Antigonish, Highland Region
Nova Scotia deed transfer tax rates, by municipality
Other provinces call it land transfer tax. The province publishes the municipal rates only as a PDF; here they are as a searchable table, with a calculator.
How much is land transfer tax in Nova Scotia?
Nova Scotia’s deed transfer tax (what other provinces call land transfer tax) is 1.0% to 1.5% of the purchase price, set by the municipality the property is in and paid by the buyer at closing. Halifax Regional Municipality charges 1.5%: $8,890 on the August 2026 Halifax-Dartmouth average of $592,675.
Land transfer tax calculator for Nova Scotia
This deed transfer tax calculator covers every municipality in the province. Pick the municipality where the property is, not where you live, and enter the price. The tax is a flat percentage of the price, so the result is exact for the municipal part.
Halifax at 1.5%: $8,890 on the $592,675 average
Each mark shows the rate and the number of municipalities charging it, from Municipal Deed Transfer Tax Rates (Province of Nova Scotia), July 2026. Non-resident buyers add the 10% provincial tax on top.
Go deeper
The detail, if you want it
Municipal deed transfer tax rates: every municipality, July 2026
Municipal deed transfer tax in Nova Scotia is set by each of the 49 municipalities, at 15 charging 1.0%, 3 charging 1.25% and 31 charging 1.5%. The rate that applies is the one where the property sits.
Source: Municipal Deed Transfer Tax Rates (Province of Nova Scotia), July 2026; re-verified 2026-09-15. Type to filter.
The province publishes these rates as a PDF only. All 49 are also available here as a machine-readable CSV — free to use and to quote, with attribution to this page.
| County | Municipality | Rate | Tax on $400,000 | Mortgages here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annapolis | Municipality of the County of Annapolis | 1.5% | $6,000 | Bridgetown |
| Annapolis | Town of Annapolis Royal | 1.5% | $6,000 | Annapolis Valley |
| Annapolis | Town of Middleton | 1.5% | $6,000 | Middleton |
| Antigonish | Municipality of the County of Antigonish | 1% | $4,000 | Highland Region |
| Antigonish | Town of Antigonish | 1.5% | $6,000 | Antigonish |
| Cape Breton | Cape Breton Regional Municipality | 1.5% | $6,000 | Sydney |
| Colchester | Municipality of Colchester | 1.5% | $6,000 | Northern Nova Scotia |
| Colchester | Town of Stewiacke | 1% | $4,000 | Stewiacke |
| Colchester | Town of Truro | 1.5% | $6,000 | Truro |
| Cumberland | Municipality of the County of Cumberland | 1.5% | $6,000 | Springhill |
| Cumberland | Town of Amherst | 1.5% | $6,000 | Amherst |
| Cumberland | Town of Oxford | 1.5% | $6,000 | Oxford |
| Digby | Municipality of the District of Clare | 1% | $4,000 | Clare |
| Digby | Municipality of the District of Digby | 1% | $4,000 | Yarmouth and Southwest Nova Scotia |
| Digby | Town of Digby | 1.5% | $6,000 | Digby |
| Guysborough | Municipality of the District of Guysborough | 1% | $4,000 | Highland Region |
| Guysborough | Municipality of the District of St. Mary's | 1.25% | $5,000 | Highland Region |
| Guysborough | Town of Mulgrave | 1.5% | $6,000 | Highland Region |
| Halifax | Halifax Regional Municipality | 1.5% | $6,000 | Halifax |
| Hants | Municipality of the District of East Hants | 1.5% | $6,000 | Elmsdale and Enfield |
| Hants | West Hants Regional Municipality | 1.5% | $6,000 | Windsor |
| Inverness | Municipality of the County of Inverness | 1.5% | $6,000 | Chéticamp |
| Inverness | Town of Port Hawkesbury | 1.5% | $6,000 | Port Hawkesbury |
| Kings | Municipality of the County of Kings | 1.5% | $6,000 | New Minas |
| Kings | Town of Berwick | 1.25% | $5,000 | Berwick |
| Kings | Town of Kentville | 1.5% | $6,000 | Kentville |
