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Part XX — Real-Property Taxation
349. Where contiguous parcels have been assessed as one parcel under section 5 of the Assessment Act, such parcels, whether owned by the same person or not, for the purpose of taxation and the collection of real-property taxes shall be deemed to constitute one parcel.
1977-30-151, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977.
351. (1) On satisfactory evidence being produced to the assessor that a parcel of land on which taxes are due has been subdivided by a duly registered plan of subdivision, or that part of any other parcel of land on which taxes are due has been sold and a deed executed and delivered to the purchaser, the assessor may by certificate under the assessor's hand apportion the assessment and the Collector may apportion the taxes as between the several parts of the subdivided parcel shown on the plan or as between the part of the other parcel so sold and conveyed and the remainder of the parcel.
(2) The Collector may then receive payment of the taxes so apportioned in respect of any part of the subdivided parcel or in respect of the part of the other parcel so sold and conveyed, and leave the remainder of the subdivided parcel or other parcel, as the case may be, chargeable with the remainder of the taxes due.
1977-30-152, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
372. In each year as soon as possible after receiving the revised assessment roll, the Council shall consider the report submitted by the Director of Finance pursuant to section 219, and shall cause to be prepared and shall adopt the estimates for the current year. The estimates so adopted shall show the anticipated revenues of the city from every source and the anticipated expenditure for that year.
1953-55-372; 1965-68-29; 1998-22-31; 2003-66-59.
373. (1) As soon as the estimates for the year have been adopted, the Council must adopt a rating by-law for that year based on those estimates.
(2) The rating by-law must, subject to the limitations provided in this Act, establish a rate of levy on every parcel of real property liable to taxation on the real property assessment roll prepared under the Assessment Act to raise the amount by way of real property taxes that, added to the estimated revenue of the city from other sources, will be sufficient to pay all debts and obligations of the city falling due within the year that are not otherwise provided for.
(3) Before adopting the rating by-law, the Council must consider the rates of levy proposed for each property class in conjunction with the objectives and policies set out in the report under section 219 (2) (b) [property tax distribution].
2007-24-47.
374. In the rating by-law the levy shall, with respect to each parcel, be on the net taxable value of land and improvements as shown on the real-property assessment roll prepared pursuant to the Assessment Act, subject to any variation that may have resulted from an appeal, or as adjusted under a by-law adopted pursuant to section 374.4.
1977-30-154, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1992-70-33.
374.1 In sections 374.2 to 374.6, "property class" means a class of property prescribed under section 19 (14) of the Assessment Act.
1992-70-34; 1997-25-187; 2022-26-4.
374.2 (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of any Act, the Council shall adopt a variable tax rate system under which individual rates of levy are determined and imposed for each property class.
1990-31-14; 1992-70-35.
374.3 (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations respecting the variable tax rate system provided for in section 374.2, including regulations
(a) prescribing limits on levy rates,
(b) prescribing relationships between levy rates, and
(c) prescribing formulas for calculating the limits or relationships referred to in paragraph (a) or (b).
(2) Under subsection (1) the Lieutenant Governor in Council may prescribe different limits, relationships or formulas for each property class.
(3) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may only make a regulation under subsection (1) after the minister has consulted with representatives of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities respecting the proposed regulation.
1992-70-36; 1999-37-325.
374.4 (1) Subject to subsection (1.1), instead of levying rates on the assessed value of land and improvements, the Council may, by by-law, levy the rates under subsection (2) or (3).
(1.1) Subsection (1) does not apply to a rate levied by the Council to collect a tax imposed by the Province under section 120.1 of the School Act.
(2) For an assessment averaging option, rates may be imposed on the amount determined in accordance with the following formula:
| Amount = averaged land value + assessed improvements value |
| where | |||
| averaged land value | = | the average of the assessed value of the land in | |
| (a) | the current year, and | ||
| (b) | the number of preceding years established by by-law under subsection (12); | ||
| assessed improvements value | = | the assessed value of improvements in the current year. | |
(3) For an assessment phasing option, rates may be imposed on the amount determined in accordance with the following formula:
| Amount = (assessed land value − phasing reduction) + assessed improvements value |
| where | |||
| assessed land value | = | the assessed value of the land in the current year; | |
| phasing reduction | = | the phasing percentage established by the bylaw, being not less than 50% and not more than 66%, of the difference between | |
| (a) | the increase in the assessed value of the land in the current year from the previous year, and | ||
| (b) | the assessed value of the land in the previous year multiplied by the average percentage increase in the assessed value from the previous year to the current year of all land within the city included in the same property class; | ||
| assessed improvements value | = | the assessed value of improvements in the current year. | |
(4) The Council shall not adopt a by-law under this section unless the following requirements are met:
(a) the Council complies with the requirements of any regulations under subsection (11);
(b) before January 1 of the year in which the by-law is to take effect, notice of intent to consider the by-law is provided to the British Columbia Assessment Authority;
(c) after January 1 of the year in which the by-law is to take effect and at least 2 weeks before the adoption of the by-law, a notice that
(i) contains the prescribed information, and
(ii) describes the estimated effect of the by-law on the taxation of sample properties within the city
is published in accordance with section 3;
(d) the by-law is adopted before March 31 in the year in which it is to take effect;
(e) in the case of a by-law under subsection (1), the by-law establishes a procedure to allow property owners to complain to the Council, sitting as a Court of Revision, about errors made in applying the by-law to their property.
(5) Subject to any regulation made under subsection (11), a by-law under subsection (1) may
(a) apply to one or more property classes, or
(b) modify the averaging formula in subsection (2) or the phasing formula in subsection (3) to exempt from the by-law or govern the application of the by-law to particular types of property within a property class.
(6) The authority under subsection (5) (b) includes authority in relation to property with an assessed value of that is different from that on the previous assessment roll because of one or more of the following:
(b) a subdivision or consolidation or a new development to, on or in the land;
(iii) the classification of the property under section 19 (14) of the Assessment Act, or
(iv) the eligibility of the property for assessment under section 19 (8), 23 or 24 of the Assessment Act;
(d) any other prescribed factor.
(7) If the Council adopts a by-law under subsection (1), the following rules apply:
(a) the assessed value or the net taxable value shall continue to be the basis for determining the amount of money to be raised in the city for the purposes of the following:
(i) section 386 of the Local Government Act;
(ii) sections 119 and 137 of the School Act;
(iii) section 17 of the Assessment Authority Act;
(iv) sections 15 and 17 of the Municipal Finance Authority Act;
(v) section 26 of the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Act;
(vi) any other prescribed enactment;
(b) the value determined under the by-law, and not the assessed value or the net taxable value referred to in this or any other Act, shall be the basis for taxing properties within the property classes specified in the by-law to raise the money required under the provisions referred to in paragraph (a).
(a) a body other than the Council sets a rate under an enactment for calculating property taxes, and
(b) the Council adopts a by-law under subsection (1),
then, despite any other Act, the Council shall, by resolution, substitute a rate that is sufficient to raise the same amount of revenue in the city for that body from each property class to which the by-law applies as the amount that would have been raised for that body had that by-law not been adopted.
(9) If the amount of revenue raised in any year for a body under subsection (8) is more or less than the amount that would have been raised had the Council not substituted the rate, the difference must be used to adjust the rate for the next year.
(10) On the initiative of the Collector of Taxes or on the request of an owner who is notified under section 403 of adjustments to the net taxable value of the owner's property, the Collector of Taxes may correct errors made in applying a by-law under subsection (1) to any property.
(11) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations as follows:
(a) restricting the property classes to which a by-law under subsection (1) may apply;
(b) defining any term used in this section;
(c) governing the way in which the averaging formula in subsection (2) or the phasing formula in subsection (3) may be modified to exempt from a by-law under subsection (1) or govern the application of the by-law to particular types of property referred to in subsection (6);
(d) prescribing the information to be contained in the notice that is to be published under subsection (4) (c);
(e) prescribing factors for the purposes of subsection (6) and enactments for the purposes of subsection (7).
(12) The Council may, by by-law, establish 1, 2, 3 or 4 years as the number of preceding years that are to be applied in determining the averaged land value for the purposes of subsection (2).
(13) For the 5 years following the adoption of a by-law under subsection (12), the by-law may not be amended to change the number of preceding years established by the by-law and the by-law may not be repealed.
1999-37-326; 2000-7-191,261; 2007-13-66; 2010-6-129; 2013-4-7,8; RS2015-1-RevSch; 2018-4-104; 2019-7-88.
"development potential" means the difference between
(a) the assessed value of a property, and
(b) the actual value of the property determined taking into consideration only the actual use of the land and improvements that comprise the property and not taking into consideration any other use to which the land or improvements could be put;
"eligible land" has the meaning given to it in subsection (5);
"eligible occupier" means a tenant or owner-occupier of an improvement described in subsection (5) (b) (i);
"municipal property taxes" means property taxes levied to raise money other than for the purposes of an enactment set out in section 374.4 (7) (a) (i) to (vi).
