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Property Taxes

2009 PROPERTY TAX DUE DATE: TUESDAY, JULY 2, 2009

2009 Property Tax Notices were mailed in the last week of May.

If you have not received your property tax notice, please contact the Property Tax Department at City Hall at 604-527-4550. It is the responsibility of the property owner to pay property taxes, by the due date in order to avoid penalty, whether or not a bill is received. New owners who have not received a property tax notice are advised to contact the Property Tax Department.
Current property taxes unpaid after July 2, 2009 will be subject to a 5% penalty. A further 5% penalty will be charged to current taxes remaining unpaid after September 2, 2009.

Application for the Provincial Home Owner Grant may be made now, whether or not the current taxes are being paid at the same time. The application form for the grant is located on the front of the Tax Notice.
 

New “On-Line Home Owner Grant" Application
City Hall office hours:
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday (except for Statutory Holidays)

Extended office hours:
8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
beginning Monday, June 22 to Tuesday, June 30 and Thursday, July 2


For more information, please select one of the following items:

2009 Tax Mill Rates

Class    Description General Municipal School GVRD GVTA BCAA Finance Authority Subtotal Other Total
1 Residential 3.6435 1.9947 0.0661 0.3677 0.0641 0.0002 2.4928 6.1363
2 Utilities 33.9592 14.5000 0.2313 2.7605 0.4951 0.0007 17.9876 51.9468
3 Supportive Housing 3.6435 0.1000 0.0661 1.3880 0.0641 0.0002 1.6184 5.2619
4  Major Industry  27.9467 7.0000 0.2247 2.3932 0.4951 0.0007 10.1137 38.0604
5  Light Industry  26.7465 7.0000 0.2247 2.1328 0.2026 0.0007 9.5608 36.3073
6  Business/Other  13.9611 7.0000 0.1619 1.7296 0.2026 0.0005 9.0946 23.0557
7  Rec./Non. Profit  3.6435 3.7000 0.0661 0.3186 0.0641 0.0002 4.149 7.7925
8  Farm  3.6435 6.9000 0.0661 0.3468 0.0641 0.0002 7.3772 11.0207

 

 

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Due Dates

2009 Property Taxes are due July 2, 2009. Home Owner grants must be claimed by July 2, 2009 (a grant application must be completed each year). City Hall office hours will be extended (8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.) beginning Monday, June 22 to Tuesday, June 30 and Wednesday, July 2 to accept payments and grant applications.

 

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Penalties

After the first Due Date of July 2, 2009 a penalty of 5% is added to the outstanding taxes. Another 5% penalty is added after the second penalty date of September 2, 2009. These penalties are a requirement of the Community Charter. The City has no authority to either waive or modify these penalty amounts. A payment that is one day late is subject to the same penalty as a payment of taxes 6 months after the due date. It is a requirement of the Community Charter that these penalties be added.
 

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Provincial Home Owner Grant Program

The Home Owner Grant Program is a Provincial Government program designed to help homeowners with their property taxes. There are two categories of grants which may reduce a home owner's property taxes:

  • Basic Grant of $570

To qualify for the Basic Grant you must:
- be the owner (or a spouse/relative of the deceased owner) of the property
- be a permanent resident of British Columbia
- occupy the building on the tax notice as your principal residence
- have not applied for or received a home owner grant on any other property in the Province during the calendar year, and
- no other person can have received a home owner grant on the property for the calendar year.

  • Additional grant of $845

To qualify for the additional grant you must be:
- age 65 or over, or
- a person with disabilities or the spouse or relative of a person with a permanent disability (your physician must complete a "Certificate of Person with Disabilities and Property Owner" (Form B) available from the Property Tax Department), or
- in receipt of a disability allowance or benefit under the Disability Benefits Program Act (you must enclose a letter from the Ministry of Human Resources confirming your eligibility), or
- receiving an allowance under the War Veteran Allowance Act (Canada) or the Merchant Navy Veteran and Civilian War-related Benefits Act (Canada) (provide a copy of your most recent cheque stub - War Disability Pensions do not apply).
 

The grant is reduced by $5 for each $1,000 of assessed value over $1,050,000. As a result, the basic grant is reduced to zero for residential properties valued at $1,164,000 or more. The additional grant is eliminated on residential properties assessed at $1,219,000 or more.
 

Home owners eligible for the basic grant must pay a minimum tax of $350. Home owners eligible for the additional grant must pay a minimum tax of $100.
 

The home owner grant must be claimed by the Tax Due Date to avoid penalty. To obtain the grant, you must complete the application form on the front of the tax notice. To apply online, click here. Unclaimed grants constitute unpaid current taxes and are subject to penalties. The grant can be claimed without making a payment. If you qualify for the additional grant and wish to obtain it, you must tick the box that describes your qualification. If over 65, state your birth date.
 

If your mortgage company or other agent pays your property taxes, it is your responsibility to claim the grant by completing the grant application and delivering to City Hall by the Due Date.


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New "On-line Home Owner Grant" Application

 

If you qualify for the provincial residential home owner grant, why not consider making your application on-line.
 

It’s easy, it’s quick and it’s convenient, especially if you are paying your taxes by tele-banking, pc-banking or through your mortgage company.

• Save time standing in line
• Get immediate confirmation that your grant application has been received.

On-Line Home Owner Grant Application


Additional Explanatory Notes:

An owner together with his/her spouse qualifies for a grant on only one residence in the Province in any one calendar year.
 

The grant is not payable unless the dwelling described on the tax notice is the principal residence of the owner who is a permanent resident of the Province.

To avoid penalty, an owner should apply for a grant prior to the tax due date even if he/she is not paying taxes that are due at that time.

A grant may not be payable if an application for the grant is delivered to the collector later than December 31. Extensions for one year may be allowed. Contact the Property Tax Department.

