Land transfer tax is the general name for a one-off tax the buyer pays when a property changes hands, worked out from the price. In Canada it is provincial, and the name is Ontario's. The Ontario Ministry of Finance charges a home with one or two single-family residences in marginal bands: 0.5% up to $55,000, 1% to $250,000, 1.5% to $400,000, 2% to $2,000,000 and 2.5% above.
On a $600,000 Ontario house that is $275, plus $1,950, plus $2,250, plus $4,000 on the slice above $400,000: $8,475. First-time buyers can claim a refund of up to $4,000, which on this price leaves $4,475 to pay.
Toronto charges a second tax of its own. The City's municipal land transfer tax follows the provincial bands up to $3,000,000 and, since 1 April 2026, climbs in steps from 4.40% to 8.60% on the most expensive homes. A $600,000 house in the city therefore pays the provincial $8,475 and the same again to Toronto, $16,950 before any refund.
Most of the countries this site covers have an equivalent under another name. Germany's Grunderwerbsteuer, defined in the federal Grunderwerbsteuergesetz, is charged at a rate each Land sets. The Netherlands charges overdrachtsbelasting at 2% on a home you will live in and 8% on others from 2026. Finland's varainsiirtovero is 3% on real estate and 1.5% on shares in a housing company.
The Canadian mortgage calculator applies the Ontario scale by default and adds the tax to your cash to complete. It does not add Toronto's municipal tax or the first-time buyer refund, so adjust for both if they apply to you.