(2) For the purpose of relieving the impact of development potential on eligible occupiers, a rating by-law may levy municipal property taxes under section 373 on eligible land at reduced rates of levy.
(3) A rating by-law that provides relief under this section
(a) must identify the properties for which relief is provided,
(b) must specify for each of those properties the percentage of the eligible land, comprising the property, on which property tax is to be levied at the reduced rates of levy,
(c) must establish the reduced rates of levy as follows:
(i) a rate of levy for property class 5 that is lower than the rate of levy established under section 373 that would otherwise apply to that property class;
(ii) a rate of levy for property class 6 that is lower than the rate of levy established under section 373 that would otherwise apply to that property class, and
(d) may require an owner of a property identified under paragraph (a) to give notice of the relief to the eligible occupiers of the property.
(4) A rating by-law may specify different percentages under subsection (3) (b) for different areas, properties or kinds of properties.
(5) Land is eligible for relief under this section if
(a) the land is classified as property class 5 or 6, and
(b) the property that includes the land meets all of the following criteria:
(i) the property includes an improvement that
(A) is classified as property class 5 or 6, and
(B) was in use on October 31 of the taxation year immediately preceding the taxation year to which the rating by-law relates;
(ii) the property has a land-value ratio equal to or greater than 0.95, determined by taking the quotient of
(A) the assessed value of the land that is classified as property class 5 or 6, and
(B) the assessed value of the land and improvements that are classified as property class 5 or 6;
(iii) the property is not disqualified under subsection (6).
(6) A property is disqualified from relief under this section if
(a) relief under this section was provided for the property for a taxation year that is more than 4 or a prescribed number of years, whichever is greater, preceding the taxation year to which the rating by-law relates, or
(b) the property includes any of the following:
(i) land or improvements classified as property class 2, 3, 4, 7, 8 or 9;
(ii) land or improvements that are exempt under this Act or another enactment from municipal property taxes levied under section 373 of this Act, other than under a prescribed exemption;
(iii) land classified as property class 5 or 6 on which tax is imposed in accordance with section 374.4 of this Act;
(iv) property designated under section 20.2 [ski hill property] or 20.5 [restricted-use property] of the Assessment Act;
(7) The following provisions do not apply in relation to relief provided under this section:
(a) section 374.2 [variable property tax rate system];
(b) section 374.3 [limits on variable tax rate system].
(8) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations as follows:
(a) prescribing a number of years for the purposes of subsection (6) (a);
(b) prescribing exemptions for the purposes of subsection (6) (b) (ii);
(c) prescribing kinds of properties for the purposes of subsection (6) (b) (v).
2022-26-5.
375. No account need be taken in the rating by-law of undecided appeals with respect to real-property assessments. If, upon the later decision of such an appeal, any change in the real-property assessment roll or tax roll is adjudged, the necessary changes shall be made; and if in the meantime payment has been made, the change shall be given effect to by repayment if overpayment has been made to the city, and by collection of the balance if underpayment has been made to the city.
1953-55-375; 1990-31-15; 1992-70-37.
376. The Council may by by-law provide for percentage additions, not exceeding ten per centum, to be made to real-property taxes levied by a rating by-law or a by-law under section 374.3 and to any other charges lawfully imposed and inserted in the tax roll if not paid by certain times in the year in which they are levied, and may fix the times and percentages accordingly. The amounts so added shall be deemed to be part of such real-property taxes for the year in which they are added.
1953-55-376; 1990-31-16.
376.1 (1) Where a by-law is adopted under section 374.3, the Collector of Taxes or other person named by the Council shall, at Council's direction, prepare a residential flat rate tax roll.
(2) The residential flat rate tax roll must contain
(a) the name of the owner of each parcel of real property that is subject to tax under the by-law,
(b) the class of residential property in which the parcel of real property is, by by-law, included, and
(c) the number of the by-law under which the parcel of real property is classified.
(3) The Council, sitting as a Court of Revision, may hear complaints about the residential flat rate tax roll and shall fix the date and, if applicable, place for the hearing.
(4) At least 2 weeks before the date fixed for the Court of Revision, the Collector of Taxes must mail to each owner named in the residential flat rate tax roll a notice containing
(a) the information on the roll relating to the owner's property,
(b) the time and, if applicable, place fixed for hearing complaints, and
(c) if the hearing is conducted by means of electronic or other communication facilities, the way in which the hearing is to be conducted by those means.
(a) may correct the residential flat rate tax roll if
(i) the name of an owner of a parcel of real property is not correct,
(ii) a parcel of real property is not residential property, or
(iii) a parcel of real property is not classified in accordance with the by-law, and
(b) may direct that a parcel of real property that was not included on the residential flat rate tax roll be included if it appears to the Court of Revision that the parcel should have been included.
(6) Sections 513 and 514 apply in respect of a decision made by the Court of Revision under this section.
1990-31-17; 2022-15-63.
Appeals from Real-Property Court of Revision
395A. (1) For the purposes of this section, "land" means land maintained as a golf course.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of this or any other Act, the Council may enter into an agreement with the owner of land fixing an amount that shall be deemed to be the assessed value of the land during the term of the agreement for the purpose of levying taxes for general purposes only.
(3) The actual value of the land as determined by the Assessor pursuant to the provisions of the Assessment Act shall be set out in the agreement.
(4) If the owner of land which is covered by such an agreement sells the land, the owner shall be liable to the city either for one-half of the amount by which the sale price exceeds the actual value as set out in the agreement pursuant to subsection (3) or for the sum calculated under subsection (6), whichever is the greater amount.
(5) If the owner of land which is covered by such an agreement sells part only of the land, the owner is liable to the city for an amount equal to
(a) the difference between the taxes that have been paid since the date of the agreement and the taxes that would have been paid but for the agreement, together with accrued interest on the difference compounded annually at six per centum; and
(b) one-half the difference between
(i) the sale price of the land being sold where the sale price exceeds the amount determined under paragraph (ii); and
(ii) the amount that bears the same proportion to the actual value of the land covered by the agreement that the area of the land sold bears to all the land covered by the agreement.
(6) If the owner of land covered by such an agreement allows the land or any part thereof to be used for any purpose other than a golf course, the owner is liable for and shall pay to the city an amount equal to the difference between the taxes that have been paid since the date of the agreement and the taxes on the whole of the land that would have been paid but for the agreement together with accrued interest on the difference compounded annually at six per centum, and the agreement shall be terminated with respect to the land the use of which has changed.
(7) The city shall have the first right of refusal in respect of any land that is the subject of an agreement made under this section.
(8) The assessor shall continue to assess land covered by such an agreement and shall maintain a record of such assessments. The owner of the land shall have the right to appeal such assessments.
(9) An agreement under this section is registrable under the Land Title Act, and upon registration constitutes a charge upon the land having preference over any claim, lien, privilege, or encumbrance of any party except the Crown.
(10) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section,
(i) the Council may enter into an agreement with Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club fixing the amount that shall be deemed to be the assessed value of the latter's interest in the land presently maintained as Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club;
(ii) the actual value of the interest of Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club in the land as determined by the Assessor pursuant to the provisions of the Assessment Act shall be set out in the agreement together with the value of the interest;
(iii) if after entering into such an agreement Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club sublets or assigns the whole or any part of the land covered by the agreement to any person other than the City of Vancouver, or uses or permits the land or any part thereof to be used for any purpose other than a golf course, then the agreement shall become null and void and Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club shall be liable and shall pay to the city an amount equal to the difference between the taxes that have been paid since the date of the agreement and the taxes that would have been paid but for the agreement, together with accrued interest on the difference compounded annually at six per centum;
(iv) the city shall have the first right of refusal on Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club's interest in the lands;
(v) the city shall have a charge against the interest of Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club for the payment of all moneys and the performance of all obligations required to be paid or observed or performed by Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club under the agreement, and such charge shall have preference over any claim, lien, privilege, or encumbrance of any person except the Crown.
(11) Save and except an agreement under subsection (10) hereof, no agreement under this section shall be binding on either party or have any force or effect until registered in the land title office.
1965-68-27; 1977-30-156, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1978-25-332,334, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-189; 2022-15-73,Sch 1.
