Buying a New Coquitlam House from Taiwan: A Checklist
Buyers in Taiwan looking at new houses in Coquitlam meet four sets of Canadian rules, and each one decides something different. This checklist puts them in the order you meet them, from the first question to the day you sell. It covers Canadian rules only. For Taiwan's own rules on sending money abroad or reporting income, ask your bank and an accountant in Taiwan.
Each step links to the chapter of our foreign buyer guide that explains it in full. Every chapter is also published in Traditional Chinese.
1. Find out where you stand
Write down your status before you look at houses.
- Canadian citizen or permanent resident living in Taiwan. Outside the federal ban, and not a foreign national for BC's 20% tax. You may still be a non-resident for income tax.
- Neither citizen nor permanent resident. Covered by the ban until 1 January 2027 unless an exception applies, such as buying with a Canadian spouse. Budget 2026 proposes to exempt new homes after that, with no start date set as of 9 November 2026.
- A family split between Taiwan and Canada. BC's vacancy tax has its own test. The province's terms page describes a satellite family as one spouse in Canada with little income and the other overseas earning most of it, and treats such households as untaxed worldwide earners, who pay the same rate as foreign owners.
The chapter on who counts as a foreign buyer sets out all four tests side by side.
2. Add up the taxes
A foreign national buying in the Metro Vancouver Regional District, which includes Coquitlam, pays the additional property transfer tax of 20% of the fair market value of their share, on top of the general transfer tax and GST.
| On a new house at $2,400,000 | Foreign national | Citizen or permanent resident |
|---|---|---|
| General property transfer tax | $50,000 | $50,000 |
| Additional property transfer tax | $480,000 | $0 |
| GST at 5% | $120,000 | $120,000 |
| Total at purchase | $650,000 | $170,000 |
Then the yearly vacancy tax: for a foreign owner, 3% of assessed value for 2026 and 4% for 2027 in a year with no exemption. The taxes chapter and the yearly taxes chapter show the details.
3. Prepare the money
On 9 November 2026 every new Coquitlam house for sale asked more than $1,500,000, and at that price the minimum down payment is 20%. Ask lenders in writing what they require from a borrower whose income is earned in Taiwan.
Expect identity checks. FINTRAC requires your agent to verify your identity, and a builder selling a new house to the public must do the same. Both must verify anyone they receive funds from. If you carry cash, the Canada Border Services Agency's Memorandum D19-14-1 requires amounts of CAN$10,000 or more to be reported at the border. The paying from abroad chapter covers the stress test and a full cash example.
4. Choose the house and read the contract
The Coquitlam new homes page lists every new detached house for sale, live from the MLS feed. Some are sold before the builder finishes them. For those, the contract decides the deposit, the dates and the finishes, and for a non-Canadian the signing date can count as the purchase date under the ban. Read the chapter on buying before it is built with your lawyer before you sign.
5. Plan how you will use it
An empty house owned by a foreign owner pays the vacancy tax at the foreign owner rate. A house rented to a tenant for at least six months of the year can avoid it, and brings tax on the rent. The Canada Revenue Agency's guide T4144 says 25% of the gross rent paid to a non-resident must be withheld by an agent who lives in Canada. The renting out chapter explains Form NR6 and the section 216 return.
6. Plan the sale before you buy
When a non-resident sells, the Canada Revenue Agency's rules on disposing of Canadian property require notice on Form T2062, and without a certificate the buyer can hold back 25% of the price. BC's home flipping tax applies to a sale within 730 days. The selling chapter works an example.
The people you will need
A BC lawyer, an accountant who works with non-residents, a lender, and a licensed real estate agent. Find them before you find the house, so that each answer is in writing when a contract arrives. To talk through a specific house, contact Michael.
Frequently asked questions
Can a buyer living in Taiwan buy a new house in Coquitlam?
It depends on status and dates. A Canadian citizen or permanent resident living in Taiwan is outside the federal ban. A buyer with neither status is covered by the ban until 1 January 2027 unless an exception applies. Budget 2026 proposes to exempt new homes after that, but as of 9 November 2026 it is a proposal with no start date.
Does a permanent resident living in Taiwan pay BC's 20% foreign buyer tax?
No. The tax applies to foreign nationals, foreign corporations and taxable trustees, and a permanent resident is not a foreign national. The income tax rules can still apply, because the Canada Revenue Agency decides residency by a person's ties to Canada, such as a home, a spouse or dependants here. Ask an accountant how your ties count.
What is a satellite family under BC's vacancy tax?
The province uses the term for a household where one spouse lives in Canada with little income and the other lives overseas and earns most of the income. It treats these households under its untaxed worldwide earner category, whose income not reported in Canada is greater than income reported here. Untaxed worldwide earners pay the same vacancy tax rate as foreign owners.
Why does my Coquitlam agent ask for my passport?
Canada's financial intelligence agency, FINTRAC, requires real estate agents to verify client identity when they act in a purchase or sale. They must also verify the identity of anyone they receive funds from, in any amount. A builder selling a new house to the public must verify its buyer's identity too, so send clear copies of your documents early.
Do I declare money at the Canadian border if I carry cash for a house?
Yes, if it is CAN$10,000 or more, or the same in another currency. The Canada Border Services Agency's Memorandum D19-14-1 requires currency and monetary instruments of that amount to be reported when brought into or taken out of Canada, and money not reported can be seized. A bank wire is outside that memorandum and leaves its own bank record.
How is rent taxed if I live in Taiwan and rent out my Coquitlam house?
The Canada Revenue Agency's guide T4144 says the payer or agent must withhold 25% of the gross rent paid to a non-resident, and the agent must be a resident of Canada. With an approved Form NR6, the 25% is withheld on net rent instead, and a section 216 return is then due by 30 June of the next year.
What happens when a buyer living in Taiwan later sells the house?
A non-resident seller notifies the Canada Revenue Agency on Form T2062 within 10 days of the sale, or before it, and pays tax or gives security to get a certificate of compliance. Without the certificate, the buyer can hold back 25% of the price. BC's home flipping tax also applies to a sale within 730 days, wherever the seller lives.
Is there a Chinese version of the foreign buyer guide?
Yes. Every chapter of City Echo's foreign buyer guide is published in Traditional Chinese for readers in Taiwan, at the same address under /zh. The Chinese pages use the same numbers, dates and government sources as the English ones, and give the English name of each law and form so you can quote it to a Canadian lawyer, lender or tax office.
Sources
- Justice Laws, Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act (current to October 19, 2026, accessed November 9, 2026)
- Department of Finance Canada, Budget 2026, Chapter 3 (page modified November 5, 2026, accessed November 9, 2026)
- Province of British Columbia, Additional property transfer tax (accessed November 9, 2026)
- Province of British Columbia, Speculation and vacancy tax terms and definitions (updated April 11, 2025, accessed November 9, 2026)
- FINTRAC, When to verify the identity of persons and entities: real estate (modified September 15, 2025, accessed November 9, 2026)
- Canada Border Services Agency, Memorandum D19-14-1, Cross-border currency and monetary instruments reporting (September 3, 2024, accessed November 9, 2026)
- Canada Revenue Agency, T4144 Income Tax Guide for Electing Under Section 216 (accessed November 9, 2026)
- Canada Revenue Agency, Disposing of or acquiring certain Canadian property (modified June 27, 2023, accessed November 9, 2026)
