The UHT May Be Cancelled, But Vacancy Taxes Remain

As tax professionals, you are keenly aware of the constant changes our federal government makes to the Income Tax Act. Adjustments are made, and you must adapt. Not often, though, is a tax eliminated altogether. But in the case of the Underused Housing Tax (UHT), that is exactly what has happened – it was cancelled in the federal budget of November 4, 2025, but Canada’s underused housing taxes have not been eliminated. Here’s what you need to know for tax season 2026.

Congratulations!  It’s with great pride that families recently celebrated their university graduates; accolades so well deserved!  There are a few things to consider about tax rules as the glasses are raised and grad caps fly.  New tax rules, for example, provide a new RRSP opportunity few know about.

When your clients unlock their pension plans in the current environment, they will want to know how to build momentum and the straightest line to growth as they invest for their future.  Knowing more about the tax and pension law can preserve wealth; in fact, using a multi-generational approach can make millions of dollars of difference in some cases. Learn more from JP Laporte, CEO, Integris Pension Management Corp, at DAC Acuity 2022 in Niagara Falls, October 16-18.

If you are looking for Alberta Insurance Council (AIC) credits this year, there’s still an opportunity to register for the Advanced Retirement & Estate Planning Course, as featured in the May Virtual CE Summit.

Planning a vacation with the kids in July? If you live in Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta or Saskatchewan, CRA will be sending you some gas money soon via the Climate Action Incentive – hundreds of dollars in fact - but only if you filed a 2021 tax return.  It’s not too late to get in on this and other social benefits that are paid after June 30; a quagmire of must-know tax info, your tax specialist can help you with before the holidays start.  Some details follow:    

Do you know of anyone who has assigned the purchase of a home to another person before moving into it? Perhaps you know of an investor in a new condo complex, who has put down a deposit with the hope of engaging a third party once the condo is built and the price goes up. If so, be sure they know about new tax rules for such “speculative sales”, which will render this type of transaction to GST/HST effective May 7, 2022, and could eliminate rights to capital gains treatment as well.    

This year, Tax Freedom Day for Canadians fell on June 15, 2022, which is four days later than last year, and almost a full two months later than the US hit the same milestone. That means when you add tax and inflation together, Canadians have a more compelling financial issue than our neighbours to the South. For those reasons, working with tax and financial advisors is critical as there are many opportunities to save money on taxes and benefit from generous tax credits here in Canada. Professionals can make sure Canadians don’t miss out in these expensive times.