396. (1) All real property in the city is liable to taxation subject to the following exemptions: —
(a) Crown lands; provided, however, that the right or interest of an occupier of Crown lands, not holding in an official capacity, shall be liable to taxation, and the occupier shall be personally liable therefor as if the occupier were the owner of such real property, but the property shall not be subject to lien under section 414 nor subject to tax sale under section 422:
(b) Real property vested in the city and Crown lands leased by the city for park purposes:
(A) an incorporated charitable institution is the registered owner or owner under agreement, either directly or through trustees, of the real property, and
(B) the real property is in actual occupation by the incorporated charitable institution and is wholly in use for charitable purposes;
(ii) of which an incorporated institution of learning regularly giving to children instruction accepted as equivalent to that furnished in a public school is the registered owner, or owner under agreement, and which is in actual occupation by such institution and is wholly in use for the purpose of furnishing such instruction;
(iii) of which a hospital receiving aid under the Hospital Act is the registered owner, or owner under agreement, either directly or through trustees therefor, and which is in actual occupation by such hospital and is wholly in use for the purposes of the hospital or which is held by the hospital for future use as a hospital-site and the same has been designated by the minister responsible for the administration of the Hospital Act to be exempt from taxation;
(iv) of which a religious organization, either directly or through trustees therefor, is the registered owner, or owner under agreement, and which is set apart and in use for the public worship of God; provided, however, that the exemption by this clause conferred shall not be lost by reason of the use of the church property for any of the purposes hereinafter set out if it is so provided by by-law:—
The use of the church property by a government, notwithstanding that a fee is paid for such use:
The use of the church property for the care or instruction of children under school age by a charitable or non-profit organization:
The use of the church property for the purpose of teaching organ or choral music, notwithstanding that a fee is charged therefor:
The use of the church property for the holding of organ recitals, notwithstanding that the recitalist receives a fee therefor:
(vi) occupied by Simon Fraser University in the building commonly known as the Sears Harbour Centre and specifically described as Block 13, District Lot 541, Plan 15728 but this exemption shall be limited to the portion of the real property actually occupied by the University.
(d) An improvement designed, constructed, or installed for the purpose of providing emergency protection for persons or domestic animals in the event of an emergency within the meaning of the Emergency and Disaster Management Act:
(e) Sewage treatment plants, manure storage facilities, effluent reservoirs, effluent lagoons, deodorizing equipment, dust and particulate matter eliminating equipment:
(e.01) To the extent established by subsection (3), land and improvements that were exempted for the 1996 taxation year under a pollution abatement provision, if
(i) the land and improvements were exempted under that provision for the 1996 taxation year on final determination under the Assessment Act, and
(A) for an exemption in relation to land only, the land continues to be exclusively or primarily used for the purpose of abating pollution,
(B) for an exemption in relation to improvements only, the improvements continue to be exclusively or primarily used for the purpose of abating pollution, or
(C) for an exemption in relation to land and improvements, the land and improvements continue to be exclusively or primarily used for the purpose of abating pollution;
(e.1) Lands and improvements known as the Vancouver Court House and specifically described as
Block 51
District Lot 541
Plan 14423,
So long as they are occupied by The Vancouver Art Gallery Association:
(e.2) That part of the lands and improvements located on the north side of the 600 block of West 10th Avenue, and specifically described as
Lot A
Block 359
District Lot 526
Group 1, New Westminster District
Plan LMP 51308
PID 025-141-015,
and occupied by the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch, so long as it is in actual occupation by, and wholly in use for cancer research and other charitable purposes of, the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch:
(f) The word "improvement" where used in clause (e) shall have the meaning ascribed to it in the Assessment Act:
(g) Notwithstanding paragraph (c) (i), real property of an incorporated charitable institution which is used for senior citizens' housing or a community care facility, and which receives or has received grants or assistance pursuant to any Provincial or federal legislation, shall only be exempt if it is so provided by by-law under section 396F [exemptions for not for profit property]:
(h) improvements, other than dwellings and the fixtures, machinery and similar things mentioned in paragraph (i), erected on farm land and used exclusively to operate a farm, up to but not exceeding the greater of the following:
(i) 87.5% of the assessed value;
(ii) an assessed value of $50 000;
(i) fixtures, machinery and similar things located on farm land and used exclusively to operate the farm that, if erected or placed in or on land, a building or fixture or structure in or on it, would, as between landlord and tenant, be removable by the tenant.
(2) Septic disposal systems are not exempt from taxation under this section.
(3) The amount of an exemption under subsection (1) (e.01) for a taxation year is limited to the portion of the assessed value of land and improvements that is the least of the following:
(a) the portion that the British Columbia Assessment Authority determines is attributable to the use of pollution abatement for that taxation year, subject to final determination under the Assessment Act;
(b) the portion that was exempted for pollution abatement purposes for the immediately preceding taxation year on final determination under the Assessment Act;
(c) the portion that was exempted for the 1996 taxation year on final determination under the Assessment Act.
"farm land" means land classified under the Assessment Act as a farm;
"final determination under the Assessment Act" means a determination on the assessment roll for a taxation year, subject to any change that is finally determined under the Assessment Act by revised assessment roll, by supplementary assessment roll or on further appeal;
"pollution abatement provision" means section 396 (1) (e.01) of this Act, section 339 (1) (q) of the Municipal Act or section 15 (1) (s) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act, as those provisions read before their repeal and replacement by the Budget Measures Implementation Act, 1997.
(5) As limits on the exemptions under subsection (1),
(a) subject to subsection (6), an exemption under subsection (1) does not apply in relation to
(i) water use rates under section 300 (a),
(i.1) energy utility system charges under section 300.1 (3) (f),
(ii) sewer and drainage charges under section 302 (d), and
(iii) solid waste charges under section 303 (g), and
(ii) for a library under subsection (1) (c) (i),
(iii) for a cemetery, mausoleum or columbarium under subsection (1) (c) (i),
(iv) for senior citizens' housing under subsection (1) (c) (i) or (g),
(v) under subsection (1) (c) (ii),
(vi) under subsection (1) (c) (iv),
(vii) under subsection (1) (h), or
(viii) under subsection (1) (i)
apply only in relation to taxation under section 373.
(6) The limit under subsection (5) (a) does not apply in relation to the interest of the Crown in Crown lands exempted under subsection (1) (a) or to property exempted under subsection (1) (e) or (e.01).
(7) For the purposes of subsection (1) (c) (i) (A), an incorporated charitable institution is deemed to be a registered owner of real property if
(a) it is, directly or through trustees, the registered holder of a leasehold estate in the real property,
(b) the actual registered owner of the real property is an incorporated charitable institution, and
(c) the real property would be exempt if it were in actual occupation by the institution referred to in paragraph (b) for a particular charitable purpose of that institution.
1953-55-396; 1956-70-9; 1961-76-7; 1964-72-15; 1966-69-15; 1969-35-27; 1969-45-23; 1970-54-20, effective December 1, 1969; 1973-93-25; 1974-87-38; 1977-30-157, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1977-75-7, proclaimed effective October 21, 1977; 1984-26-86, effective May 31, 1984 (B.C. Reg. 164/84); 1985-20-41, effective July 11, 1985 (B.C. Reg. 214/85); 1987-2-5; 1987-52-29,30; 1988-67-5; 1990-31-18; 1990-32-11; 1993-59-50; 1993-74-12; 1997-4-36; 1997-25-190; 1998-22-32; 2002-63-25; 2003-3-51; 2003-66-60; 2004-34-20; 2004-35-93; 2007-6-45; 2007-13-67; B.C. Reg. 5/2010; 2010-21-38; 2012-2-13; B.C. Reg. 243/2013; 2022-15-73,Sch 1; 2023-37-207.
396A. (1) In this section and section 396B "eligible heritage property" means property that is
(a) protected heritage property,
(b) subject to a heritage revitalization agreement under section 592, or
(c) subject to a covenant under section 219 of the Land Title Act that relates to the conservation of heritage property.
(2) Despite section 396 but subject to subsection (3) of this section, for the purposes of supporting the conservation of an eligible heritage property, on or before October 31 in any year the Council may, by by-law adopted by at least 2/3 of the votes cast, do one or more of the following:
(a) exempt all or part of the eligible heritage property from real property taxation under this Part;
(b) if eligible heritage property exempted under paragraph (a) is a building or other improvement so affixed to the land as to constitute real property, exempt an area of land surrounding the exempted property from real property taxation under this Part for the same period of time as the exemption is made under paragraph (a);
(c) limit an exemption under paragraph (a) or (b) to a specified portion of the net taxable value of the property to which the exemption applies;
(d) make an exemption under this subsection subject to specified conditions.
(3) A by-law under subsection (2) may provide a tax exemption
(a) for the next calendar year, or
(b) if the by-law receives the assent of the electors or is approved by the electors in accordance with subsection (4), for a specified period not greater than 10 years.
(4) Approval of the electors to a by-law under subsection (2) is deemed to have been given if all the following requirements are met:
(a) at least 30 days before adopting the by-law, a notice is published in accordance with section 3
(i) identifying the eligible heritage property that would be subject to the by-law,
(ii) describing the exemption that would be made for the eligible heritage property, and
(iii) stating that the by-law may be adopted by the Council after 30 days unless more than 1/20 of the electors petition the Council to obtain the assent of the electors to the by-law;
(b) from the date on which the notice is first published under paragraph (a), it is posted for public inspection in the City Hall during its regular office hours;
(c) by the end of 30 days after the notice is first published under paragraph (a), 1/20 or fewer of the electors have petitioned the Council to obtain the assent of the electors to the by-law.
(5) Within 30 days after adopting a by-law under this section, the Council must give notice of the by-law to the minister responsible for the Heritage Conservation Act in accordance with section 602.
