Property Taxes and Your Nonprofit: An Important Update
Throughout the fall and winter of 2024, the Nonprofit Chamber participated in the Ministry of Municipal Affairs consultation on the Community Organization Property Tax Exemption Regulation (COPTER), which provides Alberta municipalities with criteria and conditions to use for determining property tax exemption eligibility for Alberta nonprofit organizations.
Throughout the consultations, the Nonprofit Chamber emphasized consistency, fairness, and transparency in applying COPTER. The principles governing COPTER were established in 1997 and we urged a review of those principles to more accurately reflect the breadth and depth of the sector, while also increasing the ability for municipalities to achieve the policy intent of supporting nonprofits that contribute to public benefit.
Municipal Affairs announced amendments to the Community Organization Property Tax Exemption Regulation in July 2025 and we are very pleased to see that there is increased clarity on eligibility for nonprofits. In particular:
COPTER now clearly indicates nonprofits with a primary purpose to serve disadvantaged people are eligible for property tax exemptions, provided their activities meet the regulation’s charitable or benevolent use criteria.
That restricting access to administrative, parking, or storage areas for the purposes of safety, liability, or property protection does not affect exemption eligibility, if these areas support the nonprofit’s purpose.
These updates to COPTER clarify that affordable housing accommodations are not eligible for property tax exemption under COPTER. However, property tax exemptions for subsidized affordable housing have been established under the Municipal Governance Act as of 2025.
These amendments take effect on January 1, 2026 and expire December 31, 2030. An updated guide will be available in the coming months on the Government of Alberta website. If you want more information, see here for a summary of regulation changes and contact information should you have any questions or comments about the COPTER amendments.