Business Costs & Incentives

Focused on the competitive costs of doing business.

A competitive advantage

One important advantage for business is that Oakville is in the province of Ontario, which has the second lowest corporate tax rates in the G7 countries.

Companies in Oakville enjoy corporate tax rates that are lower than the average federal-state rate in the Unites States. For both employers and employees, healthcare costs are half of what they are in the U.S.

Companies of any size in Oakville know that these lower costs of doing business foster productivity and growth. They also benefit from highly-competitive local costs including development charges, tax rates and utilities.

Also on this page

Brownfields Community Improvement Plan

Brownfields Community Improvement Plan

Oakville's Brownfields Community Improvement Plan (CIP) was created to encourage private sector reinvestment in brownfields, bringing environmental, economic, and social benefits to the community. The program is a proactive approach to support the remediation and redevelopment of brownfields through three financial incentive programs:


  • Environmental Study Grant (ESG) Program
  • Tax Increment Grant (TIG) Program
  • Tax Assistance Program (TAP)
Community Improvement Plan

Utilities

Water, natural gas and electricity are highly competitive with other municipalities in the GTA. For information on current rates please contact the service provider. 

Water & Wastewater

Provided by Halton Region.

Hydro

Provided by Oakville Hydro.

Gas

Provided by Enbridge.

Telecommunication

Oakville offers robust and scalable telecommunications and fibre optics networks that provide a full complement of services to customers. Telecommunications providers include these leading companies: 

Bell Canada

Cogeco

Rogers

Development charges

The Town of Oakville has competitive development charges when compared to the rest of the Greater Toronto Area.

More information on the Town of Oakville's development charges and the most current rates are available on the Development Charges page.

Created with Highcharts 4.2.6Municipality$/sq. ft.IndustrialOffice/Non-retailSelect any item in the legend to hide or show it in the chartOakville (built bo…Oakville (built boundary)Burlington (built boundary)Halton Hills (built boundary)Milton (built boundary)BramptonCaledonMississaugaTorontoAuroraMarkhamNewmarketRichmond HillVaughanWhitchurch-StouffvilleAjaxOshawaPickeringWhitby0204060
Halton Hills (built boundary)
Industrial: $13.15
Office/Non-retail: $17.33

Source: Various municipal websites, 2023.

Development charges

The Town of Oakville has competitive development charges when compared to the rest of the Greater Toronto Area.

More information on the Town of Oakville's development charges and the most current rates are available on the Development Charges page.

MunicipalityIndustrial rate ($/square foot)Office/Non-retail rate ($/square foot)
Oakville$26.65$26.65
Burlington$23.07$23.07
Halton Hills$17.59$23.13
Milton$20.21$20.21
Brampton$29$42.7
Caledon$29.73$35.93
Mississauga$32.88$41.5
Toronto$51.69$51.69
Aurora$31.02$31.02
Markham$43.04$43.04
Newmarket$31.16$31.16
Richmond Hill$33.26$33.26
Vaughan$45.79$45.79
Whitchurch-Stouffville$33.78$33.78
Ajax$26.45$44.03
Oshawa$23.54$50.73
Pickering$23.34$40.92
Whitby$23.82$60.88

Source: Various municipal websites, 2023.

Demolition credits

Credits will be provided against applicable development charges where building or structures have been demolished to permit the redevelopment of the property. These credits will expire five years after the issuance of the demolition permit. The credit is based on the number and type of residential units demolished and/or the total floor area and type of non-residential building or structures demolished.

Applicants should contact the town's Financial Planning department to determine the applicable charges that may apply to specific development proposals.

Corporate income taxes

Companies that locate in Oakville have globally competitive corporate tax rates. Ontario's corporate income tax rate is lower than the average corporate income tax rate average of the G7 countries. The charts below show the comparisons.

Globally Competitive Corporate Taxes

Created with Highcharts 4.2.6 Jurisdiction Combined Federal-Ontario general corporate income tax (CIT) rate Combined Federal-Ontario general corporate income tax (CIT) rate 1 U.S. Average Combined Federal-Ontario G7 Average Combined Federal-Provincial* 0 10 20 30 40 50
Ontario
Combined Federal-Ontario general corporate income tax (CIT) rate: 3  26.50%

Source: Invest Ontario, 2023.
*All provinces excluding Ontario.

Marginal Effective Tax Rate (METR) on New Business

Created with Highcharts 4.2.6JurisdictionMarginal effective tax rate (METR) on new businessMarginal Effective Tax Rate (METR) on New BusinessU.S. AverageOECD AverageOntario010203040
U.S. Average
Marginal Effective Tax Rate (METR) on New Business:  34.70%

Source: Invest Canada, 2023.

Property taxes

Oakville's property tax rates, particularly for office development, are highly competitive when compared to surrounding municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area. 

Created with Highcharts 4.2.6MunicipalityTax Rate %IndustrialCommercialSelect any item in the legend to hide or show it in the chartOakvilleBurlingtonHalton HillsMiltonBramptonCaledonMississaugaTorontoAuroraMarkhamNewmarketRichmond HillVaughanWhitchurch-StouffvilleAjaxOshawaPickeringWhitby024
Halton Hills
Industrial: 2.41%
Commercial: 1.66%

All percentages have been rounded to two decimal points.
Source: Various municipal websites, September 2023.

Property taxes

Oakville's property tax rates, particularly for office development, are highly competitive when compared to surrounding municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area. 

MunicipalityIndustrial tax rate (per cent)Commercial tax rate (per cent)
Oakville2.151.66
Burlington2.361.8
Halton Hills2.561.79
Milton2.11.62
Brampton2.182.03
Caledon2.161.87
Mississauga2.062
Toronto2.172.17
Aurora1.951.75
Markham1.821.75
Newmarket2.011.8
Richmond Hill1.761.6
Vaughan1.771.6
Whitchurch-Stouffville1.911.71
Ajax2.962.37
Oshawa3.362.75
Pickering2.922.34
Whitby32.4

All percentages have been rounded to two decimal points.
Source: Various municipal websites, September 2023.

Incentives

The Canadian and Ontario governments offer a variety of grants, loans, tax credits and support services for businesses located in Ontario.

The Invest in Ontario website provides an overview of incentive programs and services available to help make it easy to grow your business. These programs include help to lower your corporate taxes and help your company save on labour costs, research and development, and expansion activities.

Invest in Ontario

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