1994-43-92; 1997-25-191; 2010-6-130.
396B. (1) A by-law under section 396A may provide that, if any of the following circumstances as specified in the by-law occur, the Council may require the owner of the eligible heritage property at that time to pay to the city an amount equivalent to the total taxes exempted under the by-law plus interest from the time at which the exempt taxes would otherwise have been payable, compounded annually at the rate established under section 415 for delinquent taxes:
(a) if the eligible heritage property is destroyed, whether with or without proper authorization under the requirements of the heritage protection of the property;
(b) if the eligible heritage property is altered by or on behalf of the owner without proper authorization under the requirements of the heritage protection of the property;
(c) if any other circumstances specified in the by-law occur.
(2) A by-law under section 396A that includes a provision under subsection (1) may not be adopted without the consent of the owner of the eligible heritage property to which the by-law applies.
(3) If a by-law under section 396A includes a provision under subsection (1), within 30 days after the by-law is adopted the Council must have notice of the by-law filed in the land title office in accordance with section 601.
(4) If a by-law under section 396A includes a provision under subsection (1) and a circumstance referred to in the provision occurs, the Council may, by by-law adopted by at least 2/3 of the votes cast, either
(a) require the owner to pay the amount referred to in subsection (1), or
(b) waive the obligation of the owner to pay all or part of the amount referred to in subsection (1).
(5) If the Council does not adopt a by-law under subsection (4) (a) within one year after it becomes aware of the circumstance in relation to which the by-law could be adopted, the Council is deemed to have waived all obligation of the owner to pay the amount referred to in subsection (1).
(6) If the Council adopts a by-law under subsection (4) (a) within the time period referred to in subsection (5), the Council may
(a) add the amount referred to in subsection (1) to the taxes for the current year payable to the city in relation to the eligible heritage property, or
(b) make an agreement with the owner regarding payment of the amount referred to in subsection (1) as a personal debt to the city.
1994-43-92.
396C. (1) In this section and section 396D:
"eligible riparian property" means property that meets all the following requirements:
(a) the property must be riparian land;
(b) the property must be subject to a covenant under section 219 of the Land Title Act that relates to the protection of the property as riparian property;
(c) the city must be a covenantee in whose favour the covenant referred to in paragraph (b) is made;
(d) any other requirements prescribed under subsection (6);
"eligible value" means the portion of the net taxable value of the parcel of land in relation to which an exemption under subsection (2) is made that is equivalent to the ratio of
(a) the area of the eligible riparian property that is exempted under subsection (2) (a)
to
(b) the area of the parcel of land in relation to which the exemption is made.
(2) Despite section 396 but subject to subsections (3) and (4) of this section, for the purposes of supporting the conservation of an eligible riparian property, on or before October 31 in any year the Council may, by by-law adopted by at least 2/3 of the votes cast, do one or more of the following:
(a) exempt all or part of the eligible riparian property from real property taxation under this Part;
(b) limit an exemption under paragraph (a) to a specified portion of the eligible value of the property to which the exemption applies;
(c) make an exemption under this subsection subject to specified conditions.
(3) An exemption under subsection (2) may apply only to that part of the eligible riparian property that is a riparian area.
(4) A by-law under subsection (2) may provide a tax exemption
(a) for the next calendar year, or
(b) if the by-law receives the assent of the electors or is approved by the electors in accordance with subsection (5), for a specified period not greater than 10 years.
(5) Approval of the electors to a by-law under subsection (2) is deemed to have been given if all the following requirements are met:
(a) at least 30 days before adopting the by-law, a notice is published in accordance with section 3
(i) identifying the eligible riparian property that would be subject to the by-law,
(ii) describing the exemption that would be made for the eligible riparian property, and
(iii) stating that the by-law may be adopted by the Council after 30 days unless more than 5% of the electors petition the Council to obtain the assent of the electors to the by-law;
(b) from the date on which the notice is first published under paragraph (a), it is posted for public inspection in the City Hall during its regular office hours;
(c) by the end of 30 days after the notice is first published under paragraph (a), 5% or fewer of the electors have petitioned the Council to obtain the assent of the electors to the by-law.
(6) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, by regulation, establish additional requirements for property to be considered eligible riparian property.
1997-24-17; 2010-6-131.
396D. (1) A by-law under section 396C may provide that, if
(a) there is a contravention of any of the conditions of the covenant under section 219 of the Land Title Act in relation to which the exemption is given,
(b) the covenant is discharged before the end of the period of the exemption, or
(c) any other circumstances specified in the by-law occur,
the Council may require the owner of the eligible riparian property at that time to pay to the city the amount referred to in subsection (2).
(2) The amount that may be required under subsection (1) is the amount equivalent to
(a) the total taxes exempted under the by-law under section 396C,
plus
(b) interest from the time at which the exempt taxes would otherwise have been payable, compounded annually at the rate established under section 415 for delinquent taxes.
(3) A by-law under section 396C that includes a provision under subsection (1) may not be adopted without the consent of the owner of the eligible riparian property to which the by-law applies.
(4) If a by-law under section 396C includes a provision under subsection (1), within 30 days after the by-law is adopted the Council must have notice of the bylaw filed in the land title office, and for this purpose section 601 applies.
(5) If a by-law under section 396C includes a provision under subsection (1) and a circumstance specified in the provision occurs, the Council may, by by-law adopted by at least 2/3 of the votes cast, either
(a) require the owner to pay the amount referred to in subsection (2), or
(b) waive the obligation of the owner to pay all or part of the amount referred to in subsection (2).
(6) If the Council does not adopt a by-law under subsection (5) (a) within one year after it becomes aware of the circumstance in relation to which the by-law could be adopted, the Council is deemed to have waived all obligation of the owner to pay the amount referred to in subsection (2).
(7) If the Council adopts a by-law under subsection (5) (a) within the time period referred to in subsection (6), the Council may
(a) add the amount referred to in subsection (2) to the taxes for the current year payable to the city in relation to the eligible riparian property, or
(b) make an agreement with the owner regarding payment of the amount referred to in subsection (2) as a personal debt to the city.
1997-24-17.
"exemption agreement" means an agreement under subsection (9);
"exemption certificate" means a revitalization tax exemption certificate issued under subsection (10);
"owner", in relation to a property, means the registered owner or the owner under agreement;
"revitalization program by-law" means a by-law under subsection (4).
(2) Despite section 396 [liability to taxation], the Council may, for the purpose of encouraging revitalization in the city, provide tax exemptions for land or improvements, or both, in accordance with this section.
(3) For a revitalization tax exemption under this section to apply to a particular property
(a) the exemption must be in accordance with a revitalization program by-law under subsection (4),
(b) an exemption agreement under subsection (9) must apply to the property, and
(c) an exemption certificate for the property must have been issued under subsection (10).
(4) A revitalization tax exemption program must be established by a by-law that includes the following:
(a) a description of the reasons for and the objectives of the program;
(b) a description of how the program is intended to accomplish the objectives;
(c) a description of the kinds of property, or related activities or circumstances, that will be eligible for tax exemptions under the program;
(d) the extent of the tax exemptions available;
(e) the amounts of tax exemptions that may be provided under the by-law, by specifying amounts or by establishing formulas by which the amounts are to be determined, or both;
(f) the maximum term of a tax exemption that may be provided under the by-law, which may not be longer than 10 years.
(5) A revitalization program by-law
(a) may include other provisions the Council considers advisable respecting the program including, without limiting this,
(i) the requirements that must be met before an exemption certificate may be issued,
(ii) conditions that must be included in an exemption certificate, and
(iii) provision for a recapture amount that must be paid by the owner of the property to the city if the conditions specified in the exemption certificate are not met, and
(i) different areas of the city,
(ii) different property classes under the Assessment Act,
(iii) different classes of land or improvements, or both, as established by the by-law,
(iv) different activities and circumstances related to a property or its uses, as established by the by-law, and
(v) different uses or occupancies as established by zoning by-law.
(6) Before adopting a revitalization program by-law, the Council must
(a) give notice of the proposed by-law in accordance with subsections (7) and (8), and
(b) consider the by-law in conjunction with the objectives and policies set out in the report under section 219 (2) (c) [use of permissive tax exemptions].
(7) The notice required under subsection (6) must
(a) be published in accordance with section 3, and
(b) from the date on which the notice is first published under paragraph (a) of this subsection, be posted for public inspection in the City Hall during its regular office hours.
(8) The notice required under subsection (6) must include a general description of each of the following:
(a) the reasons for and the objectives of the program;
(b) how the proposed program is intended to accomplish the objectives;
(c) the kinds of property, or related activities or circumstances, that will be eligible for a tax exemption under the program;
(d) the extent, amounts and maximum terms of the tax exemptions that may be provided under the program.
(9) The Council may enter into an agreement with the owner of a property respecting
(a) the provision of a revitalization tax exemption under this section,
(b) any requirements that must be met before an exemption certificate is issued, and
(c) any conditions on which the tax exemption is to be provided.
