include four additional regional districts.

    Effective
    2018-02-21
    Last verified
    2026-05-08
    Re-verify by
    2026-11-08
    Full Codex entry →
    Verified sources (1)Click to expand

    Every claim on this page is sourced to a primary government, regulator, or industry-association URL. We re-verify quarterly; the verification dates below show when each source was last confirmed against the live government page.

    Fact ID: bc.foreign_buyer_specified_areas · v1View in Codex →
    Spot an issue? Report an inaccuracy · How we verify

  • Federal Foreign Buyer Ban exemption categories

    ca.foreign_buyer_ban.exemptionsv1

    Categories of non-Canadian persons who are exempted from the federal Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act. Always confirm eligibility with a real estate lawyer before any offer where status is in question.

    Effective
    2023-01-01
    Last verified
    2026-05-08
    Re-verify by
    2026-11-08
    Full Codex entry →
    Verified sources (1)Click to expand

    Every claim on this page is sourced to a primary government, regulator, or industry-association URL. We re-verify quarterly; the verification dates below show when each source was last confirmed against the live government page.

    Fact ID: ca.foreign_buyer_ban.exemptions · v1View in Codex →
    Spot an issue? Report an inaccuracy · How we verify

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