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The surcharge applies to houses and condos valued at more than $3 million and also to most vacant land classified as residential. For a large property awaiting a major development, that could mean an extra six- or seven-figure annual tax bill. That applies equally to future condo developments and market rental projects.

Once building construction begins on a larger development property like a condo project, it’s exempted from the additional school tax.

The “nub of the matter” for the hundreds of properties currently under appeal, Sullivan says, is that the way B.C. Assessment is interpreting the legislation for the additional school tax. They classify large-scale development properties as vacant until actual building construction is underway.

That means the new additional school tax on properties over $3 million is being applied on development land during the pre-construction phase, including demolition, remediation, and while waiting for municipal zoning and permits.

The time to get a building permit varies widely by municipality and depending on the individual project, Sullivan said. But in some cases, that process can take years before the first shovels are in the ground. And those delays are mostly outside of the developers’ control. The City of Vancouver, for example, has worked recently to reduce permitting delays, but the backlog has long been identified as a serious problem.

For the speculation and vacancy tax, another new provincial tax that applies to vacant development land, the wording is different. There residential properties are exempt during any phase of development, including permitting, Sullivan said.