(a) all requirements established in the exemption program by-law, and
(b) any additional requirements established in the exemption agreement
have been met, a revitalization tax exemption certificate must be issued for the property in accordance with the exemption agreement.
(11) An exemption certificate must specify the following in accordance with the exemption program by-law and the exemption agreement:
(a) the extent of the tax exemption;
(b) the amount of the tax exemption or the formula for determining the exemption;
(c) the term of the tax exemption;
(d) if applicable, the conditions on which the tax exemption is provided;
(e) if applicable, that a recapture amount is payable if the exemption certificate is cancelled, and how that amount is to be determined.
(12) So long as an exemption certificate has not been cancelled, the land or improvements, or both, subject to the exemption certificate are exempt from taxation under section 373 [annual rating by-law] as provided in the exemption certificate.
(13) An exemption certificate may be cancelled by the Council
(a) on the request of the property owner, or
(b) if any of the conditions specified in the exemption certificate are not met.
(14) An exemption certificate or cancellation does not apply to taxation in a calendar year unless the exemption certificate is issued or cancelled, as applicable, on or before October 31 in the preceding year.
(15) The Director of Finance, or another city employee authorized by the Director of Finance, must
(a) provide a copy of an exemption certificate to the assessor as soon as practicable after it is issued, and
(b) if applicable, notify the assessor as soon as practicable after an exemption certificate is cancelled.
(a) no later than the adoption of the rating by-law under section 373 (1), the Director of Finance must prepare and submit to the Council a report for the previous year that includes, for each tax exemption provided under this section, the amount of real property taxes that would have been imposed on the property in that previous year if it were not exempt for that year, and
(b) as soon as practicable after receiving the report, the Council must consider the report and make it available to the public.
2007-24-48; 2010-6-132.
"eligible not for profit property" means land or improvements, or both,
(a) in respect of which, either directly or through trustees, a not for profit corporation is the registered owner or owner under agreement, or
(b) that are held, either directly or through trustees, by a not for profit corporation, and
that the Council considers are used for a purpose that is directly related to the purposes of the not for profit corporation;
"not for profit corporation" means a charitable, philanthropic or other not for profit corporation.
(2) Despite section 396 [liability to taxation], the Council may, by by-law, exempt an eligible not for profit property from real property taxation under this Part, to the extent, for the period and subject to the conditions provided in the by-law.
(3) A by-law under this section
(a) must establish the term of the exemption, which may not be longer than 10 years, and
(b) does not apply to taxation in a calendar year unless it comes into force on or before October 31 in the preceding year.
(4) If only a portion of a parcel is exempt under this section, the by-law under this section must include a description of the exempt portion that is satisfactory to the British Columbia Assessment Authority.
(5) A by-law under this section ceases to apply to property that ceases to be an eligible not for profit property and, after this, the property is liable to taxation under this Part.
(6) Before adopting a by-law under this section, the Council must
(a) publish a notice of the proposed by-law in accordance with section 3, and
(b) consider the by-law in conjunction with the objectives and policies set out in the report under section 219 (2) (c) [use of permissive tax exemptions].
(7) The notice under subsection (6) (a) must
(a) identify the eligible not for profit property that would be subject to the by-law,
(b) describe the proposed exemption,
(c) state the number of years that the exemption may be provided, and
(d) provide an estimate of the amount of taxes that would be imposed on the eligible not for profit property if it were not exempt, for the year in which the proposed by-law is to take effect and the following 2 years.
2010-21-39.
397. (1) The exemptions provided for under clause (c) of section 396 (1) shall extend to so much real property as is reasonably necessary for the purposes of the institution, hospital, or religious organization, and no further; provided that if a parcel is partly exempt and partly taxable, it need not be severed, but the taxes on the taxable portion shall be deemed to apply to the whole parcel.
(2) Where a transfer, sale, or lease is made of real property theretofore exempt from taxation under clauses (a) and (c) of section 396 (1) to some person not entitled to such exemption, or where real property used for some purpose which would entitle it to exemption thereunder ceases to be so used, or where a sale of real property theretofore exempt from taxation under clause (b) of section 396 (1) is made to a person not otherwise entitled to exemption from taxes, such real property shall be liable to taxation from the date of such transfer, sale, lease, or cesser of user, as the case may be.
(3) Where the assessment roll is completed before the transfer, sale, or lease comes to the attention of the assessor, the assessor must
(a) provide an assessment notice to the transferee, purchaser, lessee, or other person who, but for the exemption, would have been liable to taxation, and
(b) assess the property on a supplementary assessment roll.
(4) Residential property that is only partly exempt from taxation under section 396 (1) or a by-law under section 396A is liable to taxation under section 374.3.
1953-55-397; 1966-69-16; 1967-63-6; 1968-71-18; 1973-93-14; 1977-30-158, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1990-31-19; 1990-32-12; 1992-57-8; 1994-43-93; 2021-18-83.
398. (1) The poles, conduits, cables, and wires of any electric light, electric power company, or closed-circuit television company; the mains of any gas company; and the plant and machinery, being fixtures appurtenant thereto and used in any way in connection therewith by any such company when situate on any street or public place, shall be deemed to be rateable property, and shall be liable to taxation for municipal purposes as provided in subsection (2) hereof and for school purposes as provided in the School Act.
(2) The companies referred to in subsection (1) shall pay to the city annually,
(b) in the case of every gas company, electric light company, and electric power company, at the rate of one and one-quarter per centum per annum on the revenue, being the amount actually annually received by such company for gas, electric light, or electric power consumed within the city;
(c) in the case of every closed-circuit television company, at the rate of one and one-quarter per centum per annum on the revenue, being gross rentals actually annually received from its subscribers for closed-circuit television service situate within the city.
(3) Every company to which this section applies shall annually, without any notice or demand, make a return of its revenue as aforesaid for the previous year, and shall file such return with the Director of Finance on or before the fifteenth day of April in each year, and shall on or before the third day of July in each year pay to the city the amount imposed by this section. The amount so payable shall bear interest at the rate of eight per centum per annum from such third day of July until payment is made.
(4) The taxation imposed by subsection (2) shall be in lieu of all taxes (other than taxes for other than general municipal purposes) otherwise imposed and payable to the city upon the property mentioned in subsection (1).
(5) "Closed-circuit television company" includes a person operating for a fee or charge a television-signal receiving antenna or similar device, or equipment for the transmission of television signals to television receivers of subscribers, or any or all of such devices and equipment.
(6) Paragraph (ii) of clause (a) of subsection (2) shall come into force and take effect as of the first day of January, 1973, and is retroactive to the extent necessary to give effect to the provisions thereof.
1953-55-398; 1957-85-20; 1960-80-8; 1965-68-29; 1972-67-27; 1973-93-15 to 18; 1977-30-159, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1982-2-53, effective midnight December 31, 1981; 1988-67-6; 1989-61-223.
399. None of the several companies aforesaid shall be required to pay the business tax in respect of any premises occupied or used by it solely for the purposes of the generation, transformation, or distribution of electric light, electric power, or gas or for the purposes of telephonic communication, or to pay licence fees other than those payable pursuant to section 272 (1) (e). Nothing herein shall relieve the said companies, or any of them, from liability to pay the business tax in respect of the offices and premises, other than those aforesaid, occupied or used by them.
1953-55-399; 1973-93-19; 2023-16-34.
Collection of Real-Property Taxes
399.1 (1) For the purposes of sections 401A and 403 to 405 and subject to subsection (2) of this section, "mail" includes
(a) to transmit by electronic means, and
(b) to make accessible by electronic means.
(2) The definition in subsection (1) applies only if
(a) the Collector provides for using electronic means, and
(b) authorization is provided by a person in accordance with section 401 (2).
2013-4-9.
400. In each year, upon the passing of the rating by-law, the Collector of Taxes appointed by the Council shall cause a real-property tax roll to be prepared. It need not be in the form of a roll or book, but may consist of a system of sheets, cards, or other records capable of use wholly or in part by mechanical devices.
1953-55-400.
401. (1) The Collector must enter on the real-property tax roll the following information, in addition to any other particulars that the Council directs, with respect to each parcel appearing on the real-property assessment roll as being liable to taxation:
(a) a short description of the parcel as it appears on the assessment roll;
(b) the name of the person entered on the assessment roll with respect to the parcel, showing if the person is owner, owner under agreement or occupier;
(c) subject to subsection (2), the person's address taken from the assessment roll;
(d) the assessed value of the land as it appears on the assessment roll, exclusive of exemptions, if any;
(e) the assessed value of the improvements, if any, as it appears on the assessment roll, exclusive of exemptions, if any;
(f) the real-property taxes for the year as levied by a rating by-law, to the extent that the person is not exempt as shown by the assessment roll or otherwise;
(g) any charge imposed under this Act, other than real-property taxes levied by a rating by-law;
(h) any delinquent real-property taxes.
