Impact of the Canada Post Strike on 2025 Property Assessment Notices

Canada is currently facing an ongoing strike at Canada Post that is preventing delivery operations. While much of the attention has focused on the delivery of holiday gifts, this labour action also has implications for property assessment and taxation authorities across the country. As the strike continues, it challenges the ability of assessing authorities to mail property assessment notices in a timely manner, particularly for general reassessments that are scheduled to begin in January 2025. For example, earlier this week, the City of Calgary announced a postponement of its annual assessment mailing, originally scheduled for January 2, 2025. This is the first such delay, but likely not the last, if other jurisdictions are forced to follow suit due to the ongoing postal disruption.

The mailing of assessment notices typically marks the start of a period allowing taxpayers to review and appeal their values and is critical for determining the property taxes homeowners and business owners will pay in the upcoming year. However, with the Canada Post strike continuing, assessment authorities are faced with the challenge of delivering these vital documents to property owners.

While jurisdictions have several potential options for addressing the delivery issue, each comes with its own set of risks and challenges.

1. Printing on Schedule: A Potentially Wasteful Decision

The first option for jurisdictions is to proceed with printing assessment notices as scheduled, in the hope that the strike will be resolved in time to mail them as planned. This solution is the most straightforward operationally, as it allows authorities to maintain their original timeline and begin the review period for taxpayers without delay.

However, the primary risk with this approach is the uncertainty surrounding the duration of the strike. If the labour action continues long enough, it could result in missed mailing dates. In Alberta, for example, assessment notices must display the official Notice of Assessment Date, which serves as the starting point for the 60-day review and appeal period. If notices are not delivered by this date, they would be considered inaccurate, potentially requiring reprints. Printing tens or even hundreds of thousands of notices, with knowledge that they might need to be reprinted, implies acceptance of significant additional costs, and the waste involved could lead to negative public perception. This added expense could be substantial, is likely unbudgeted, and could render this option unfeasible in some cases.

2. Couriering Notices: An Expensive Alternative

Another option is to courier property assessment notices directly to taxpayers. This would bypass the Canada Post strike, ensuring that notices are delivered on time. While this approach may seem like a viable alternative, it comes with significant financial implications. Courier services are far more expensive than traditional mail, and there may not be sufficient courier capacity to handle the volume of deliveries required.

Furthermore, couriers cannot deliver to PO Boxes or to out-of-town or international addresses, meaning some assessment notices may not be deliverable through this method.

For example, BC Assessment, which handles property assessments for all of British Columbia, typically begins its reassessment and customer engagement process on January 1. Coordinating and funding the delivery of nearly 2 million notices by courier, during the holiday season, would be an overwhelming challenge at this stage.

3. Delayed Mailing of Assessment Notices: Risking a Domino Effect

A third option being considered is delaying the mailing of assessment notices, as the City of Calgary has decided to do. This would mean waiting until the strike is resolved before proceeding with the mailings. While this option mitigates the financial risks outlined above, it carries a different set of long-term operational consequences.

Delaying the mailing of notices would compress the entire property assessment cycle, and particularly impact jurisdictions that conduct annual reassessments. Under most legislative frameworks, jurisdictions must mail assessment notices, allow for a taxpayer review period, and process all appeals within the same calendar year. At the same time, assessing authorities are also busy preparing assessments for the following year. A delay caused by the postal strike could result in critical weeks being lost in an already tight schedule, placing additional strain on the assessment and taxation system.

What We Are Seeing So Far

As mentioned earlier, the City of Calgary, which usually delivers its notices in the first week of January, has chosen to delay the mailing of property assessment notices. As the strike continues, other jurisdictions may be forced to make similar decisions regarding their 2025 assessment mailings.

Fig. 1 Key Property Tax Dates in Early 2025

*As it is the first year of a four-year revaluation cycle, the review period is 60 days in 2025

These decisions are not being made lightly. A delayed start to the assessment cycle will have downstream effects on supplementary and amended assessments, the setting of municipal tax rates, tax collections, civil spending, assessment appeals, and the preparation of assessment rolls for future years.

The material presented in this communication is intended to provide general information only and should solely be seen as broad guidance and not directed to the particular facts or circumstances of any individual who may read this publication. No liability is accepted for acts or omissions taken in reliance upon the content of this piece. Before taking (or not taking) any action, readers should seek professional advice specific to their situation from Ryan, LLC or other tax professionals.