O. Reg. 360/03: GENERAL

Ontario Home Property Tax Relief for Seniors Act, 2003
Loi de 2003 sur l’allégement de l’impôt foncier résidentiel pour les personnes âgées de l’Ontario

ONTARIO REGULATION 360/03

Amended to: O. Reg. 392/03

GENERAL

Note: This Regulation was revoked on October 30, 2003. See: O. Reg. 392/03, s. 1.

This Regulation is made in English only.

Definitions

1. In this Regulation,

“cohabiting spouse or common-law partner” has the same meaning as in section 122.6 of the Income Tax Act (Canada);

“life lease development” means land with self-contained units organized as what is commonly known as a life lease project, in which a right to occupy a unit is solely for the lifetime of an individual or for a term of at least 20 years;

“life lease interest” means the exclusive right to occupy a housing unit in a life lease development;

“rent”,

(a) includes any amount that would be included under subsection 8 (14) of the Income Tax Act in determining the amount of rent paid for the purposes of section 8 of that Act, and

(b) excludes all amounts, if any, paid on account of meals;

“trustee” includes, in respect of an eligible senior, an attorney under a power of attorney given by the eligible senior, a statutory guardian of property of the eligible senior under the Substitute Decisions Act, 1992, an executor or administrator of the estate of the eligible senior, if the eligible senior is deceased, and a person who,

(a) owns or leases a housing unit in trust for occupation by the eligible senior,

(b) holds a right to occupy a housing unit in trust for occupation by the eligible senior, or

(c) pays on behalf of the eligible senior an amount included in the calculation of the eligible senior’s tax credit under the Act. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 1.

Eligible principal residence

2. (1) For the purposes of the application of the definition of “principal residence” in subsection 8 (1) of the Income Tax Act for the purposes of the definition of “eligible principal residence” in section 1 of the Ontario Home Property Tax Relief for Seniors Act, 2003, the reference to a housing unit being designated in the prescribed manner as an individual’s principal residence for a taxation year means,

(a) designating the housing unit as a principal residence for the year for the purposes of section 8 of the Income Tax Act as part of a claim for a property tax credit for the year under that section, if the designation and the claim for the property tax credit for the year are made before an application is made for a tax credit for the year under the Ontario Home Property Tax Relief for Seniors Act, 2003; or

(b) designating the housing unit as a principal residence for the year in an application for a tax credit under the Ontario Home Property Tax Relief for Seniors Act, 2003. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 2 (1).

(2) An eligible principal residence includes a unit in a hotel or motel that is occupied by an eligible senior as his or her principal place of residence. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 2 (2).

(3) If an eligible senior occupies an eligible principal residence at the time he or she dies, the residence is deemed to continue to be an eligible principal residence of the deceased for the rest of the year in which the death occurred if no one occupies the residence as a principal residence during the rest of the year except a person who was, at the time of the death, the eligible senior’s cohabiting spouse or common-law partner. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 2 (3).

Prescribed amounts

3. Each of the following is prescribed as another amount for the purposes of subparagraph 3 iii of subsection 2 (3) of the Act:

1. A payment for the right to occupy a unit in a hotel or motel, excluding any portion of the payment that is on account of meals.

2. An amount paid on account of home property taxes in respect of,

i. a lease of the land on which an eligible principal residence is situated, or

ii. a life lease interest in an eligible principal residence. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 3.

Eligible senior

4. (1) For the purposes of subsection 2 (3) of the Act,

(a) in the case of an application made under subsection 4 (1) of the Act, an individual must be a Canadian citizen at the time of the application or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence in Canada at the time of the application in order to be an eligible senior for the year; or

(b) in the case of an application made under subsection 4 (2) of the Act, the individual must have been a Canadian citizen or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence in Canada at the time of death of the individual. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 4 (1).

(2) For the purposes of subsection 2 (4) of the Act, an individual is an eligible senior for a year if,

(a) the individual is at least 65 years of age on or before December 31 of the year;

(b) the individual has one or more eligible principal residences in the year;

(c) the individual,

(i) is a Canadian citizen at the time of the application or has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence in Canada at the time of the application in the case of an application made under subsection 4 (1) of the Act, or

(ii) was a Canadian citizen or had been lawfully admitted for permanent residence in Canada at the time of death of the individual in the case of an application made under subsection 4 (2) of the Act; and

(d) a trustee or the cohabiting spouse or common-law partner of the individual is liable to pay in the year,

(i) home property tax on a housing unit that is an eligible principal residence of the individual,

(ii) rent for the right of the individual to occupy a housing unit that is an eligible principal residence of the individual, or

(iii) an amount described in section 3 in respect of an eligible principal residence of the individual. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 4 (2).