(2) If a person has, in writing, authorized the Collector to use
(a) an address other than the address that appears on the assessment roll, the Collector must substitute that address on the real-property tax roll, or
(b) an email address, the Collector must add the email address on the real-property tax roll and may use that email address for the purpose of transmitting by electronic means or making accessible by electronic means
(i) a notice under section 401A (3), and
(ii) a tax statement under section 403
until the Collector receives written notice of the termination of the authorization.
(3) Despite subsection (1) (b) and (c), if the Collector is advised by the British Columbia Assessment Authority of a change in the name or address of a person entered on the assessment roll, the Collector must enter the change on the real-property tax roll.
2013-4-10.
401A. (1) Upon receipt of a supplementary roll prepared pursuant to the Assessment Act, the Collector shall follow the procedure set out in section 401 and process each entry on the supplementary roll as if it had been an entry on the real-property assessment roll. Each parcel entered on the supplementary roll shall be taxed at the rate or rates established for that class of property in the rating by-law passed pursuant to section 373.
(2) Taxes resulting from an entry on a supplementary roll are a debt due to the city and subject to all methods available to the city for the recovery of taxes including tax sale.
(3) Taxes resulting from an entry on a supplementary roll are due and payable 30 days after notice of the tax payable has been mailed to the assessed owner and notwithstanding any provision of this Act, no penalty or interest shall be added in that period. Any taxes unpaid after the time provided in this subsection shall be subject to the penalties and interest provided for in this Act.
(4) If an assessment on a supplementary roll is set aside or the assessed value reduced under the Assessment Act, the collector must
(a) refund to the taxpayer the excess amount of taxes paid by the taxpayer and any penalty and interest paid on the excess, or
(b) if no tax payment was made, adjust the tax roll to record the proper information.
(5) For the purposes of the refund under subsection (4) (a), the collector must pay the taxpayer interest at the rate prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.
(6) Subsection (5) does not apply in respect of a refund that results from an appeal to the board under the Assessment Act if the appeal is started or filed with the board before December 31, 1998.
1985-89-7, effective January 1, 1984; 1990-31-20; 1992-70-38; 1998-22-33; 2013-4-11.
402. The real-property tax rolls of the city shall, unless otherwise ordered by competent authority, at all times remain in the custody of the Collector, and the Collector shall be responsible for their safe-keeping.
1953-55-402; 2022-15-73,Sch 1.
403. (1) Upon completion of the real-property tax roll, the Collector shall proceed to collect the taxes and charges appearing thereon with respect to each parcel from the persons liable therefor, and shall with due dispatch cause to be mailed to each person whose name is required to be entered on such tax roll and by whom the real-property taxes in respect of such parcel are payable, at the address or email address, as applicable, appearing on the tax roll, a tax statement.
(1.1) Section 237 (2) and (3) of the Community Charter applies to a tax statement under subsection (1) of this section.
(2) The tax statement must include or have enclosed with it, for each parcel of land on the assessment roll the net taxable value of which has been adjusted under a by-law adopted under section 374.4, a statement
(a) informing the owner that assessed values and certain tax rates have been adjusted as a result of the by-law,
(b) specifying the adjusted value of the land and the value of any improvements on it, and
(c) describing the procedure for requesting the Collector of Taxes to correct errors and for complaining to the Council, sitting as a Court of Revision.
1953-55-403; 1968-53-24; 1992-70-39; 2000-7-191; 2013-4-12.
404. The Collector may cause a record to be kept of the date of mailing of each such tax statement. Such record shall be prima facie evidence that the statement was mailed on the date appearing in such record.
1953-55-404.
405. (1) The Collector must mail a copy of a tax statement to a person who has requested a copy in accordance with subsection (2).
(2) For the purposes of this section, a person
(a) must apply in writing for a copy of a tax statement,
(b) must pay for each parcel the fee established by the Council, and
(c) may, if the Collector provides for using electronic means, include in the request an authorization for the Collector to transmit by electronic means or make accessible by electronic means the tax statement.
(3) If a person includes an authorization under subsection (2) (c), the person must provide an email address to the Collector for the purpose of transmission by electronic means or provision of access by electronic means.
2013-4-13.
406. If any taxes have been delinquent for a period of one year on real property subject to tax sale, the Collector shall cause a warning to be added to the relevant tax statement to the following effect: —
Taxes delinquent. This property will be sold for taxes in November of next year unless all taxes now delinquent for a period of one year are sooner paid.
1953-55-406.
407. If any taxes have been delinquent for a period of two years on real property subject to tax sale, the Collector shall cause a warning to be added to the relevant tax statement to the following effect: —
Taxes delinquent. This property will be sold for taxes in November of this year unless all taxes now delinquent for a period of two years are sooner paid.
1953-55-407.
409. (1) A charge or levy imposed under section 300, 300.1, 302 or 303, or any other charge or levy lawfully inserted in the real-property tax roll,
(a) is a charge or lien on the real property on or in respect of which the charge or levy is imposed,
(b) has priority over any claim, lien, privilege or encumbrance of any person except the Crown, and
(c) does not require registration to preserve it.
(2) The amount of a charge or levy referred to in subsection (1) is to be collected in the same manner and with the same remedies as ordinary real-property taxes under this Act.
(3) A charge referred to in subsection (1) that is due and payable by December 31 and unpaid on that date is deemed to be delinquent taxes and must promptly be entered as such on the real-property tax roll by the Collector of Taxes.
1997-25-192; 2007-6-46.
409.1 (1) An owner of real property aggrieved by the creation of a charge or lien under section 409 may appeal to the Collector of Taxes, who may correct errors made in applying the charge or levy referred to in section 409 (1) to the property.
(2) An owner who has appealed under subsection (1) but who remains aggrieved may complain to the Council, sitting as a Court of Revision, which may correct errors made in applying the charge to the property.
(3) An owner who has complained under subsection (2) but who remains aggrieved may, on 10 days' written notice to the city, apply to the Supreme Court for an order that the charge be removed or that the amount for which the charge was imposed be varied.
(4) On an application under subsection (3), if the court is satisfied that any of the charges or levies for which the charge or lien was created were made improperly, it may order that the charge or lien be removed or that the amount be varied, or make another order it considers proper.
1997-25-192.
410. Real-property taxes levied by by-law shall, unless the by-law otherwise provides, be deemed to be due on and from the first day of January of the year in which the by-law is passed.
1953-55-410; 1990-31-21.
411. Real-property taxes shall be deemed to be delinquent which remain unpaid at the close of business on the thirty-first day of December of the year in which they are levied.
1953-55-411.
412. The Council may by by-law provide for the acceptance by the Collector of moneys to be applied at a future date in payment of real-property taxes, and may in such by-law provide terms and conditions upon which such moneys shall be accepted and held, and the rate of interest to be paid thereon.
1953-55-412; 1970-54-22.
413. Real-property taxes levied on any real property shall, subject to any lawful exemptions, be payable by the person whose name appears as owner thereof on the real-property tax roll prepared pursuant to the provisions of this Act, except that if the name of some other person appears thereon as owner under agreement of such real property, the taxes shall be payable by such owner under agreement, and if the real property is Crown lands, the taxes in respect of the occupier's right or interest shall be payable by the person named on the roll as the occupier.
1953-55-413; 2022-15-64.
413A. In any case where the Crown in right of the Province has agreed to sell lands which are situate within the city on conditions of deferred payment, and in case the holders of such agreements of sale have defaulted in making payment for such lands or have abandoned such lands, and the title thereto remains in the Crown, and in case such agreement-holders have made default in the payment of any taxes assessed against such lands by the city, then in each such case the taxes assessed shall be a first charge against such lands, and the Province shall, at the time of selling such lands, pay, out of the proceeds of such sale, to the city the amount of the taxes; provided that the amount so paid shall in no case exceed the amount received by the Province from such sale.
1957-85-10.
414. Real-property taxes payable under this Act, together with interest thereon, shall constitute a special lien upon the real property in respect of which they are payable, having preference to any claim, lien, privilege, or encumbrance of any person except the Crown, and shall not require registration to preserve it.
1953-55-414.
415. (1) Unless otherwise provided by a by-law passed pursuant to subsection (2) hereof, interest at the rate of 8% per annum compounded annually shall be added to all real-property taxes that become delinquent on or after December 31, 1969, and to delinquent taxes and interest that remain delinquent after December 31, 1969.
(2) Council may, from time to time, by a by-law passed not later than September 30 in any year impose interest to be compounded annually on real-property taxes which are delinquent in the calendar year following the enactment of such by-law. Such interest rate shall not be greater than 4 percentage points above the prime interest rate prevailing on July 31 of the year of its enactment as determined from the City's principal bankers.
1978-41-27.
416. (1) Notwithstanding any provision of this Part, the Council may, by by-law, provide for the payment of real-property taxes and other charges imposed, or to be imposed, pursuant to this Act, by monthly, quarterly, or twice-yearly instalments.
