Your final property tax bill is made up of three main components:
1. Education taxes – This tax rate is set by the Province of Ontario and remitted to the local school board you support.
To change your school support, please visit MPAC’s website.
2. Municipal taxes – The tax rate to cover the costs of supplying municipal services is based on city council’s adoption of our annual budget. Revenues from provincial grants, user fees and other sources are deducted from the total expenditures, resulting in a final amount that needs to be raised through taxation.
3. County taxes – A portion of the tax bill for all residents of County of Lambton goes back to the County to support their role in supplying various services including Ontario Works, Social Housing, Library and Cultural Services, and Land Ambulance.
Types of Tax Bills
(click the “+” for more details)
Interim Tax Bill
The interim tax bill is issued annually in the first week of February. The amount levied is 50% of the previous years annualized taxes.
Interim bills have two installment dates (due in February and April) and show any credits or outstanding balances at the time of billing.
Final Tax Bill
The final tax bill is issued annually in the first week of June. It is based on the annual tax rates approved by City Council for the year. The bill is calculated using the assessed value assigned to your property for the year and applying the applicable tax rate (minus the interim taxes that were billed in February). Tax rates are determined by the year’s budgetary requirements for the County, Municipality, and school boards.
Final bills have two installment dates (due in June and August) and show any credits or outstanding balances at the time of billing.
Supplementary and Omitted Bills
Supplementary and omitted bills are issued throughout the year to owners of newly created properties, or properties that have had physical alterations made, that were not reflected on the interim and final bills.
Generally, supplementary bills refer to the current tax year and omitted bills refer to previous years.
Supplementary and omitted tax bills do not reflect any previous account balance at the time of billing. Accounts currently participating in our pre-authorized payment plan are required to make separate payments for any supplemental or omitted tax bills, as these amounts are currently not included in your pre-authorized payment plan. Failure to make the payment(s) will result in the application of penalty at 15% per annum applied on the first business day of each month.
Omitted and supplementary bills can be retroactive for the current year and the past two years.
Owners of a new construction will receive a land only tax bill until such time as the “bricks and mortar” are assessed. Following assessment, the Supplementary Tax bill will be issued and is effective from the date of occupancy.
It can take up to three years for a property to be assessed. Supplementary billings can occur anytime during the year and taxes for up to three years could be billed within the same year and come due at the same time. For this reason, you are encouraged to start setting aside funds immediately following your purchase for the future supplementary tax bills.
In an effort to avoid a delay, you can phone the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) at 1-866-296-6722 to request an inspection of your property.
How were my Municipal Tax dollars spent?
Protection Services: Fire, Police, Building, By-Law Enforcement
Recreation & Culture: Parks, Recreation, Arenas, Library, Lawrence House, Strangway, Children’s Farm, etc.
Environmental: Waste & Recycling, Water, Sewer, Sanitary Sewers
Planning & Development: Drains, Planning, Committees
General Government: Council, Admin (Legal/ HR/Finance/IT/Clerk/Purchasing), Economic Development, etc.
Transportation: Harbour, Engineering, Public Works, Transit, Parking Lots, Street Lighting
Debt: Principal & Interest Payments
What Information is on My Tax Bill?
- The name(s) of the property owner(s).
- Assessed value and tax class assigned by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC).
- Roll number and legal description of the property.
- Breakdown of the County, Municipal and Education Levies.
- Account balance at the time the tax bill is produced (except on omitted and supplementary bills).
- Amount of each tax installment and the date on which each is payable.
- Contact information for the City of Sarnia Tax Department.
- Explanation of Tax Changes.
- Payment methods.
Tax Class Summary
(as noted on the Tax Bill insert)
Realty Tax Class (RTC)
C = Commercial
D = Office Building
F = Farmlands
G = Parking Lot
I = Industrial
L = Large Industrial
M = Multi-Residential
N = New Multi-Residential
P = Pipeline
R = Residential/Farm
S = Shopping Centre
T = Managed Forests
Realty Tax Qualifier (RTQ)
D = Taxable Education Only
T = Taxable Full
U = Taxable Excess Land (Commercial or Industrial properties only)
X = Taxable Vacant Land (Commercial or Industrial properties only)
1 = Taxable Farmland I (Farmland Awaiting Development-Phase I)
7 = On Farm Small Business
School Tax Direction Designation
P = English-Public
S = English-Separate
A = French-Public
C = French-Separate
N = School Support apportioned between all School Boards
Please note, to produce your tax class as noted on the front of the tax bill each RTC will be applied in combination with an appropriate RTQ and School Tax Direction Designation.
Tax Class Examples
Example: Tax Class = RTS
R = Residential or Farm use property
T = Taxable at the full residential/farm rate
S = Education levies directed to English-Separate School Board
Example: Tax Class = CTN
C = Commercial use property
T = Taxable at the full commercial rate
N = Education levies apportioned between all School Board