Heat pump rebates · Canada
The Canada Greener Homes Loan is closed: what homeowners can use instead
The Canada Greener Homes Loan is closed. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) says its funding is fully committed and new loan applications cannot be approved. The companion Oil to Heat Pump Affordability program took its last applications on July 31, 2026. No federal loan has replaced them. What Ottawa announced instead, on October 8, 2026, is a rebate: the National Heat Pump Rebate, worth up to $10,000 for households below the median income and $2,000 for others, due to open in early 2027. Open today are a no-cost federal program for low- and median-income households, delivered through six provinces, and provincial rebates that range from $400 to $7,500. This guide covers both, province by province, and where the new rebate fits.
Federal program status, October 2026
| Program | Status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Greener Homes Loan | Closed | Funding fully committed; no new approvals. Approved loans continue. |
| Canada Greener Homes Grant | Closed | December 31, 2025 was the last day to submit documents. News reports describe the National Heat Pump Rebate as its successor. |
| Oil to Heat Pump Affordability program | Closed | July 31, 2026 was the last day to apply. |
| National Heat Pump Rebate | Announced; opens early 2027 | Up to $10,000 below the median income, $2,000 for others. Not a loan, no energy audit, combines with provincial programs. |
| Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program | Open | No-cost retrofits for low- and median-income homeowners and tenants. Apply through the provincial partner. |
NRCan's program pages were checked on October 9, 2026, and the October 8 rebate announcement on October 10. Program status changes without much notice, so check the source links at the end of this page before relying on any of it.
If you already have an approved loan
An approved loan is not affected by the closure. NRCan's Loan page says approved homeowners can carry on with their retrofits and funding requests. Three details matter at this stage:
- The loan does not grow. If the final invoice comes in above the estimate in the application, the loan amount stays where it was approved. The difference is the homeowner's to cover.
- The post-retrofit evaluation takes time to land. Results from the energy advisor can take up to 30 days to appear in the portal. Booking the evaluation soon after the install leaves room inside the deadline.
- The approval letter sets the deadline. Work to the date in that letter, not to a timeline from an older guide.
Once a funding request is approved, NRCan says the final amount is deposited within about 10 days.
Applications that were submitted but never approved are a different case. NRCan's wording is that submitting an application does not guarantee approval or funding. Anyone in that position should not book an install on the expectation of loan money.
What NRCan points to now: the Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program
On the Loan's own page, NRCan now sends readers to the Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program. It is not a loan. It pays the full cost of retrofits such as heat pumps, insulation and air sealing for low- and median-income households, and it covers tenants as well as owners. A June 2026 expansion added British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Quebec to Manitoba, with funding NRCan says will reach more than 35,000 households. Newfoundland and Labrador joined in October 2026.
The federal government does not take applications directly. Each participating province runs its own intake and sets its own income limits:
| Province | Where to apply | Heat pumps covered? |
|---|---|---|
| British Columbia | Through the electricity or gas utility: BC Hydro or FortisBC | Yes. BC Hydro covers heat pumps and weatherization; FortisBC covers dual-fuel systems. |
| Manitoba | Efficiency Manitoba Energy Efficiency Assistance Program | Check the program page for current measures. |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | TakeCharge Greener Homes Program, for Newfoundland Power and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro customers | Yes. One single-head mini-split per home, plus insulation, air sealing and a heat recovery ventilator. Only projects completed after October 5, 2026 count, and funding for this year is filling, so late applicants wait for April 2027 funding. |
| Nova Scotia | HomeWarming, or the African Nova Scotian Communities Retrofit program | Upgrades are assessed per home. |
| Prince Edward Island | Free Insulation Program | No. Attic and basement insulation only. |
| Quebec | Hydro-Québec, modest-income households | Yes, along with windows, doors and thermostats. |
Two provinces outside that list run their own income-qualified programs. Ontario has the Energy Affordability Program, and New Brunswick has the NB Power Enhanced Energy Savings program for households earning $70,000 or less. Both are direct-install programs with no fixed rebate amount, so they appear in neither table on this page.