(2) A by-law passed pursuant to this section may provide for the collection of taxes and other charges in advance of the passing of the rating by-law or a by-law under section 374.3 or preparation of the real-property tax roll, and may provide for a penalty on any amounts unpaid on the date they become due and payable; provided, however, that any such penalty when combined with all other penalties imposed pursuant to section 376 shall not exceed the limitation set out in section 376.
(3) A by-law providing for the collection of taxes and other charges in advance of the preparation of the real-property tax roll shall provide that the amount of the instalment payable in respect of such parcel of real property shall be a percentage of the amount of taxes and other charges payable on the real-property tax roll for the immediately preceding year.
(4) For the purposes of this section, real-property taxes and other charges shall include school taxes and all other taxes, levies and charges in respect of real property which the city is required to impose pursuant to any statute.
1974-104-37; 1990-31-22.
417. Payment of taxes shall be credited by the Collector in the following order, against
(a) delinquent taxes including interest,
(b) taxes in arrear including interest,
(c) a penalty or percentage addition in the current year,
(d) taxes imposed under the School Act, and
(e) unpaid current taxes levied by by-law for the current year.
1989-61-224; 1990-31-23.
418. The Collector, upon payment of the prescribed fee, shall furnish to any applicant therefor a memorandum showing what real-property taxes, if any, are payable in respect of any parcel on the tax roll. The fee, unless otherwise determined by the Council, shall be twenty-five cents for a memorandum covering up to five parcels and an additional five cents for each parcel beyond five.
1953-55-418.
419. The taxes as set out in the real-property tax roll with respect to any parcel shall, after the expiration of one year from the passing of the by-law purporting to levy them, be deemed to have been duly and legally levied and imposed on that parcel, except where within the said period of one year an action has been commenced questioning the legality of such taxes.
1953-55-419; 1990-31-24.
420. The production of a copy of the part of the real-property tax roll showing the real-property taxes with respect to any parcel shall in any Court be prima facie evidence that the person shown thereon as owner, owner under agreement, or occupier, as the case may be, is indebted to the city for real-property taxes in the amount shown on such copy.
1953-55-420.
421. Where the boundaries of a parcel, as it appears on the roll, are altered so as to create a new parcel, and where real-property taxes on such first-mentioned parcel are unpaid, the Collector may apportion such taxes in the proportion that the value of the new parcel bears to the value of the old, and in arriving at such apportionment the Collector may accept the certified valuation of the assessor. Upon such apportionment, the sums so apportioned as taxes shall be deemed to be real-property taxes levied upon such new parcel.
1953-55-421; 1977-30-160, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977.
421A. The city is the agent
(a) of the Province for the collection of school taxes levied by the Province under the School Act, and
(b) of the Board of School Trustees of School District No. 39 (Vancouver) for the collection of school referendum taxes levied by the board of education under the School Act.
1990-2-31; 2007-29-44.
421B. (1) Subject to subsection (2), moneys collected pursuant to section 421A shall be held to the use of the municipality.
(2) The Council shall pay to the Board of School Trustees of School District No. 39 (Vancouver) the amount of school referendum taxes imposed in accordance with the requisition of the board under a bylaw adopted under section 113 (1) of the School Act.
(2.1) The Council shall pay to the Minister of Finance the amount of school taxes imposed in accordance with the requisition of the Province under section 120.3 of the School Act.
(3) Borrowing by the Council for the purposes of subsection (2) shall not require the assent of the electors.
1968-53-24; 1982-2-56, effective midnight December 31, 1981; 1989-61-226; 1990-2-32; 1997-25-193; 2003-54-27; 2018-4-105.
421C. Taxes levied under the School Act that are unpaid as at the thirty-first day of December together with any percentage addition on them become delinquent real-property taxes of the city on the thirty-first day of December in the year in which the taxes were levied.
1990-2-33.
Sale of Real Property for Delinquent Taxes Thereon
422. The Collector shall, on the first Wednesday in November in each even-numbered year and on the second Wednesday in November in each odd-numbered year, at ten o'clock in the forenoon at the City Hall, proceed to offer for sale by public auction every parcel of real property on which, according to the real-property tax roll, any unpaid taxes have been delinquent for a period of two years.
1953-55-422.
423. Unless the Council otherwise directs, the right or interest of an occupier of Crown lands shall not be offered for sale.
1953-55-423.
424. During the month of October preceding the sale, the Collector shall cause general notice thereof to be published in accordance with section 3 and in one issue of the Gazette.
1953-55-424; 2010-6-133.
425. The Collector shall be the auctioneer at such sale unless the Council appoints some other person to be auctioneer, and the auctioneer may adjourn the sale from time to time as may be necessary until all the parcels offered for sale are disposed of.
1953-55-425.
426. Even if the advertising has started, the Collector shall withdraw from the sale any parcel in respect of which there is paid to the Collector before the parcel is actually sold,
(a) all the delinquent taxes in respect of which the parcel is subject to sale,
(b) interest to the date of payment, and
(c) the amount determined by Council to defray any expense reasonably incurred by the city in respect of the offer to sell that parcel.
1992-57-9.
427. The auctioneer shall not sell any parcel for less than the upset price, being the sum of
(a) the delinquent taxes thereon in respect of which the parcel is subject to sale, together with interest to the day on which the sale begins;
(b) 5% of the delinquent taxes and interest, or $3, whichever is the greater amount;
(c) the current Land Title Office charge.
Save as aforesaid, the highest bidder for any parcel shall be the purchaser. If there are no bids, or no bids equal to the upset price, the city shall be declared to be the purchaser, and in that case, and in any case under section 429, the provisions of this Act shall thereafter, mutatis mutandis, apply as if a person other than the city had become the purchaser.
1953-55-427; 1992-57-10.
428. If the Collector so directs, and as often as the Collector directs, any parcel of which the city has been declared to be the purchaser shall, while the sale continues, be again put up for sale on the same conditions as before.
1953-55-428; 2022-15-73,Sch 1.
429. The purchaser of a parcel at the sale shall forthwith pay to the Collector for the use of the city the amount of the upset price, otherwise the auctioneer shall declare the city to be the purchaser of such parcel at the amount of the upset price.
1953-55-429.
430. Upon payment by the purchaser of the upset price, the balance of the purchase-money, if any, together with all real-property taxes then delinquent and interest, shall be payable at the expiration of one year from the day on which the sale begins, unless redemption takes place in the meantime.
1953-55-430.
431. The purchaser having paid the upset price for a parcel and having caused to be filed with the Collector a statement showing
(a) the full name, address, and occupation of the purchaser;
(b) an authorization enabling the Collector to apply on behalf of the purchaser to register any necessary documents in the land title office
shall be entitled to a certificate of purchase.
1953-55-431; 1978-25-334, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-194.
432. The certificate of purchase shall be signed by the Collector, or some person authorized by the Collector for the purpose, and shall show
(a) the name, address, and occupation of the purchaser;
(b) the description of the parcel purchased;
(d) the last day for redemption.
1953-55-432; 2022-15-75,Sch 3.
433. The certificate of purchase shall also contain a copy of sections 439 and 441.
1953-55-433.
434. A purchaser other than the city may, at any time before the Collector makes application under section 440, transfer the purchaser's certificate of purchase by assignment in writing, executed, attested, and acknowledged in like manner as an instrument required to be registered under the Land Title Act. Upon receipt of such assignment, together with the certificate of purchase and a statement on behalf of the transferee containing the information and authority required under section 431, the Collector shall alter the Collector's records accordingly, and thereafter the transferee shall be deemed to be the purchaser in lieu of the transferor.
1953-55-434; 1978-25-332, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-195; 2022-15-65.
435. The Collector, within six months after any parcel has been sold, shall cause to be mailed by registered post to every person who at the time of the sale had any registered interest in, or charge upon, the parcel a notice stating
(a) the day on which the sale began at which the parcel was sold;
(d) the last day for redemption of the parcel;
(e) the name of the owner, or owner under agreement, taken from the real-property tax roll.
The address shown on such tax roll shall be sufficient in the case of owners and owners under agreement. In respect of others, the address appearing on the application for registration of such interest in the land title office shall be sufficient. Such notice shall have printed thereon a copy of sections 437 and 438.
1953-55-435; 1978-25-334, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-196.
436. Notwithstanding that any parcel may have been sold for real-property taxes, it shall, during the time allowed for redemption, remain on the assessment roll and on the tax roll in the name of the owner, or owner under agreement, as it appears thereon at the time of the sale; real-property taxes shall continue to be payable by such owner, or owner under agreement, and shall continue to constitute a special lien on the parcel as provided by section 414.
1953-55-436.
437. The owner of the parcel sold, or any person having an interest therein, or any person on behalf of either of them, may, at any time within one year from the day on which the sale began, but not afterwards, redeem the parcel so sold by paying or tendering to the Collector for the use and benefit of the purchaser, or the purchaser's legal representative, the sums paid by such purchaser, together with interest at six per centum per annum and, in addition for the use and benefit of the city if the parcel is redeemed after the first day of October, any taxes which are delinquent for more than two years, with interest thereon; and the Collector shall thereupon give such owner or other person a receipt showing the amount paid, the description of the parcel, and a statement that the parcel has been redeemed.
