Municipal Accommodation Tax

The goals of the MAT include, but are not limited to:

• Increasing tourism visitation;
• Increasing total tourism spend;
• Increasing tourism asset development and tax assessment; and
• Undertaking environmental sustainability initiatives in support of the tourism industry and the broader community.

Current MAT amount

As of April 1, 2026, the MAT rate will be 4% of the total room rate. As of April 1, 2027, the rate will increase to 5% of the total room rate.

Tax rules

• If any guests exceed the 28-day stay (extended stay guests) and there is no formal landlord-tenant relationship, a MAT amount must be submitted. These rooms must be included in the ORHMA portal submission.
• Consistent with the previous By-Law, the MAT will be identified on the invoice or receipt for the stay

The City can charge the Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) under the Municipal Act, 2001 and Ontario’s Transient Accommodation Tax Regulation (O. Reg. 435/17).

By-law 2025-009 was approved by City Council on January 14, 2025. It allows the city to apply the tax to short-term stays in accommodations such as hotels and motels. The tax is mandatory and cannot be refused. Only those accommodation types listed in the exemptions section are not charged the tax.

The MAT by-law and amendments can be found in the By-law Directory.

The Municipal Accommodation Tax does not apply to the following types of accommodations:

1. Government agencies, boards, commissions, or organizations controlled by the Ontario government
2. School boards as defined by the Education Act
3. Colleges, universities, and post-secondary schools, when they provide housing for students actively enrolled and attending classes
4. Public and private hospitals listed under the Public Hospitals Act or the Private Hospitals Act
5. Retirement homes, hospices and long-term care homes as defined in the Long-Term Care Homes Act, 2007
6. Treatment centres funded by the province, every house for refuge or for reform of offenders, non-profit shelters for the relief of the poor or for an emergency
7. Campsites or trailer sites at campgrounds, tourist parks, or trailer parks
8. Employee housing provided by employers at their place of business
9. Hospitality rooms without beds used for meetings, merchandise displays, or entertaining

MAT remittance changes for overnight stays beginning June 1, 2026

How to register and remit MAT

Registration

You must register your transient accommodation establishment with the City by completing the Registration Form.

Remittance

Once your establishment is registered, you will receive a personalized login from ORHMA to remit payment.

When to remit the return on the collected tax to ORHMA

• Hotels, Motels, and Inns must submit payment at the end of each month for the tax collected in the previous month
• Bed and Breakfasts, Vacation Rental Units, and Owner Occupied Short Term Rentals must submit payment at the end of April, July, October and January, for tax collected in the previous calendar quarter

Late payments

• Late payment fees will be charged at a rate of 1.25% on the first day of default and on each month thereafter in which the default continues
• Overdue MAT accounts will be transferred to tax receivables after 60 days.
• If no report or remittance is received, the City will estimate MAT for the accommodation provider using the following assumptions:
  • Peak months (inclusive of June-September): assume 95% of rooms are occupied at $500 per room per night; and
  • Off-peak months (inclusive of October-May): assume 80% of rooms are occupied at $300 per room per night.

Refunds

If a refund was issued to a guest after submitting the return, adjustments from prior reporting periods can be made in a future return.

When MAT was not collected in the reporting period

If no tax was collected, you are still required to submit a return to ORHMA, indicating that no tax was collected in that month.

It is important to maintain communication with the City. Your report is your attestation to tax collected and due. Please contact the City immediately if there is any reason not to report as scheduled. 

Yes, the MAT is mandatory and cannot be refused.

Guests must pay the tax to the accommodation operator when they pay for their stay.

Accommodation providers must send the tax they collect to the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association (ORHMA).

Yes, HST is charged on top of the Municipal Accommodation Tax.

The MAT is deemed part of the consideration for the supply of the transient accommodation. The determination of which items are to be included in the base for HST is covered under Section 154 of the Excise Tax Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. E-15).

No. The tax applies only to rooms used for accommodation. It is exempt for rooms without beds that are used for displaying merchandise, holding meetings, or entertaining.

The City has the authority to inspect and audit all books, documents, transactions and accounts of accommodation providers. Accommodation providers must keep books of account, records and all documents related to the sale of accommodations and the amount of the Municipal Accommodation Tax collected and remitted.