Couple hit with B.C. vacancy tax despite living in home

A Vancouver Island couple is worried about losing their home after being hit with an unexpected tax bill.

Madison and Charlotte Becerra have received letters from the B.C. government indicating that under the rules of the speculation and vacancy tax, they must pay $13,000 by July 1 on their home in Ladysmith, B.C.

The couple bought their detached home two years ago and live in it year-round, but because they are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents, they can not apply for an exemption from the tax. This is the first year the vacancy tax has applied to Ladysmith, which is approximately 70 kilometres north of Victoria.

The couple has roughly five months to pay before the province puts a lien on their house and charges a 10 per cent late fee on the bill, as well as interest. 

"Having to pay that tax would wipe us out — we just don't have the money to be able to afford it," said Madison Becerra. 

The Becerras settled in Ladysmith after leaving the United States because of discrimination they say they faced as a 2SLGBTQ+ couple. They say they have no financial ties to the U.S. and both are here on valid visas — Madison on a student visa while she studies at Vancouver Island University, and Charlotte on an open worker's permit.

Both work as in-home care workers for people with developmental disabilities. 

Madison Becerra says returning to the U.S. is not an option. 

"Our whole life is on Vancouver Island and everything that we have is here. If we're driven out of here for this tax, we don't really have anything. We'll have to start fresh," she said. 

The speculation and vacancy tax was introduced in 2018 to discourage people from leaving homes vacant, and to ensure foreign owners and those with primarily foreign income contribute fairly to B.C.'s tax system, according to the provincial government's website. 

The vacancy tax rate is based on a home's assessed value, and is two per cent for people who don't pay the majority of their taxes in Canada, and 0.5 per cent for Canadian citizens or permanent residents who pay the majority of their taxes in the country. The Becerras are being taxed at the two per cent rate because they are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents. 

The vacancy tax applies to areas in B.C. identified by the government as being most affected most by the current housing shortage crisis. It currently applies to 59 communities.

Once an area has been identified, every homeowner in the area must file a declaration. About 99 per cent of people qualify for exemptions and don't have to pay the tax, according to the province.

As U.S. citizens, the Becerras are classified as foreign buyers, despite living and working in B.C.