British Columbia's personal income tax brackets will not move for 2027. Budget 2026 paused the annual inflation indexation of BC's brackets and non-refundable tax credits for the 2027 to 2030 tax years, so the 2026 thresholds carry into 2027 unchanged. The measure is in Bill 2, the Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2026, which received Royal Assent on April 16, 2026. It is law, not a proposal.
The rest of this post is the reference: the BC tax brackets for 2027, the frozen credit amounts, the 2025 figures for comparison, who is affected, and the cases where the freeze matters most.
What changed, when, and who it affects
- What: BC normally raises its bracket thresholds and credit amounts each year by the provincial inflation factor (2.2% for 2026). For 2027, 2028, 2029 and 2030 that indexation is paused at 2026 levels. The province says indexation resumes for the 2031 and later tax years.
- Also frozen: the non-refundable tax credits (basic personal amount, spouse, age, caregiver, disability and similar) and the BC tax reduction credit.
- Not frozen: the rates themselves did not change for 2027. The lowest rate stays at 5.60%, the rate Budget 2026 set for 2026 onward (up from 5.06% in 2025).
- Who: every individual who pays BC personal income tax, which means anyone resident in BC on December 31, including employees, sole proprietors and owner-managers paying themselves salary or dividends. Federal brackets are a separate system and continue to be indexed every year; the freeze is BC-only.
Sources: Province of BC: Personal income tax rates, Province of BC: Budget tax changes and Legislative Assembly of BC: 2026 session index (Bill 2, Royal Assent April 16, 2026).
BC tax brackets 2027 (same as 2026)
| Taxable income, 2027 and 2026 | BC rate | 2025 bracket (prior year) | 2025 rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $50,363 | 5.60% | $0 to $49,279 | 5.06% |
| $50,363.01 to $100,728 | 7.70% | $49,279.01 to $98,560 | 7.70% |
| $100,728.01 to $115,648 | 10.50% | $98,560.01 to $113,158 | 10.50% |
| $115,648.01 to $140,430 | 12.29% | $113,158.01 to $137,407 | 12.29% |
| $140,430.01 to $190,405 | 14.70% | $137,407.01 to $186,306 | 14.70% |
| $190,405.01 to $265,545 | 16.80% | $186,306.01 to $259,829 | 16.80% |
| Over $265,545 | 20.50% | Over $259,829 | 20.50% |
Because indexation is paused through 2030, these same thresholds are scheduled to apply for 2028, 2029 and 2030 as well, unless the legislature changes them again.
Source: Province of BC: Personal income tax rates.
BC basic personal amount 2027 and other frozen credits
BC non-refundable credits are worth the credit amount multiplied by the lowest rate, which is now 5.60% (it was 5.06% in 2025). With the amounts frozen, the dollar value of each credit for 2027 is the same as for 2026.
| Credit | 2027 and 2026 amount | 2025 amount |
|---|---|---|
| Basic personal amount | $13,216 | $12,932 |
| Spouse or common-law partner | $11,317 | $11,073 |
| Eligible dependant | $11,317 | $11,073 |
| Age amount (65 or older) | $5,927 | $5,799 |
| BC caregiver | $5,784 | $5,659 |
| Disability amount | $9,913 | $9,699 |
| Pension amount | $1,000 | $1,000 |
The basic personal amount credit is therefore worth $13,216 × 5.60% = $740.10 of BC tax for 2027, the same as for 2026.
BC tax reduction credit
| Item | 2026 (frozen for 2027–2030) | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum credit | $690 | $562 |
| Reduction starts above net income of | $25,570 | $25,020 |
| Reduction factor | 3.56% | 3.56% |
| Credit fully phased out at net income of | $44,952 | $40,807 |
Source: Province of BC: Basic personal income tax credits.
What the BC bracket freeze means in dollars
A frozen bracket is a tax increase that arrives through raises rather than through a rate change. Every dollar of income growth stays measured against the same thresholds, so more of it lands in higher brackets than it would have if the thresholds kept pace with inflation.
