China News Agency, Toronto, January 1 (Reporter Yu Ruidong) From New Year's Day 2023, Canada's ban on foreign buyers buying real estate will come into effect and will last for 2 years.

　　The Canadian Parliament passed a "Prohibition of Non-Canadians from Purchasing Residential Property Act" in late June 2022, which prohibits non-Canadians and companies controlled by non-Canadians from purchasing specific residential properties in Canada.

　　Residential properties referred to in the Act are detached houses, semi-detached houses or apartment buildings with up to 3 dwelling units.

But the bill does not prohibit the purchase of larger buildings with multiple dwelling units.

Vacation homes, etc. are exempt from the ban.

　　The ban targets include individuals who are not Canadian citizens, permanent residents or registered Indians, companies that are not established under Canadian law, companies that are not listed on the Canadian stock exchange, and companies that are controlled by non-Canadians.

　　Any foreign buyer who is convicted of violating the Act, or who knowingly assists a foreign buyer in violating the Act, can be fined $10,000, and the court may order the foreign buyer who violated the Act to sell the relevant house.

　　The ban does not apply to non-Canadians who want to rent.

At the same time, diplomats, refugees, and some temporary residents studying and working in Canada can be exempted from the ban.

　　The ban is one of a series of measures to alleviate housing problems proposed by the Canadian federal government in its annual budget to be submitted to Congress in April 2022.

The Canadian government believes that foreign funds have continued to enter the country's housing market for many years, exacerbating public concerns about the cost of living in cities such as Vancouver and Toronto, and also exacerbating concerns that Canadians are being squeezed out of housing markets everywhere.

　　However, some real estate practitioners criticized that the ban would not have much impact on the market, because at present, in British Columbia, which belongs to Vancouver, and Ontario, which belongs to Toronto, real estate transactions involving foreign buyers only account for a small share.

　　Also effective on New Year's Day in 2023 is a new Canadian official measure to crack down on real estate speculation.

When a seller sells a property that has been held for less than 1 year, the profit will be fully taxed as business income.

　　At present, some provinces in Canada also impose a non-resident speculation tax commonly known as the real estate "foreign buyer tax".

In Ontario, the most populous province in Canada, the "Foreign Buyer Tax" rate is 25%, the highest in the country.

British Columbia has implemented a 20% "foreign buyer tax" in several densely populated areas.

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