REMINDER TO CLAIM GRANT EVERY YEAR!!  

The District of Highlands' Annual Property Tax Notice is mailed out at the end of May.  The municipal taxes and Provincial Home Owner Grants (PHOG) are due on the 1st business day after July 1 of every year.  Should you not receive your tax notice by early June, please call the District of Highlands' office to arrange for a reprint.  Should your mailing address have changed since last year's tax notice mailout, please call our office ASAP at (250) 474-1773 M-F 8:30am to 4:00pm.  Please refer to the back of your tax notice for methods of payment.

Provincial Home Owner Grants Centralization Starting 2021, residents in municipalities no longer applied for the Provincial Home Owner Grant (PHOG) through their municipal office.  Residents who are eligible for the annual home owner grant must now apply directly to the Province through an online application that is easy to use and approved faster.  Apply online at gov.bc.ca/homeownergrant.  As an option, you can also speak to a Live Agent Monday - Friday 8:30am - 5:00pm or 24/7 to apply over the phone.  Please call 1-888-355-2700.  Note that the Province's Live Agent line is extremely congested from May to July.

Eligible residents are strongly encouraged to apply for their PHOG as soon as possible after receiving the annual tax notice!! You will be asked for your Social Insurance Number (SIN) and Date of Birth (DoB) and an email and/or phone number for contact and for an emailed confirmation.  The confirmation # you will receive once application process is complete does NOT necessarity confirm approval of the grant but that the application has been submitted succesfully!!  Please note that the grant must be submitted EACH YEAR.  You may check the status of your grant through the same Provincial website with your confirmation number.

For status on your Property Taxes (ie approved HOGs and processed Payments) please REGISTER & LINK, see drop down TAB below.  Please allow a few days after claiming grant and making payment(s) before checking status.

Rest assured, this is a secure portal.  We are dedicated to protecting your privacy and safeguarding your personal financial information.

 

QUICK LINKS

  PROPERTY INFO 
   
   

Pay Your Taxes Online Information

YOU CANNOT PAY YOUR TAXES THROUGH THIS PORTAL. The District of Highlands is now set up with most Financial Institutions and Credit Unions to recognize the District of Highlands as a payee so that you may pay your taxes through internet banking or via telephone.  Once you are logged into your bank's website, you will need to add HIGHLANDS, DIST (BC) as a Payee. Please see the Payment Option ONLINE on the back of your tax notice for exact Payee name for your bank. You will then be asked for an Account Number.......

.... your Account Number will be an 11-digit number (ie. 36215999000) which is your Roll Number from the top of your tax notice -- DO NOT INCLUDE dashes or decimal.

For other payment options, please see the back of your tax notice or go to our website at www.highlands.ca, choose the PROPERTY TAX tab from the list on the left, then read PAYMENT OPTIONS.

Register & Link for Status of your Tax Account(s)

Note: although you can register anytime, if you do not see your payment or Home Owner Grant amount, please check again later (before calling the office).....it could take up to a week for staff to process the information. Thank you for your patience!!

REGISTERING IS A TWO (2) STEP PROCESS: A property owner must REGISTER to create a profile in order to access property tax history such as past billing, payments and Home Owner Grants claimed and approved status, then LINK to property(s) to their profile.  Tax history for the property is available only as far back as the date which the property owner has owned the property. 

To create a profile, proceed to Step 1 - SET UP A PROFILE which will require a Jur/Roll# and ACCESS code/PIN (linked to the owner) printed on the 'original' property tax notice each year.  Rest assured, the District will not give out your ACCESS code/PIN over the phone or by email.  Please call the District Office at 250-474-1773 to request a letter be sent to you with your Access code/Pin or pop in the office with ID.  Step 2 - LINK TAX ACCOUNT TO PROFILE which must be done.

  • STEP 1 - SET UP A PROFILE
  • Click on REGISTER on the upper right corner of this page (beside LOGIN). Create a USER NAME and PASSWORD (minimum 7 characters) to set up a profile.  You will also be prompted to add a name that you would like displayed on your virtual account and an email address.
  • Click REGISTER.
  • STEP 2 - LINK TAX ACCOUNT TO YOUR PROFILE - IMPORTANT: THIS MUST BE DONE!
  • Click on your USER NAME in the upper right corner to bring up ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT page.
  • Next LINK PT account by selecting ACCOUNT TYPE: PT-PROPERTY TAXES, then click ADD NEW ACCOUNT button.
  • Use the Jur/Roll# and ACCESS code/PIN from the upper right corner of your tax notice.
  • Click SAVE button
  • You may add more property tax accounts by choosing ADD NEW ACCOUNT again.

EXAMPLE

School District (SD) listed as part of your Roll Number, also known as our Jurisdiction Number:

SD#61=361, SD#62=362, SD#63=363 

Jurisdiction Number: 361, 362 or 363

Roll Number: 15999.999 (8-Digit plus requires decimal)

ACCESS code/PIN: XXXX (4-Digit) top right corner from your Original Tax Notice only

In order to view your property tax account, place your cursor over the ONLINE SERVICES tab above the District logo and click on PROPERTY TAXES.

For assistance or to obtain instructions on receiving your ACCESS code/PIN please contact the District Office at (250) 474-1773. 

Pre-Authorized Payment Plan for Taxes

Property owners may wish to enroll in the Pre-Authorized Payment Plan (PAPP) to pre-pay next year's property taxes.  To participate in the program, you must sign up by July 31 of the current year.  Automatic withdrawals occur on the 10th of each month, running for 10 months of the year between August 10 and May 10.  Note: No payments will be withdrawn for June and July. The owner is responsible for making the final payment on or before the tax due date to avoid penalties and, if eligible, for claiming the HOG (Home Owner Grant) every year.

Once we have received the owner's PAPP enrollment form and a 'void' cheque, a fixed amount will be automatically debited from their bank account. The PAPP program allows the resident the convenience of paying taxes on a monthly basis rather than one lump sum, therefore, making budgeting easier and avoiding the risk of penalties. Important: you should note that should you discontinue participation mid-year, no monies paid into the plan will be refunded as per District of Highlands Bylaw No. 378.

The annual tax notices are mailed out at the end of May.  For those participants in the PAPP, your tax notice will show the tax levy less the total pre-payments.  

CLICK HERE FOR THE PAPP AGREEMENT ENROLLMENT FORM

Deferring Your Taxes

 

Tax deferment is a low interest loan program that helps qualified B.C. homeowners pay their annual property taxes on their principal residence. You must meet all eligibility qualifications above to apply.

Important: Applying for property tax deferment does not include the home owner grant. If eligible, don’t forget to also apply for the home owner grant when you receive your annual property tax notice.

When to apply:

If you qualify for the program, you can submit an application to defer your unpaid property taxes between early May and December 31 of the current taxation year. However, we recommend applying after you receive your property tax notice and before your property taxes are due. If you didn't receive your tax notice by the end of June, contact your property tax office.

http://gov.bc.ca/propertytaxdeferment

 

Property Information for the Public

To obtain general property information such as legal description, assessment, or property taxes on a property in the District of Highalnds, please go to PROPERTY INFO under QUICK LINKS above.  The user can search by Jurisdiction-Roll Number (361-15999.999), PID (999-999-999), address, or  postal code.

Personal billing, payments and Home Owner Grant history is NOT available here.  A property owner must REGISTER & LINK ACCOUNT(s) with their ACCESS code/PIN (please see section REGISTER AND LINK FOR STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNTs).