On October 3, 2016, the Government of Canada announced an administrative change to the reporting requirements on the sale of a principal residence.

When you sell your principal residence or when you are considered to have sold it, usually you do not have to report the sale on your income tax and benefit return and you do not have to pay tax on any gain from the sale. This is the case if you are eligible for the full income tax exemption because the property was your principal residence for every year you owned it.

Starting with the 2016 tax year, you will be required to report basic information (date of acquisition, proceeds of disposition and description of the property) on your income tax return when you sell your principal residence to claim the full principal residence exemption. The sale of the principal residence will have to be reported on Schedule 3, Capital Gain on the T1 income tax return. Reporting will be required for sales that occur on or after January 1, 2016. Penalties may apply if it is not reported on the tax return.

For more information on the new changes, click the link below.

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/bdgt/2016/qa11-eng.html

Click on the link below to learn more about the principal residence exemption.

Income Tax Folio S1-F3-C2, Principal Residence