Hey home owners, landlords, and anyone owning property in Ottawa. The following information has been gathered from the City of Ottawa’s Vacant Unit Tax site.
Vacant Unit Tax declarations are due on or before March 20, 2025.
There are a few updates for 2025, so do visit the Learn More link at the bottom to walk through the updates.
To make your declaration, you will need:
- Property tax roll number and access code. Alternatively, you can log in through your MyServiceOttawa account.
- Full name and contact details (phone number and email) of the person making the declaration
- Details on the occupancy of your unit(s)
- Additional information to support an exemption, if applicable
Additional information or documentation may be required. Examples of additional information include but are not limited to:
- Start and end dates of occupancy
- Date of death
- Court or government order numbers
- Construction permit numbers and brief descriptions of the project(s)
Exemptions:
Based on feedback, some exemptions have been updated, and several new exemptions have been added. Visit the “Exemptions” section to learn more.
Late Appeal:
Property owners who miss the standard deadlines to submit an appeal have the opportunity to request a late appeal. Late appeal requests incur a processing fee of $500. This fee is charged regardless of the outcome of the appeal. Owners are required to complete a late appeal request form. See the Appeals page to learn more.
Graduated Tax Rate:
Properties that are vacant for consecutive years will be charged an increased rate after the first year. For each additional consecutive year, the rate goes up 1% to a maximum of 5%. The rate resets to 1% after one year of occupancy.
New Dashboard on My ServiceOttawa:
View up to five years of declarations, resubmit your declaration, print or save your declaration, and submit documents for your audit or appeal.
My ServiceOttawa (link is external)
Avoid any fees by declaring right away!