If an applicant is unable to apply, the application may be made by the applicant's committee or a person appointed in writing as the applicant's attorney.

You may be required to provide satisfactory documentary evidence showing eligibility.

A spouse, child, grandchild, father, mother, brother or sister of a qualifying deceased owner may be eligible for the grant in the year of the owner's death if the residence was their principal residence at the time of death.

A medical certificate is required for a person with a permanent physical disability if the claim for additional grant is made by that person or by the spouse or relative of that person (relative being child, grandchild, brother, sister, grandparent, parent, stepparent or person who stands in place of a parent). The required forms are available from the Property Tax Department.

The term owner is defined in the Home Owner Grant Act and the Taxation (Rural Area) Act and may include a lessee under a lease of 99 years or more when the lessee is bound to pay current taxes.

A spouse, in addition to its ordinary meaning, includes a man or woman not married to each other but who have lived together as husband and wife for a continuous period of not less than 2 years before the death of either of them, or the filing of an application by either of them.

Spouse does not include a person separated and living apart from his or her spouse, who has entered into a written agreement with the spouse to live separately, or who is subject to an order of the court recognizing the separation.

Owners of eligible buildings, land cooperatives and multi-dwelling leased parcels, as defined in the Act, must use special forms prescribed by regulation instead of the form set out on the tax notice. The required forms are available from the Property Tax Department.

 

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Property Tax Deferment Program
 

You may be eligible to defer payment of property taxes under one of the British Columbia Property Tax Deferment Programs.
 

Existing Program - if you are:

* Age 55 or over, or
* A surviving spouse, or
* A disabled person as defined by Regulation.
 

There is an initial fee of $60 and an annual renewal fee of $10 charged by the Provincial Tax Deferment Branch. You must have a minimum 25% equity in the property.
 

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New Financial Hardship Program

* If you are facing financial hardship related to economic conditions. This new, two-year, program allows deferment of any amount of the property taxes for 2009 and 2010.

There is no initial fee or annual renewal fee for the Financial Hardship Deferment Program. You must have a minimum 15% equity in the property.

In both of these programs, the Province pays your current year property taxes on your behalf, and the amount is a loan from the Province. Interest will be charged on the loan and a lien will be registered at the Land Titles Office to protect the Province's loan interest. The interest rate is currently 3.5% (subject to adjustment periodically by the Province). The loan may be repaid in full or in part at any time.

For more information, please call the City's Tax Department, 604-527-4550 or the BC Tax Deferment Branch, 1-800-663-7867.
 

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Bill Payment Options
 

To make paying utility bill and property taxes as convenient as possible, the following options are available:

  • By mail or in person at:

511 Royal Avenue, New Westminster, B.C., V3L 1H9

Office Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM
(City Hall office hours will be extended beginning Monday, June 23 to Monday, June 30 and Wednesday, July 2)

After hours payments may be dropped off in the City Hall drop-off box located at the north entrance of City Hall.

  • INTERAC Bank Debit Card at City Hall (please ensure your debit card daily transaction limit is sufficient before presenting card for use).
  • At any chartered bank and participating trust companies and credit unions.
  • By telephone and on-line banking service. Please contact your bank or financial institution with your folio / account number.
  • Authorized agents:

- Royal City Drugs, 708 6th Street, New Westminster
- Queensborough Community Centre (Monday to Thursday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Friday 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.). Please be sure to bring your current year Tax Notice with you.

  • At automated banking machines.
  • Payments after tax due date may be made at City Hall only.
  • Pre-authorized Payment (for Property Taxes and Residential Flat Rate Utilities only). Allows you to prepay next year's taxes and residential flat rate utilities by automatic monthly withdrawals from your bank account. More information and a printable application form is available here.

 

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Annual Property Tax Sale
 

Any property with delinquent taxes will be sold at the City's annual tax sale unless the delinquent taxes, with interest, are sooner paid. The City is obliged to hold the annual tax sale each year on the last Monday of September (or if this is a holiday, on the next Monday which is not a holiday). It is held at 10:00 a.m. at City Hall located at 511 Royal Avenue, New Westminster, B.C. Taxes become delinquent on January 1 of the second year following the year in which the taxes were billed.

The list of properties that may be available for sale will be published in the local newspapers on two separate dates, the last publication being not less than 3 days or more than 10 days before the date of the tax sale. A final list of the properties still available for sale will be distributed at the time of the tax sale.

The sale is a public auction with the successful bid being the highest bid above the upset price. The upset price is the total of all outstanding taxes plus penalties, interest and costs. We require payment by personal cheque at the time of sale, to be replaced by cash, certified cheque or money order before 2:00 p.m. of the day of the sale. If these are not produced, the tax sale is re-opened and the property is sold again.

The owner of the property, or any registered charge holder, will be notified of the sale of the property for taxes. They have a period of 12 months to redeem the property by paying the outstanding taxes. Only at the end of the redemption period, if the property has not been redeemed will title pass to the successful bidder. If the property is redeemed, all of the amounts paid to the City by the successful bidder will be returned with interest at the rate prescribed under section 11(3) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act.

The successful bidder has only limited legal rights to the property during the redemption period. The registered owner continues to have use and enjoyment of the property.

The successful purchaser of tax sale property that results in transfer of title at the end of the redemption period will be required to pay any property purchase taxes and goods and services taxes which may apply to the sale. The effect of the tax sale is to also act as a quit claim in favour of the purchaser of all mortgages registered against the property.

 

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How To Contact The Property Tax Department
 

By mail or in person at:
511 Royal Avenue
New Westminster, B.C.
V3L 1H9

By phone at: 604-527-4550
By fax at: 604-521-3895

Office Hours:
Monday to Friday
8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

 

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