Can a non-resident own a BC vacation property?

Direct answer

It depends on the location and the date the contract was signed. The federal Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act applies in Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) and Census Agglomerations (CAs); it does NOT apply in non-CMA/CA areas. Many BC vacation regions — including parts of the Sunshine Coast, the Gulf Islands, parts of the Kootenays, and rural Vancouver Island — fall OUTSIDE the Act's geographic scope and remain available to non-Canadian buyers. However, popular vacation markets including the Okanagan Valley (Kelowna CMA) and Whistler/Squamish (Squamish-Lillooet RD inclusion varies) are inside CMAs/CAs and ARE covered. Even where the federal Act does not prohibit, three taxes can apply: (1) BC Speculation and Vacancy Tax in designated SVT areas if the property is not occupied per SVT rules — 0.5%-3% of assessed value depending on owner status (verify the 2026 doubled rates against the live BC SVT page); (2) the federal Underused Housing Tax (UHT) on non-resident foreign owners — 1% annual on assessed value, with mandatory annual filing; (3) BC's 20% APTT in five Specified Areas. Even in unrestricted geographies, foreign owners face a non-trivial annual carrying cost.