New report exposes property tax system stacked against small businesses
Moncton, September 17, 2026 — Small businesses across Atlantic Canada are paying a built-in property tax premium simply because their property is used for business, finds a new report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
CFIB’s Atlantic Canada Commercial Property Tax Report examined 80 municipalities across the four Atlantic provinces. In nearly every municipality studied, commercial properties face higher municipal tax rates than residential properties of equal assessed value.
“Two properties can be worth exactly the same amount, use many of the same municipal services, and yet the business property gets the bigger tax bill,” said Frédéric Gionet, CFIB’s Atlantic Director. “That is a tax penalty on doing business.”
The gap is largest on average in Nova Scotia, where commercial properties face municipal tax rates 146% higher than residential properties of equal value. The average premium is 142% in Prince Edward Island, 67% in New Brunswick and 55% in Newfoundland and Labrador.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, the gap becomes even larger when municipal business taxes tied to property assessment are included. The average effective multiplier rises from 1.55 to 3.20.
“This is not a marginal difference,” said Gionet. “For many small businesses, we are talking about paying double or triple the rate charged on a comparable home.”
High property taxes are a big financial hurdle for small businesses
The burden falls hardest on the smallest firms. Among businesses with fewer than five employees, 31% say property tax consumes more than 10% of their operating costs, while 40% say it has had a significant negative impact on profitability. Those costs affect business decisions. Among firms reporting a negative impact from property taxes, 21% delayed or cancelled an investment, 20% delayed or cancelled an expansion and 18% reduced staffing or employee hours.
“Property tax does not adjust when sales are down or a business has a bad year,” said Gionet. “The bill arrives anyway. For a small employer, that can mean one less hire, one less renovation or one less investment.”
CFIB is calling on municipalities to reduce and ultimately eliminate higher commercial property tax rates. Provinces should also ensure their own property-tax policies do not add to the imbalance.
Closing the gap does not necessarily mean municipalities must collect less revenue. A more equal tax structure can spread the same overall levy more fairly across the assessment base.
“Businesses are not asking for a free ride,” said Gionet. “They are asking why a property should be taxed more heavily simply because someone is trying to run a business from it. Atlantic Canada needs more entrepreneurs, more investment and more growing businesses. Taxing commercial property at multiples of the residential rate sends exactly the wrong message.”
For media enquiries or interviews, please contact:
Frédéric Gionet, Director, Atlantic Canadian Federation of Independent Business
C: 506-961-2793 frederic.gionet@cfib.ca
About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small and medium-sized businesses, with 103,000 members across every industry and region. In Atlantic Canada alone, CFIB represents more than 10,000 members, collectively employing more than 124,000 people in the region. CFIB advocates for policy change at all levels of government, provides expert advice and tools, and negotiates exclusive savings to help business owners succeed. Learn more at cfib.ca.
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