Rates & fees
Rates are the main way residents fund the council. Most NSW councils just get the annual IPART 'rate peg'. Canada Bay is different: IPART approved a permanent special rate variation (SRV) covering 2023–24 to 2026–27, so the council's actual approved rate rises for this period already include both the standard peg and the extra SRV component. Here's what was approved, and the things that actually change your individual bill.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Rate peg
- The cap on how much a council's TOTAL rates income can rise this year.
- Core peg
- The rate peg before the population top-up — the part driven by rising costs.
- Population factor
- An extra slice of the rate peg for fast-growing councils.
- Special Rate Variation (SRV)
- Permission for a council to raise rates by more than the peg.
- Land valuation
- Your land's value, set by the state, used to split the rates bill between properties.
- Pensioner rebate
- A discount on rates for eligible pensioners.
- Domestic waste charge
- A separate annual fee for your bins — NOT part of the rate peg.
- IPART
- Sets the rate peg and reviews council pricing.
- Approved rate rise 2025–26 (Canada Bay)
- 4.7%Total increase in average residential rates approved by IPART, combining the standard rate peg and the council's special variation.
- Approved rate rise 2026–27 (Canada Bay)
- 4.6%The final year of the 4-year special variation.
- The special rate variation (SRV)
- Cumulative +32.5% in general income, 2023–24 to 2026–27IPART approved Canada Bay's first-ever SRV: +15.5% in 2023–24, +4.8% in 2024–25, +4.7% in 2025–26 and +4.6% in 2026–27 (rounded), to fund infrastructure and services for the council's growing population.
- Minimum rate
- Rising from $762 (2022–23) to $1,108 by 2026–27A cumulative 45.5% increase approved as part of the SRV, to redistribute rates more evenly between houses and apartments.
- What the peg/SRV caps
- Total rates income — not your individual billIt doesn't cap the domestic waste charge, which is separate.
- Why your bill can still change more (or less)
- Land revaluations shift bills between propertiesYour share moves with your land value relative to other properties (NSW Valuer General).
- Concessions
- Eligible pensioners can receive a rebate of up to $250/yearThe rebate percentage depends on when your pension eligibility started in the rating year — check with the council.
The special rate variation (SRV) is IPART's approval for a council to raise more than the standard rate peg for a set period; it caps the council's total rates income, not each household's bill. Canada Bay's SRV was its first, approved after the council said it needed the revenue for financial sustainability and to keep pace with population growth (the council expects around 13,000 new dwellings and 30,000 more residents by 2036). How your individual rates change also depends on how your land value moved relative to other properties at the latest revaluation.
Sources — check it yourself
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.