1953-55-437; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
438. The purchaser of any parcel shall, while it remains unredeemed, be entitled to complain against the assessment and appear at a property assessment review panel appointed under the Assessment Act.
1953-55-438; 1977-30-161, proclaimed effective September 30, 1977; 1998-22-34.
439. If any parcel purchased by someone other than the city remains unredeemed at the expiration of the time for redemption, the Collector shall forthwith cause to be mailed to the purchaser thereof by registered post at the address shown in the purchaser's certificate of purchase a demand for the payment of
(a) the balance of the purchase-money, if any, in respect of such parcel;
(b) all taxes on such parcel which are delinquent at the date of the demand, together with interest thereon.
1953-55-439; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
440. If such purchaser, within thirty days from the date of the mailing of the demand, pays to the Collector the amount so demanded, or if the city, being the purchaser, makes the payment in the last section mentioned, the Collector shall forward to the Registrar of Land Titles a notice of the completion of the purchase of the parcel showing the full name, address, and occupation of the purchaser, together with a fee of five dollars and an application for the registration of the purchaser as owner of such parcel; and the Registrar of Land Titles shall register an indefeasible title to the land in the name of that purchaser as owner of the parcel without requiring the production of any outstanding certificate of title or duplicate certificate of indefeasible title.
1953-55-440; 1982-60-122, proclaimed effective August 1, 1983; 1997-25-197.
441. If the purchaser fails to complete the purchase by paying to the Collector the amount so demanded with respect to any parcel within the time specified as aforesaid, the Collector shall forward a notice of such failure to the Registrar of Land Titles, who shall thereupon cancel the tax-sale notice in respect of that parcel, and the amount paid by the purchaser shall be forfeited and shall be the property of the city, but not as taxes paid in respect of such parcel.
1953-55-441; 1997-25-198.
442. Upon failure to complete the purchase, the taxes which were included in the upset price shall be restored to the real-property tax roll and the provisions of this Act relating to the sale of real property for delinquent taxes shall again apply.
1953-55-442.
443. Where the sale of a parcel purporting to be a sale thereof for real-property taxes pursuant to the provisions of this Act is made, every right or interest of the person who at the time of the sale was the owner, or owner under agreement, of the parcel shall immediately cease and determine, except that
(a) the parcel shall be subject to redemption as provided in this Act;
(b) the right to possession of the parcel shall not be affected during the period of redemption, subject, however, to impeachment for waste;
(c) any person having a registered interest in the parcel may during the period of redemption, but not afterwards, bring an action to have the sale of the parcel set aside and declared invalid, but the grounds for such action shall be limited to the following: —
(i) That the parcel was not liable to taxation during the time in which the taxes for which it was sold were levied; or
(ii) That the taxes for which the parcel was sold were fully paid; or
(iii) That the sale at which the parcel was disposed of was not fairly and openly conducted.
1953-55-443.
444. If in any such action the sale is set aside and declared invalid on the ground that the sale was not fairly and openly conducted, the Court may order that the taxes accrued in respect of the parcel, together with interest, shall be, and continue to be, a special lien upon the parcel as if the sale had not taken place, and that such taxes and interest shall be deemed to be delinquent taxes, or the Court may order the immediate payment of such taxes and interest, or may make such other order as shall be just.
1953-55-444.
445. (1) If, during the period of redemption, the Council is satisfied that a manifest error has taken place in the sale or in the proceedings leading to the sale, the Council may, by resolution and after giving notice to the purchaser, cancel the sale to that purchaser.
(2) If a sale is cancelled under subsection (1),
(a) the city shall return to the purchaser the upset price together with interest at the rate of 6% per year, and
(b) the taxes, as they appeared on the real-property tax roll before the sale, shall be restored to the roll as delinquent taxes.
2013-4-14.
446. After the period of redemption has expired, no action shall be brought or proceedings commenced against the city, or the Registrar of Land Titles, or the minister charged with the administration of the Land Title Act, or the Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia, or the Collector, or the auctioneer, with respect to any parcel purporting to have been sold for real-property taxes under the provisions of this Act, except that an action for damages may be brought against the city only upon the following grounds, and no other: —
(a) That the parcel was not liable to taxation during the time in which the taxes for which it was sold were levied; or
(b) That the taxes for which the parcel was sold had been fully paid; or
(c) That the parcel had been redeemed during the period of redemption;
and then only if the action is brought within one year of the day upon which the period of redemption expired.
1953-55-446; 1978-25-332, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-199; 2004-66-166.
447. No damages shall be awarded in such action if it appears that the plaintiff, or the person through whom the plaintiff claims, was aware during the period of redemption that the parcel had purported to have been sold under the provisions of this Act.
1953-55-447; 2022-15-73,Sch 1.
448. If the city as purchaser at a tax sale becomes the registered owner of a parcel under the provisions of this Act, the city may, in order to get vacant possession thereof, give to any occupant of such parcel four weeks' notice of its intention to sue out a writ of possession in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and unless in the meantime the occupant registers a certificate of pending litigation against the parcel, the city shall, without any order for that purpose, be entitled to sue out such writ of possession immediately upon the expiration of the said period of four weeks on filing an affidavit showing due service of such notice.
1953-55-448; 1992-55-2.
449. The Council may by by-law provide for the acceptance by the Collector of moneys to be applied at a future date in redemption of any parcel sold for real-property taxes from any person entitled to redeem the parcel, and may by such by-law prescribe the terms and conditions upon which such moneys shall be received and held.
1953-55-449.
450. At any time within six months after it has become the purchaser of a parcel at a tax sale, the city may, by resolution of the Council, sell such parcel for an amount not less than the upset price, together with interest at six per centum per annum, but the right of redemption in respect of such parcel and the period of redemption reckoned from the day on which the tax sale began shall not be impaired.
1953-55-450.
451. (1) If the city as purchaser at a tax sale becomes the registered owner of a parcel and subsequently enters into an agreement to sell such parcel, and if the purchaser under such agreement makes default in the payment of principal, interest, taxes, or other charges due thereunder, the city need not bring an action to enforce its rights but may instead, if the Council by resolution so directs, cause notice to be given to the purchaser in writing at the address given in the agreement referring to this section and demanding payment of the amount in default to the city within ninety days from the giving of the notice and warning the purchaser that upon the purchaser's failure to remedy the default within the said ninety days, the purchaser and those claiming under or through the purchaser will forfeit any interest in the said parcel, together with any sums theretofore paid to the city under the agreement. If the purchaser fails to remedy the default within the said period of ninety days, all the right, title, and interest of the purchaser under the agreement, and all those claiming under or through the purchaser, shall, at the expiration of such period, absolutely cease and determine, and the parcel shall immediately become revested in the city, free from all claims by the purchaser, or anyone claiming under or through the purchaser, and, notwithstanding any Statute or rule of law or equity to the contrary, all payments made to the city under the said agreement shall be forfeited to the city. The city may file with the Registrar of Land Titles a statutory declaration proving such resolution, the giving of the notice, and the continued default, and thereupon the Registrar shall cancel any charge or encumbrance registered against the parcel in respect of the agreement.
(2) Where any parcel becomes revested in the city under subsection (1), the city may cause notice to be given to any occupant of such parcel requiring the occupant to vacate forthwith and giving to the occupant four weeks' notice of the city's intention to sue out a writ of possession of such parcel in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and unless within such four weeks the occupant vacates the parcel or registers a certificate of pending litigation against the parcel, the city shall, without any order for that purpose, be entitled to sue out such writ of possession on filing with the District Registrar of the Court an affidavit proving service of the notice and failure to vacate.
1953-55-451; 1992-55-2; 1997-25-200; 2022-15-73,Sch 1; 2022-15-75,Sch 3; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
452. If the purchaser of a parcel at a tax sale completes a purchase by paying to the Collector a sum in excess of the upset price, together with the delinquent taxes and interest required of the purchaser under section 439, the owner, or owner under agreement, at the expiration of the period of redemption, or such other person as may be legally entitled to it, may claim such excess from the city. To the person establishing a claim to the satisfaction of the Collector, the city shall pay the excess.
1953-55-452; 2022-15-75,Sch 3; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
453. If a claimant fails to establish a claim to the satisfaction of the Collector, the claimant may bring an action against the city in respect thereof in any Court of competent jurisdiction.
1953-55-453; 2022-15-73,Sch 1; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
454. Any such excess shall belong absolutely to the city, if, within six years after the expiration of the time for redemption of the parcel in respect of which it was paid, no person has established a claim to the satisfaction of the Collector, and no action in respect thereof has been brought against the city.
1953-55-454; 2022-15-76,Sch 4.
Contents | Preamble | Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV | Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXIV-A | Part XXIV-B | Part XXV | Part XXVI | Part XXVII | Part XXVIII | Part XXIX | Part XXX | Part XXXI
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