How to appeal your property assessment in Nova Scotia: the complete guide

Who assesses, and what value is on the notice

The Property Valuation Services Corporation (PVSC), an independent not-for-profit created by provincial statute, assesses all property in the province. "PVSC assesses every property in Nova Scotia every year," it says. It sends the roll to the 49 municipalities in December and notices to owners in January.

The value on the notice is market value. The 2026 notice reflects value as of January 1, 2025 and the property’s physical state as of December 1, 2025. PVSC’s general rule: the value one year ago, on January 1, and the property’s condition one month before the notice is mailed. A renovation finished in November counts; one finished in December waits for the next notice.

The notice also shows a Taxable Assessment Value. If your home is eligible for the CAP, it can be lower than the assessed value. More on that below.

What is the deadline?

Section 63(1) of the Assessment Act says the notice of appeal "shall be given not later than thirty-one days after the notices of assessment are served". PVSC turns it into a practical rule: your signed form must be received by the date on your notice, 31 days after it was mailed.

Receipt by PVSC is what counts. A form mailed the day before will arrive too late. In 2026, PVSC mailed over 650,000 notices on January 12, and appeals had to be received before midnight on February 12. The full calendar is in the appeal deadline.

The steps, in order

This order avoids surprises.

• Read the whole notice. Classification, assessed value, Capped Assessment, Taxable Assessment Value, five-year history and deadline.
• Check your property data in the online "My Property Report", using the Assessment Account Number (AAN) and PIN on your notice.
• Call PVSC. PVSC recommends discussing your concerns before filing: an assessor will explain how the value was set and can correct a fact.
• Gather evidence: sales of similar properties around January 1 of the previous year, description errors, documented defects.
• Fill in and sign the Property Assessment Appeal form. The Act requires grounds stated "with particularity".
• Send it to PVSC by mail, fax or email, early enough to be received before midnight on the last day.

What it costs

Nothing. PVSC says it plainly: "There is no fee to file an assessment appeal." At the third level, the NSRAB’s Assessment Appeal Rules set no filing fee, and a regulation makes PVSC pay the Board’s costs.

The savings calculation, including the effect of the CAP, is in cost and savings.

What works

PVSC says, for the hearing: if you are appealing the assessed value, your evidence must support what you believe is the fair market value of your property. The appeal board’s user guide names the best evidence for a house: "sale prices (NOT assessments) for similar properties sold reasonably close to the base date".

The same guide adds that uniformity is judged across the whole municipality, not between neighbours. A lower-assessed house next door is not, on its own, a ground. Details are in evidence that works.

The three stages of the process

PVSC describes a three-stage process. 1. PVSC review: an assessor reviews the file and confirms or amends the assessment. 2. The Nova Scotia Assessment Appeal Tribunal (NSAAT), an independent tribunal administered by the Department of Municipal Affairs. 3. The Nova Scotia Regulatory and Appeals Board (NSRAB), a quasi-judicial body formerly known as the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB).

The shortest deadline comes after the review: if PVSC confirms or amends the assessment and you disagree, you have 14 days after its decision is served to continue to the NSAAT, or the appeal is deemed abandoned (Act, ss. 68(5) and 68A(3)). Then, an appeal to the NSRAB must be filed within 30 days of the NSAAT decision being mailed. See after you appeal.

The CAP

The Capped Assessment Program (CAP) limits the yearly increase in the taxable assessment of eligible residential property to Nova Scotia’s Consumer Price Index. PVSC says: "The 2026 CAP rate is 2.6%."

Eligible, according to PVSC: properties at least 50% owned by a Nova Scotia resident; residential with fewer than four dwelling units, or vacant resource property; owner-occupied if a condominium; and owned for at least a year or kept within the family. The cap is removed for the year after a sale outside the family.

The risk to know: an increase is possible

The Assessment Act lets the NSAAT "confirm, reduce or increase the valuation of the property that is the subject of the appeal" (s. 74(1)(a)), and even increase a valuation on its own motion (s. 76(1)(b)). An appeal reopens the file. If the assessor finds an addition missing from the record, the value can go up. Prepare the appeal as if every detail will be checked.

Frequently asked questions