Calculation of the amount of the tax credit

5. (1) For the purposes of subsection 3 (1) of the Act and subject to subsection (2), the amount of the tax credit to which an eligible senior is entitled for a year is the sum of such of the following amounts as apply to the eligible senior for the year or portion of the year:

1. If the eligible senior is an owner of an eligible principal residence, an amount equal to the home property taxes paid for the year or portion of the year for the eligible principal residence.

2. If the eligible senior is a tenant of an eligible principal residence, 2.5 per cent of the rent paid for the year or portion of the year for the eligible principal residence.

3. If the eligible senior occupies a unit in a hotel or motel as an eligible principal residence, 2.5 per cent of the amount described in paragraph 1 of section 3 paid for occupation of the unit for the year or portion of the year.

4. If the eligible senior leases the land on which his or her eligible principal residence is situated or holds a life lease interest, the amount that reasonably approximates the home property taxes payable on the land or in respect of the life lease interest for the year or portion of the year in which the eligible senior leases the land or holds the life lease interest. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 5 (1).

(2) The home property taxes, rent or other payment provided for under section 3 for an eligible principal residence occupied by an eligible senior in a year with another person shall be allocated to each of them according to the beneficial ownership of each of them in the eligible principal residence or according to the portion of rent or other payment that was paid in respect of the occupation of the eligible principal residence by each of them in the year. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 5 (2).

(3) If an application is made under section 4 of the Act for the year in which an eligible senior dies and a property is deemed under subsection 2 (3) to continue to be the eligible principal residence of the eligible senior after his or her death, no person may claim a tax credit under the Act that would include the amount of the tax credit to which the deceased is entitled for the year. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 5 (3).

Notification of Minister’s determination

6. For the purposes of subsection 4 (4) of the Act, the Minister shall give the applicant written notice of the amount of the tax credit to which the applicant is entitled as determined by the Minister and shall notify the applicant of his or her right to object under subsection 4 (5) of the Act in accordance with section 7. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 6.

Objection

7. (1) For the purposes of subsection 4 (5) of the Act, an applicant for a tax credit under the Act may object to the determination of the Minister by delivering to the Minister a notice of objection in a form approved by the Minister, setting out the reasons for the objection and all relevant facts. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 7 (1).

(2) A notice of objection must be delivered to the Minister within 180 days after the date of the notice referred to in section 6. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 7 (2).

(3) A notice of objection under this section must be delivered to the Minister by being sent by mail, courier service or personal delivery, but the Minister may accept a notice of objection under this section even though it was not delivered in the manner required. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 7 (3).

(4) On receiving a notice of objection, the Minister shall forthwith reconsider the determination objected to and confirm, vary or reverse the determination and the Minister shall then notify the person making the objection of his or her decision in writing. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 7 (4).

Review on question of law

8. (1) A decision of the Minister under section 7 is final and is not subject to appeal unless the decision involves,

(a) the interpretation of a provision of the Act, this Regulation or another regulation made under the Act;

(b) the interpretation of a provision of the Income Tax Act or a regulation made under it that is relevant in determining the eligibility of an individual to receive a tax credit under the Ontario Home Property Tax Relief for Seniors Act, 2003 or the amount of the tax credit; or

(c) an issue solely of law in which no material facts are in dispute, or the proper inference to be drawn from material facts that are not in dispute. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 8 (1).

(2) In any dispute over the decision of the Minister that may be appealed under subsection (1), the applicant who made the objection may apply to the Minister within 180 days of the date of the Minister’s notice under subsection 7 (4), setting out the issues in dispute and requesting that the Minister agree in writing as to the undisputed facts. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 8 (2).

(3) Where the Minister and the applicant agree on the facts, the Minister shall apply to the Superior Court of Justice to have the issue in dispute determined. O. Reg. 360/03, s. 8 (3).

(4) Subject to subsection (5), the applicant may make an application to the Superior Court of Justice to have the issue in dispute determined if,

(a) the Minister and the applicant have not agreed on the facts within 180 days after the date the applicant made the request to the Minister under subsection (2); or

(b) the Minister and the applicant have agreed on the facts or there are no material facts in dispute and the Minister has not made an application to the court within 180 days after the day on which the person made the request to the Minister under subsection (2). O. Reg. 360/03, s. 8 (4).

(5) No application to the court may be made by the applicant under subsection (4) on or after the day that is one year from the day on which the applicant made the request to the Minister under subsection (2). O. Reg. 360/03, s. 8 (5).