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Canada OSFI Mortgage Stress Test Switch Exemption Checker (2026)
Check your eligibility for the OSFI mortgage stress test exemption on straight switch renewals and model qualifying rates vs contract rates.
Try it nowGuide & How-To
On an eligible C$850,000 Ontario new home, the 8% ENHR can return C$68,000 and the remaining 5% federal HST can be covered by either a C$42,500 federal first-time buyer rebate or C$42,500 ONHAP for a repeat buyer. The two federal-slice payments do not stack in full: Ontario reduces ONHAP by the federal housing rebate you can claim. Enter a before-tax builder-sale price and your buyer status to see each component. For provinces other than Ontario the result covers only the 5% federal tax portion, not any provincial HST or QST. An HBP withdrawal is shown separately as down-payment financing, not added to the rebate.
Federal first-time buyer rebate
Enacted as part of Bill C-4 (the Making Life More Affordable for Canadians Act) in March 2026, this program provides a full 100% rebate of the 5% federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) paid on the purchase of newly built or substantially renovated homes. The rebate is designed to make new-build housing more accessible to first-time buyers in high-cost urban markets.
Federal price bands
The first-time buyer rebate covers the full 5% federal tax on eligible homes priced up to C$1 million, with a C$50,000 maximum. It phases to zero by C$1.5 million. Qualifying repeat buyers can still receive the smaller standard federal new-housing rebate below C$450,000. These are federal amounts; Ontario's ONHAP fills the federal tax left after any federal rebate rather than paying it a second time. See CRA's housing-rebate guide.
Ontario ENHR and the separate ONHAP payment
Eligible Ontario agreements generally signed from April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2027 can receive ENHR on the 8% provincial HST and ONHAP on the otherwise-unrebated 5% federal part. ENHR reaches C$80,000 and ONHAP can reach C$50,000, but Ontario subtracts the federal housing rebate the buyer is entitled to claim. At C$1.25 million a first-time buyer may receive C$80,000 ENHR, C$25,000 federal rebate and C$25,000 ONHAP: C$130,000 in total. A repeat buyer can also receive ONHAP if eligible for ENHR. The enhanced amounts taper above C$1.5 million; standard provincial relief of up to C$24,000 remains at C$1.85 million. See Ontario's current payment rules and CRA's ENHR notice.
Keep the Home Buyers' Plan separate
A qualifying Home Buyers' Plan withdrawal can put RRSP money toward a down payment without an immediate taxable RRSP withdrawal, subject to HBP repayment rules. It does not increase any GST/HST rebate. The widget shows housing-tax relief as the main total and estimates HBP tax deferred against an ordinary taxable withdrawal in a separate result. A tax deferral is not a second rebate or permanent tax saving.
What the numbers actually mean for you
The C$130,000 plateau from C$1 million to C$1.5 million
For a qualifying Ontario buyer in the temporary window, ENHR can stay at C$80,000 between C$1 million and C$1.5 million. Gross ONHAP is C$50,000 there. A first-time buyer's federal rebate falls across the band, but Ontario subtracts that rebate from ONHAP. The federal slice therefore remains C$50,000 in combined federal-plus-Ontario relief, rather than shrinking with the federal program alone.
The plotted values are the sum actually available under those price bands, assuming all buyer and property conditions are met. At C$1.2 million, a first-time buyer has C$80,000 ENHR, C$30,000 federal FTHB rebate, and C$20,000 ONHAP: C$130,000 total. At C$1.5 million, the federal amount is zero and ONHAP is C$50,000. Above C$1.5 million both enhanced Ontario components taper; C$1.6 million gives approximately C$99,714 total. At C$1.85 million the enhanced portion ends and the standard provincial rebate is up to C$24,000.
A repeat buyer can reach the same C$850,000 outcome
A first-time buyer of an eligible C$850,000 Ontario home has C$42,500 federal relief, C$68,000 ENHR and no ONHAP. A repeat buyer at the same price normally has no federal FTHB rebate, but the Ontario ENHR and ONHAP can deliver C$68,000 and C$42,500 respectively. Both examples sum to C$110,500, which is the 13% HST on C$850,000. The path differs because ONHAP offsets the federal rebate entitlement.
The graphic compares only the two ways the federal 5% component can be relieved. ENHR's C$68,000 applies in both illustrative cases. A repeat buyer at a lower price may also receive a standard federal housing rebate; Ontario deducts that federal portion from ONHAP. Before treating either example as cash at closing, verify the agreement window, the property, intended occupancy and how the builder handles the application.
HBP cash does not change the HST calculation
The Home Buyers' Plan can let a qualifying person withdraw RRSP money toward a home purchase without immediate tax as an ordinary RRSP withdrawal. That is useful liquidity for the deposit or closing statement, but it is money from the buyer's own savings. It must be repaid under HBP rules or otherwise included in income later. Multiplying the withdrawal by a marginal tax rate is at most an illustration of tax deferred relative to an ordinary taxable RRSP withdrawal.