| Kings | Town of Wolfville | 1.5% | $6,000 | Wolfville |
| Lunenburg | Municipality of the District of Chester | 1.5% | $6,000 | Chester |
| Lunenburg | Municipality of the District of Lunenburg | 1.25% | $5,000 | South Shore |
| Lunenburg | Town of Bridgewater | 1.5% | $6,000 | Bridgewater |
| Lunenburg | Town of Lunenburg | 1.5% | $6,000 | Lunenburg |
| Lunenburg | Town of Mahone Bay | 1.5% | $6,000 | Mahone Bay |
| Pictou | Municipality of the County of Pictou | 1% | $4,000 | Highland Region |
| Pictou | Town of New Glasgow | 1% | $4,000 | New Glasgow |
| Pictou | Town of Pictou | 1% | $4,000 | Pictou |
| Pictou | Town of Stellarton | 1% | $4,000 | Stellarton |
| Pictou | Town of Trenton | 1% | $4,000 | Trenton |
| Pictou | Town of Westville | 1% | $4,000 | Westville |
| Queens | Region of Queens Municipality | 1.5% | $6,000 | Liverpool |
| Richmond | Municipality of the County of Richmond | 1.5% | $6,000 | Cape Breton |
| Shelburne | Municipality of the District of Barrington | 1.5% | $6,000 | Barrington |
| Shelburne | Municipality of the District of Shelburne | 1.5% | $6,000 | Yarmouth and Southwest Nova Scotia |
| Shelburne | Town of Clark's Harbour | 1% | $4,000 | Yarmouth and Southwest Nova Scotia |
| Shelburne | Town of Lockeport | 1.5% | $6,000 | Yarmouth and Southwest Nova Scotia |
| Shelburne | Town of Shelburne | 1.5% | $6,000 | Shelburne |
| Victoria | Municipality of the County of Victoria | 1.5% | $6,000 | Cape Breton |
| Yarmouth | Municipality of the District of Argyle | 1% | $4,000 | Argyle |
| Yarmouth | Municipality of the District of Yarmouth | 1% | $4,000 | Yarmouth and Southwest Nova Scotia |
| Yarmouth | Town of Yarmouth | 1% | $4,000 | Yarmouth |
Deed transfer tax exemptions in Nova Scotia
The exemptions are the same in every municipality, because they come from provincial law: section 109 of the Municipal Government Act. They cover transfers where no real sale takes place, such as a deed between married spouses or a gift. There is no exemption for first-time buyers. The person claiming one sets out the facts in the affidavit filed with the deed.
| Exempt transfer | What the Act says | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Between married spouses | A deed between persons married to one another. | 109(1)(a) |
| Between former spouses | A deed between persons formerly married to one another, where the transfer divides marital assets. | 109(1)(b) |
| A gift | A deed by way of gift, even where the person receiving it takes over a mortgage or tax lien, or pays a nominal amount. | 109(1)(c) |
| To a municipality | A deed to a municipality. | 109(1)(aa) |
| A correcting deed | A deed that only confirms, corrects, modifies or supplements an earlier deed, for no more than one dollar and no additional property. | 109(2) |
| A tax sale | A deed given pursuant to a tax sale. | 109(4) |
| A registered charity | A deed to a registered Canadian charitable organization, where the property will not be used for a commercial, industrial, rental or other business purpose. The tax is charged back with interest if that changes, or the property is sold, within three years. | 109(7)–(8) |
| A Farm Loan Board deed | A deed from the Nova Scotia Farm Loan Board to a borrower. | 109(3) |
Three things people expect to be on the list and are not. The spouse exemption says “married”; the section does not mention common-law partners. The Act’s definition of a deed leaves out a will, a mortgage and a lease under 21 years, so how an estate transfer is taxed is a question for the lawyer handling it. And a refinance transfers no deed at all. The same rules apply in Halifax through the HRM Charter. The Act also caps the rate any municipality can set at 1.5%.
