You may be required to pay development charges for land development or redevelopment projects if you propose to:
Development charges are calculated as part of the building permit application review process.
Any available exemptions or credits will be determined during the review of your application. We cannot determine if exemptions or credits apply before you submit a building permit application to the City.
A demolition credit may apply if residential units or non-residential space is demolished and replaced. This credit depends on the expiration dates listed in the applicable development charges by-laws.
An industrial expansion credit may apply to the redevelopment of existing industrial buildings.
When your building permit application is reviewed, City staff will calculate the total amount of development charges owing. The total charge includes:
Any applicable exemptions or credits applied will be according to the City’s Development Charges By-law that’s in effect at the time of your building permit issuance.
You will receive an invoice that outlines the charges that apply to your project and the total amount owing.
This has changed:
The following forms are used to calculate development charges.
The City and the Region of Peel determine if a use is subject to industrial or non-industrial development charges rates. These rates are determined according to the development charges by-laws.
The zoning of a property does not determine whether industrial or non-industrial development charges are payable.
The Employment Zones specified in the Zoning By-law permit a wide range of property uses. Not all of them are defined as industrial in the development charges by-laws. These include restaurants, offices, banquet halls, and commercial schools. For example, a new restaurant building that is to be constructed in an E3, Industrial zone would be required to pay the non-industrial development charge rates.
Speculative industrial buildings are developed before there is a confirmed tenant. Once there is a tenant occupying the building, the City and the Region of Peel will decide which type of development charges will apply.
Because the use of the building is unknown during construction, you can pay development charges at the industrial rate.
When you pay your fees, you must file a letter of credit that shows the difference in the amount between the industrial and non-industrial rates for the City and the Region of Peel.
The City will hold the letter of credit up to 36 months to give the property owner time to lease the building. If the building is not occupied within 36 months, the letter of credit will be drawn upon.
The property owner will also be required to sign and submit the Letter of Credit Acknowledgement.
Once the building is occupied, City staff will conduct an inspection. They will determine if the use of the building is industrial or non-industrial.
If the use of the building is determined to be industrial, we’ll return the letter of credit.
If the use is determined to be non-industrial, we’ll recalculate the development charges. The non-industrial rate in effect at the time the supplementary payment is due will apply. Any previous payments you made at the industrial rate will be deducted from your total amount owing.
If a property owner refuses to pay additional development charges, the outstanding balance will be added to the property tax roll.
If you have questions or concerns about the calculation of a development charge, please contact us. Call 311 (905-615-4311 outside City limits) or email customer service.
If we cannot resolve your concerns, you are afforded certain rights under Section 20 of the Development Charge Act.
You must submit your complaint in writing to City Council no later than 90 days after the day the development charge, or any part of it, is payable.
You must state the complainant’s (your) name, address and reason for the complaint, if:
Development charges are paid at the time a building permit is issued, unless otherwise specified in the Development Charges By-law.
These changes permit the deferral of development charge payments over a specific amount of time as defined in the Act for:
Deferral payments are subject to interest rates approved by City Council and Regional Council and require a deferral agreement.
Alternatively, you could enter into an early payment agreement. This requires full payment of development charges without interest before a building permit will be issued.
You can pay development charges by electronic funds transfer or wire transfer.
For questions about the City’s development charges or cash-in-lieu for park purposes, please call 311 (905-615-4311 outside City limits) or email customer service.
For questions related to the Region of Peel’s development charges, please contact 905-791-7800 ext. 4439.
For questions about education development charges, please contact: