The Markham vacant home tax applies to residential properties in Markham that sit unoccupied for more than six months in a calendar year, and every residential property owner in the city must file an annual occupancy declaration whether the home is occupied or not. Skip the declaration and the city deems the property vacant by default, then bills you a percentage of its assessed value on top of regular property taxes.1City of Markham. Vacant Home Tax (VHT)
When a Home Counts as Vacant
The threshold is six months of vacancy during the previous calendar year. Those months do not have to run back-to-back. If the total time without a qualifying occupant, meaning either the registered owner using it as a principal residence or a tenant under a lease, adds up to more than half the year, the property is over the line.
The tax covers residential property only. Commercial and industrial properties are not part of the program.
The Annual Occupancy Declaration
Every owner of a Markham residential property files a declaration each year. Occupied homes, principal residences, tenanted homes, empty homes: all of them file. There is no “no news is good news” option.
What You’ll Need
To log in to Markham’s online declaration portal, you need your property Roll Number and an Access Code. Both are printed on your property tax bill or assessment notice. Without both, you cannot get into the portal, so pull your most recent bill before you start.
The form asks whether the property is your principal residence, occupied by a tenant, or vacant. If a tenant lives there, expect to provide their name and lease details. If the home was vacant but qualifies for an exemption, you select the category and upload the supporting documents at the same time.
The Deadline
For the 2026 taxation year, the declaration is due by March 31, 2027. Miss it and the city treats the property as vacant. Owners who filed last year still have to file again; each declaration covers one calendar year.
Keep Your Confirmation
After you submit online, the portal returns a confirmation number. Save it. That number is your proof of compliance if a question comes up later. If you cannot use the online portal, contact the city about alternative filing methods; paper submissions may be available by mail.
What Happens If You Don’t File
Ignoring the declaration does not buy you time. Markham does not send a second notice assuming everything is fine. The property is deemed vacant and a tax bill goes out.1City of Markham. Vacant Home Tax (VHT) Even if the home was occupied all year, you will owe the tax until you successfully dispute the assessment through the city’s complaint process.
Filing a false or misleading declaration carries its own consequences. Ontario vacant home tax programs typically impose fines for fraudulent declarations, and the city can audit and verify what you reported. An honest, on-time declaration is always the cheapest outcome.
How the Tax Is Calculated
The tax is a percentage of the property’s Current Value Assessment as determined by MPAC. Ontario’s legislation lets each municipality set its own rate.2Government of Ontario. Municipal Vacant Home Tax For a benchmark, Toronto and Ottawa both set theirs at 1% of assessed value for the 2023 tax year, and Markham’s rate is expected to fall in a similar range.
At 1%, a home assessed at $1,000,000 would face a $10,000 vacant home tax on top of regular property taxes. That is a real cost for holding an empty home, not a rounding error.
Payment can be made through online banking, at a financial institution, or by mailing a cheque to the city. Check your tax bill for exact due dates; Markham may split the payment into installments with deadlines in the spring and summer. Late payments accrue interest and penalties that get added to the property’s tax account.
Exemptions and the Documents Each One Needs
Some vacancies are exempt because the owner genuinely could not occupy or rent the home. Ontario’s framework requires each municipality to define its own exemptions in its bylaw, and the following categories reflect the situations Markham recognizes:
- Death of a registered owner during or shortly before the taxation year. The estate provides a copy of the death certificate.
- The owner or principal resident moved into a hospital, long-term care home, or supportive care facility for at least six months of the year. A signed letter from the facility confirms the stay.
- Transfer of ownership during the calendar year, so a new buyer is not penalized for the previous owner’s vacancy.
- Major renovations or repairs that made the home uninhabitable. You will need to show the required building permits were obtained and that the work genuinely prevented anyone from living there.
Submit the supporting documents with your declaration rather than waiting for an audit. Markham’s official portal lists the exact materials required for each category.
What to Keep in Case of an Audit
Filing is not the end of the process. Markham can audit properties to verify the occupancy status you reported. If your property is picked, you may be asked to produce evidence that someone actually lived there.
Documents that support an occupancy claim generally include:
- Utility bills showing regular water, gas, or electricity use
- Home insurance records listing the property as owner-occupied or tenant-occupied
- A copy of the lease if a tenant lived there
- Government correspondence (tax returns, driver’s licences) showing the address as a principal residence
Keep at least twelve months of these records on hand. For exemption claims, hold onto the specific supporting document: the death certificate, the facility letter, or the building permits and contractor invoices.
Disputing a Vacant Home Tax Assessment
If the city deems your property vacant, whether because you didn’t file, because an audit found a discrepancy, or because you disagree with the determination, you have the right to dispute it. Ontario’s framework requires each municipal bylaw to include a complaint and appeal mechanism.
Under similar Ontario programs, owners can file a Notice of Complaint within 90 days of receiving the tax determination. The review looks at the evidence you provide showing the property was occupied or qualifies for an exemption. If the initial complaint is denied, further appeal routes may be available through the municipality or provincial tribunals.
Two practical points. Filing the complaint within the deadline is what preserves your right to a refund, so do not assume paying under protest is enough. And do not ignore the bill in the meantime; unpaid vacant home tax accrues interest and becomes a lien on the property in the same way regular property taxes do.