Aisha's C$60,000 HBP withdrawal therefore sits beside her C$130,000 housing-tax relief rather than inside it. The calculator's main total counts only federal rebate, Ontario provincial relief and net ONHAP. The HBP repayment chart and tax-deferral result are separate information, so a larger RRSP withdrawal cannot manufacture extra housing-tax relief. For a first HBP withdrawal in 2026, CRA says the first required repayment is in 2031, shown as year 5 after withdrawal.
Check the contract before counting a rebate at closing
CRA administers the federal rebate and Ontario ENHR. Ontario administers ONHAP and requires a qualifying ENHR or rental counterpart first. Ontario's September 2026 page says the buyer may apply if the builder did not pay or credit the relief; otherwise the builder submits the rebate application. The Ontario payment relies on information shared from the CRA application when the buyer consents. These steps can affect timing even when the final relief amount is clear.
The owner-occupied ENHR generally covers a builder agreement signed from 1 April 2026 through 31 March 2027; the federal first-time rebate has its own agreement, construction and completion dates. The home must qualify as a primary residence under the applicable buyer rules. If the plan is to rent it out, examine the separate rental-property rebate path rather than projecting owner-occupied relief. Confirm the actual contract and government forms with the builder and CRA before financing against an estimate.
How the federal rebate and Ontario top-up fit together
Ontario's separate ONHAP payment fills the federal HST component that a federal housing rebate did not already return. Adding the full federal first-time rebate and the full ONHAP would count the same 5% tax twice. Ontario Regulation 196/26 and CRA Notice 346 are the source for the offset and price bands.
The total result is housing-tax relief only. A Home Buyers' Plan withdrawal is down-payment financing, and its estimated deferred income tax is shown separately rather than added to the rebate.
Calculation Steps:
- Enter the new home's before-tax price and choose Ontario or another province. This model assumes the purchase, agreement date, buyer and owner-occupancy conditions have already been checked.
- Find federal relief: a qualifying first-time buyer receives the 5% tax up to C$1 million, then a linear reduction to zero at C$1.5 million. Qualifying repeat buyers may receive the smaller standard federal rebate below C$450,000.
- For an eligible Ontario purchase, calculate the combined provincial rebate: 8% of price up to C$1 million; C$80,000 through C$1.5 million; then a taper to the standard C$24,000 provincial amount at C$1.85 million. The enhanced portion is zero at that last threshold.
- Calculate gross Ontario ONHAP: 5% up to C$1 million; C$50,000 through C$1.5 million; then a taper to zero at C$1.85 million. Subtract the federal housing rebate from this gross payment.
- Add federal relief, ENHR and the remaining ONHAP. The combined amount is never the full federal rebate plus a second full 5% ONHAP on the same home.
- Keep any HBP withdrawal and its repayment schedule separate. The optional marginal-rate result estimates tax deferred compared with an ordinary taxable RRSP withdrawal, not extra housing-tax relief. For a first 2026 withdrawal, CRA puts the first required repayment in 2031.
Worked example
Aisha, a qualifying first-time buyer, signs for a C$1,250,000 new Ontario townhouse during the temporary ENHR window. HST before relief is C$162,500.
ENHR is C$80,000. The federal first-time rebate has tapered to C$25,000. Gross ONHAP is C$50,000, but Ontario subtracts her C$25,000 federal entitlement, leaving C$25,000 ONHAP. Aisha's combined housing-tax relief is C$130,000 and the unrecovered HST is C$32,500.
Renée is a repeat buyer with an eligible C$850,000 Ontario new home. Her ENHR is C$68,000; with no federal rebate at that price, ONHAP can be C$42,500. Her combined relief is C$110,500. The first-time restriction does not strip the Ontario top-up from an otherwise eligible repeat buyer.
If Aisha also withdraws C$60,000 through the Home Buyers' Plan, that amount can support her down payment. It does not raise her C$130,000 rebate. The HBP withdrawal must meet its own rules and repayment schedule.
Input definitions
Review the glossary of terms used in the calculation model below. Click on highlighted links to read more in-depth definitions in our financial glossary:
| Parameter | Definition & Context |
|---|---|
| New home price before tax | The price or qualifying value before GST/HST. The rebate bands use this amount; a builder's tax-inclusive sticker price must be converted before entry. |
| Province of purchase | Ontario enables its provincial rebate and ONHAP in this model. Other province shows only the 5% federal tax portion; any provincial HST, QST or separate rebate is outside this result. |
| First-time buyer status | Select yes only if the federal CRA first-time buyer conditions are met. Ontario's temporary enhanced rebate can still apply to eligible repeat buyers. |
| Separate HBP withdrawal | One person's RRSP money proposed for a down payment under the Home Buyers' Plan, capped at C$60,000. It is financing to repay under HBP rules, not a tax rebate. The schedule assumes a first withdrawal in 2026. |
| Marginal rate for HBP illustration | Used only to illustrate tax temporarily deferred versus taking the same RRSP money as an ordinary taxable withdrawal. |
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