Example. An employee earning $100,000 of taxable income in 2026 sits entirely below the 10.50% bracket, which starts above $100,728. With a raise to $102,500 in 2027, the top $1,772 is taxed at 10.50% rather than 7.70%. Under normal indexation the $100,728 threshold would have moved up with inflation and part of that raise would have stayed in the 7.70% bracket.
Worked BC tax on $60,000 of taxable income, 2027:
| Step | Calculation | BC tax |
|---|---|---|
| First bracket | $50,363 × 5.60% | $2,820.33 |
| Second bracket | ($60,000 − $50,363) × 7.70% | $742.05 |
| Tax before credits | $3,562.38 | |
| Less basic personal amount credit | $13,216 × 5.60% | −$740.10 |
| BC tax after basic credit | before CPP, EI and other credits | $2,822.28 |
At $60,000 the BC tax reduction credit is nil, because net income is above the $44,952 phase-out point.
What BC employers should do
- January 2027 payroll. Expect the BC claim codes and TD1BC amounts for 2027 to match 2026, since the credit amounts are frozen. Confirm when the CRA publishes the January 2027 payroll deduction tables, and check that your software has loaded them.
- The July 2026 true-up ends. For July to December 2026, CRA payroll formulas used a prorated BC lowest rate of 6.14% to catch up the 5.60% increase that took effect on January 1. That proration covers only the second half of 2026. Withholding for 2027 should be based on the annual 5.60% rate; confirm it against the January 2027 tables. Employees may see a small increase in take-home pay in January as a result. Our earlier post on the BC 5.60% rate increase covers the mid-year change.
- Staff TD1BC forms. Employees who claimed more than the basic amount on a 2026 TD1BC do not need a new form only because of the year change, but anyone whose situation changed should give you an updated one.
- Federal amounts still move. Do not assume your whole payroll setup is unchanged. Federal brackets and credits, CPP, CPP2 and EI all change for 2027 on their own schedules.
What BC owner-managers should check
- Salary and dividend planning. If you set your own pay, a fixed bracket structure through 2030 makes the thresholds a stable planning target. Bonuses or dividends that push you over $100,728, $115,648 or $140,430 cross the same lines each year for four years.
- Income splitting where it is legitimate. Paying a spouse or adult child a reasonable salary for real work uses their lower brackets. The tax on split income rules still apply to dividends from a private corporation, so get advice before you change who receives dividends.
- Corporate rates are a separate question. The freeze applies to personal tax only. BC's corporate rates and small business limit are covered in our BC small business tax rate guide.
Edge cases
I moved to or from BC during 2026 or 2027. Which brackets apply?
Provincial tax for the whole year generally follows your province of residence on December 31. If you were resident in BC on December 31, 2027, you use the 2027 BC brackets above for the year, even if you lived elsewhere earlier in it.
My business earns income in BC but I live in another province. Do these brackets apply to me?
Not to your employment or investment income. Business income from a permanent establishment in another province is allocated between provinces, so an unincorporated business with a BC location can owe some BC tax even if the owner lives elsewhere. Income earned through a corporation is taxed in the corporation at corporate rates, not at these personal rates.
Does the freeze change my 2026 tax return?
No. The 2026 brackets and credits were indexed as normal and are the ones shown above. The pause starts with the 2027 tax year.
Will the brackets definitely stay at these levels until 2030?
That is what the enacted legislation provides, and the province says indexation resumes for 2031. A future budget could change it, so check the BC government's rates page each year. We will update this page if the numbers change.
How RN Canada can help
RN Canada prepares personal and corporate tax returns and plans owner remuneration for BC business owners from our Vancouver office, and for clients elsewhere remotely. If you want to see how the frozen brackets affect your salary and dividend mix for 2027, get in touch. If you are thinking about incorporating instead, start with our guide to incorporating a business in BC.