ABmunis pleased with upcoming changes to COPTER
Alberta Municipal Affairs has announced amendments to the Community Organization Property Tax Exemption Regulation (COPTER). These amendments will come into effect in January 2026.
Alberta Municipalities is pleased with the changes to COPTER as our advocacy primarily focused on the need for more clarity and definitions to help municipalities implement the regulation. This is especially important when it comes to affordable housing.
ABmunis also appreciates the level of engagement on COPTER, which involved an opportunity for written submissions in summer 2024. This was followed by several months of technical meetings with municipal assessors and municipal associations, which completed in January 2025.
Municipal Affairs has published a fact sheet and will update their guide on property tax exemptions later this year.
In this fact sheet, you will find the following amendments:
- Expand the criteria to define that helping “disadvantaged persons” is an eligible reason for a property tax exemption
- Specify that certain continuing care homes will be eligible
- Add criteria for exemptions for temporary and transitional housing property
- Clarify what fees an organization can charge while still being eligible for tax exemption.
- Update the definition of a “professional sport franchise”
- Clarify that affordable housing accommodations are not eligible for tax exemption under COPTER, if they aren’t already eligible under the MGA
We invite ABmunis members to let us know if your municipality experiences any challenges implementing COPTER when the updated regulation comes into force in 2026
