BC Home Flipping Tax: What It Costs to Sell Within 2 Years
Sell a BC home within 730 days of buying it and the BC home flipping tax can apply. Inside 365 days, it's 20% of your net taxable income from the sale. Between 365 and 730 days, the rate drops a little each day until it reaches 0. It covers pre-sale assignments too, and if you're caught by it, you have 90 days to file a return.
What the Tax Is
The BC home flipping tax is a provincial tax on the profit from selling residential property you've owned for less than 2 years. It took effect on January 1, 2025, and it has its own return and its own 90-day filing deadline.
It isn't only for investors. A homeowner whose plans change a year after buying can be caught by it the same way a flipper can. A home bought before January 1, 2025 can still be caught if it sold on or after that date and was owned for fewer than 730 days.
If there's a chance you'll need to sell soon after buying, that belongs in the plan before you write an offer. My guide on whether to buy or sell first in BC covers the timing side of a move.
How the 20% Rate Drops to 0
Inside 365 days, the rate is a flat 20%. After that, the province's calculator page uses this formula: 20% times 1 minus (days held minus 365) divided by 365. In plain terms, the rate falls in a straight line over the second year and hits 0 at day 730.
| Days Owned | Tax Rate |
|---|---|
| 365 or fewer | 20.0% |
| 456 | 15.0% |
| 547 | 10.0% |
| 638 | 5.0% |
| 730 or more | None |
Rates computed from the province's formula and rounded to 1 decimal place. Source: Government of BC, Calculate your BC home flipping tax (updated May 7, 2026), read November 9, 2026.
How days are counted matters at the edges. The province has its own days of ownership rules, so check them against your actual dates before you list.
Pre-Sale Assignments Count
This is the part people miss. The province treats the right to buy a home as taxable property, and it names assigning a purchase contract for a pre-sale condo as an example. Selling your contract before completion can trigger the tax the same way selling a finished home can.
The primary residence deduction doesn't help here either. The province says it isn't available when you assign a pre-sale contract. If you're weighing a pre-sale, my look at the pros and cons of buying a pre-sale in BC is a good place to start.
There is one exemption aimed at pre-sale buyers. If the developer's estimated completion date moves more than 365 days past the original estimate, and both dates were given to you in writing, the province lists that as an exemption.
The $20,000 Primary Residence Deduction
If you lived in the home, you may be able to take up to $20,000 off your taxable income before the rate is applied. The province sets 2 conditions:
- •Ownership: you owned the property for at least 365 consecutive days before you sold it.
- •Your home: it included a housing unit you lived in as your primary residence.
That means the deduction only comes into play in the second year, when the rate is already dropping. Sell inside the first 365 days and you pay the full 20% with no deduction.
A Worked Example
The province's own example follows Jacqueline, who held her home for 398 days and lived in it. Her taxable income from the sale is $90,000 ($1,000,000 sale price, minus $900,000 purchase price, minus $10,000 in costs). The $20,000 deduction brings that to $70,000.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Taxable income from the sale | $90,000 |
| Less primary residence deduction | $20,000 |
| Net taxable income | $70,000 |
| Rate at 398 days | 18.2% |
| Tax owing | $12,734.40 |
The province's example. Its rate at 398 days is 18.192%, shown here to 1 decimal place. Source: Government of BC, Calculate your BC home flipping tax (updated May 7, 2026), read November 9, 2026.
Had she sold within 365 days, the province says the rate would be 20% with no deduction: $90,000 times 20% is $18,000. Waiting those extra weeks and living in the home made a difference of $5,265.60.
Tools & Resources
Planning your next move? Try these tools.
Life Changes That Can Make You Exempt
Plans change, and the province accepts that. Its life circumstance exemptions for individuals include:
- •Separation: a breakdown of a marriage or common-law partnership, if you've lived apart for at least 90 days before the sale.
- •Job loss: you or your spouse or common-law partner are involuntarily terminated and must sell. It doesn't apply to the self-employed.
- •Relocation: a move for work or full-time post-secondary study, with distance tests (your old home at least 40km farther from the new job or school than your new home).
- •Illness or disability: serious illness or disability for you or a related individual, when the sale is reasonably linked to it.
- •Household change: a related person moving in, you moving in with one or having or expecting a child.
- •Death: your death or the death of a related individual, as the province defines it.
- •Personal safety: a threat to your safety or to a related person living with you.
There are more, including foreclosure, a destroyed home and expropriation. Each comes with conditions, so read the province's wording against your own situation.
You Still Have to File
An exemption doesn't mean you skip the paperwork. The province says you must file a BC home flipping tax return within 90 days of the sale if you sold within 729 days of acquiring the property, or if your exemption only applies once you file. For a life circumstance exemption, you still file to claim it, and not filing can bring penalties.
Some exemptions apply without a return, and a developer entering into an initial pre-sale agreement doesn't need to file. If you aren't sure which side you're on, assume you file and confirm it with the province or an accountant.
If you're selling one home and buying another at the same time, the 90-day clock runs alongside everything else. My guide to buying and selling at the same time lays out how people handle the overlap.
Who Needs to Think About This
This matters if you bought in the last 2 years and might sell, if you're buying now and your plans could change or if you hold a pre-sale contract you might assign before completion. In each case, the date you sell can change what you keep.
It matters less if you're buying a home you expect to live in for years, or if you've already owned your current home for 730 days or more. At that point the flipping tax doesn't apply to it.
If you're getting ready to list, the date is one piece and disclosure is another. My guide to the BC Property Disclosure Statement covers what sellers fill out.
This is general information, not tax advice. The province's pages and an accountant are the right places to confirm how the tax applies to your own sale.
Thinking About Buying or Selling?
The best first step is a quick conversation. Pick a time in the calendar that works for you and we'll talk it through.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the BC home flipping tax rate?
If you sell within 365 days of buying, the tax is 20% of your net taxable income from the sale. After 365 days the rate drops gradually, and at 730 days the tax no longer applies.
When did the BC home flipping tax start?
January 1, 2025. A property bought before that date can still be caught if it was sold on or after January 1, 2025 and owned for fewer than 730 days.
Does the flipping tax apply to pre-sale assignments?
Yes. The province includes the right to buy a home, such as assigning a purchase contract for a pre-sale condo, as taxable property.
Is there a deduction if I lived in the home?
Up to $20,000, if you owned the property for at least 365 consecutive days and it included a home you lived in as your primary residence. It isn't available when you assign a pre-sale contract.
What life events can make me exempt?
The province lists exemptions such as a separation of at least 90 days, involuntary job loss, an eligible relocation for work or school, serious illness or disability, a change in household and a threat to personal safety, among others. Each one has conditions.
Do I still file a return if I qualify for an exemption?
For a life circumstance exemption, yes. The province says you still file a BC home flipping tax return to claim it, and not filing can bring penalties.
How long do I have to file?
Within 90 days of the sale, if you sold within 729 days of acquiring the property, or if your exemption only applies once you file.
Sources: Government of BC, BC home flipping tax (June 8, 2026); Calculate your BC home flipping tax (May 7, 2026); Life circumstance exemptions (May 13, 2026). Read November 9, 2026.
Alex Dunbar Personal Real Estate Corporation
REAL Broker BC Ltd. | Living in the Lower Mainland
Buying, selling or investing in the Lower Mainland? Whether you're new to the area or a longtime local, I'll help you make the right move. Book a 30-minute no-pressure call with me and we'll figure out what works best for you.
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