The pattern behind the rates, and who pays
The rate follows the property, not the buyer: a Halifax resident buying in New Glasgow pays New Glasgow’s 1.0%. The same county can carry two rates: the Town of Antigonish is 1.5%, the County 1.0%; the Town of Digby 1.5%, the Districts of Digby and Clare 1.0%; Berwick 1.25%, the rest of Kings County 1.5%. All of Pictou and Yarmouth counties sit at 1.0%: on a $367,859 Highland-region home that is $3,679 instead of $5,518 in HRM.
Your lawyer collects it with the closing funds and remits it to the Land Registry at registration, with a Municipal Deed Transfer Affidavit of Value, filed whether or not tax is owed. It cannot be financed, so it is part of your cash to close.
The non-resident tax stacks on top
Since April 1, 2025 the province charges a separate 10% Non-resident Provincial Deed Transfer Tax on residential property with three dwelling units or fewer, including residential vacant land, on top of the municipal rate. Buyers who move to Nova Scotia within six months are exempt; since August 2026 you have one year to prove residency and two to claim a refund. The non-resident tax explained →
Why a broker
Licensed, independent, paid by the lender
- Licensed in Nova Scotia Associate broker 3001134, verifiable on the provincial register
- $0 broker fee On a standard residential mortgage the lender pays, not you
- Banks, credit unions, monolines One application, one credit check, placed with the lender that reads your file best
- Every part of the province Bedford office, remote process: Yarmouth to Sydney, the same four steps
Questions people ask
How much is land transfer tax in Nova Scotia?
Nova Scotia's land transfer tax is called deed transfer tax, and it is 1.0% to 1.5% of the purchase price depending on the municipality. Halifax Regional Municipality charges 1.5%: $8,890 on the August 2026 Halifax-Dartmouth average of $592,675. The buyer pays it in cash at closing.
What is the deed transfer tax in Halifax?
Halifax Regional Municipality charges 1.5% of the purchase price, everywhere in the municipality, including Dartmouth, Bedford and Sackville. On the August 2026 Halifax-Dartmouth average of $592,675 that is $8,890, paid by the buyer through the lawyer at closing.
Who pays the deed transfer tax in Nova Scotia?
The buyer, at closing through your lawyer, who remits it to the Land Registry when the deed is registered. It cannot be added to the mortgage. A seller can offer a closing credit, but lenders treat that as reducing the purchase price, so raise it with your broker before it goes into the offer.
Is the deed transfer tax the same everywhere in Nova Scotia?
No. Each municipality sets its own rate. On the July 2026 provincial schedule, 15 municipalities charge 1.0%, 3 charge 1.25%, and 31, including Halifax Regional Municipality and Cape Breton Regional Municipality, charge 1.5%.
Is there a first-time buyer exemption from deed transfer tax in Nova Scotia?
Not at the provincial level, and Halifax Regional Municipality does not offer one. A few municipalities have at times offered first-time buyer rebates; ask and we will check the municipality for you.
What are the deed transfer tax exemptions in Nova Scotia?
They are set by section 109 of the Municipal Government Act, not by each municipality. The main ones are a deed between married spouses, a deed between former spouses dividing marital assets, a gift, a deed that only corrects an earlier one, a tax sale deed, and a deed to a registered charity for non-business use. There is no first-time buyer exemption, and the affidavit of value is still filed.
Does the deed transfer tax apply on a refinance or a transfer between spouses?
A refinance with no change of ownership does not trigger it, because no deed is transferred. A deed between married spouses, and a gift, are exempt under section 109 of the Municipal Government Act; the wording is “married”, so ask your lawyer about a common-law transfer. An affidavit of value is still filed.
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