the speculation and vacancy tax is a provincial property tax levied in the province of british columbia starting in 2019. it is an opt-out tax paid when the property is vacant. it is paid in addition to the regular property tax. the rate for this tax is a half per cent of a home's assessed value for owners who are residents of british columbia (bc), one per cent for canadians from other provinces and two percent for owners from other countries. homes that are not exempt from this tax, pay it in addition to their regular property tax. this tax is not to be confused with vancouver's empty homes tax, which is also being levied on empty homes located in the city of vancouver.