The tax only really affects landed immigrants who live and work in BC, and foreign capital investments in new developments as the Chinese speculators with billions who want to park money in Vancouver have already found ways around it because they can deposit millions to set up national corporations and have it do all the land holding/flipping. For example my sister who has lived here 30yrs with American citizenship will have to move to another province or back to the US if she sells her house since she will be eligible for the 15% tax buying a new place, on top of all the other existing taxes so is looking at +20% tax when her family outgrows their home.
My brother is a real estate agent in Vancouver. He is really upset at this law because precisely this. He predicted before the law passed that the ones who will suffer most from this tax will surely be honest immigrants. He says that the law doesn't close the right holes to protect the right people, and it certainly doesn't deal with the supply-side issues, only the demand-side.
re: setting up Canadian corporations with foreign money
> The release defines foreign corporations as companies "not incorporated in Canada or, incorporated in Canada, but controlled in whole or in part by a foreign national or other foreign corporation, unless the shares of the corporation are listed on a Canadian stock exchange."
It remains to be seen how much effort will go in to enforcement re: determining the ultimate ownership of companies investing in Vancouver real estate.
> According to a release, the government defines a foreign national as someone who is not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, "including stateless persons."
Presumably your sister has permanent resident status and is exempt from the new tax because of that.
Detached houses appreciated at least 30% last year though. [1] Yes, some folks may face a tax hit if they cash out and rebuy but it's hardly disastrous.