Capital gains tax increase delayed until 2026, federal government confirms [Video]

The federal government confirmed on Friday that it’s reversing course on increases to the capital gains tax first announced in the last federal budget.

The government is delaying the effective date of the increase to Jan. 1, 2026.

After initial reporting from CBC News on Thursday that federal Liberals were considering a pause on collecting the new taxes, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc confirmed as much in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

“This deferral will provide certainty to Canadian taxpayers,” posted LeBlanc.

The delay almost certainly pushes the change until after the next federal election, which could effectively kill the tax increase given that it has been opposed by the Conservative Party.

“It is a surprise,” said Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), when interviewed on Thursday night. The industry lobby group had opposed the increase to capital gains taxes since they were first announced.

“But it is welcome news,” he said.