Rebates for households at market income
For a household that earns too much for the no-cost programs, provincial and utility rebates are what is left. They are smaller than the old federal stack, and several of them pay by the ton of heating capacity rather than a flat amount. That detail matters: a typical 3-ton Ontario install earns $3,750, not the $7,500 headline. The table lists programs open to new applicants as of October 8, 2026.
| Province | Program | Air-source heat pump | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | Home Renovation Savings | $1,250 per ton, up to $7,500 (homes not heated by Enbridge gas); $500 per ton, up to $2,000 (gas-heated homes) | Cold-climate unit on NRCan's qualified list. A gas furnace may stay as backup. Ground-source: up to $12,000, or a flat $3,000 in gas-heated homes. |
| British Columbia | Home Renovation Rebate (BC Hydro / CleanBC) | Up to $4,000; $1,500 for a partial system | Must replace electric primary heat and carry the full load at −5°C, with no gas, oil or propane backup. Larger rebates for oil, gas and propane homes north of 100 Mile House. |
| Manitoba | Efficiency Manitoba | $2,000 ducted; $1,500 ductless | Cold-climate unit. Ground-source projects up to $38,000 can be paid at $75 a month, interest-free, over 15 years. |
| Nova Scotia | Efficiency NS Home Energy Assessment | $500 per ton ducted; $300 per ton ductless | Pre- and post-assessment required ($199). Newly added capacity only, not replacement heat pumps. $5,000 cap across all upgrades. |
| New Brunswick | NB Power Total Home Energy Savings | $1,500 ducted; $1,000 furnace add-on; $400 mini-split; $350 per multi-zone head | Households earning over $70,000. Home energy evaluation required. |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | takeCHARGE Oil to Electric | Up to $22,000 central; up to $18,000 multi-split | Income-qualified only. Homes heated with oil or propane; participating installer required. |
Three provinces had nothing open for a market-rate household on that date. Alberta has no provincial heat pump rebate, and Calgary's Clean Energy Improvement Program is closed until winter 2026/27. Saskatchewan ended SaskPower's Home Efficiency Retrofit Rebate in April 2026, and SaskEnergy's equipment rebate covers furnaces and water heaters, not heat pumps. Prince Edward Island paused every heat pump rebate, including its free heat pump program, on April 15, 2026, with no restart date announced.
The rebates page tracks these programs as they change.
Paying for an install without the Loan
The Loan's appeal was cheap money: up to $40,000 over 10 years at zero interest. Nothing federal does that now. The options that remain are narrower.
- Municipal property-tax financing. Some municipalities run Clean Energy Improvement Programs (sometimes called PACE), where the cost is repaid through the property tax bill. Availability is local and intakes open and close, as Calgary's has.
- Utility programs. Efficiency Manitoba's ground-source program is the clearest example: a fixed monthly payment, interest-free, on retrofits up to $38,000.
- Contractor or manufacturer financing. Widely offered, on terms that vary. The annual percentage rate and the total amount repaid belong in writing before signing.
Without the Loan, the gap between a cash price and a financed price is real money, which makes comparing at least two itemized quotes worth the time. The heat pump cost guide gives a benchmark for each system and home size.
Treat any "Greener Homes Loan" pitch with suspicion
Because the Loan is closed, a door-knocker or caller offering to "get you the Greener Homes Loan" is offering something that does not exist. The same goes for the Affordability Program: NRCan states that it has not approved any third party to contact homeowners about it unprompted, and applications go only through the provincial partner. The same caution applies to the new federal rebate: it is not open, so nobody can "pre-register" a household for it. The heat pump scam guide covers the patterns in circulation and how to check an installer.
Where to start
Two questions sort out which section of this page applies. Does the household's income fall under its province's limit for the no-cost program? If yes, the provincial partner in the first table is the place to apply, before getting any quotes, because those programs typically arrange the work themselves. If no, the rebate in the second table sets the subsidy. A quote should then name the heat pump model, confirm it is on the qualified-product list that rebate requires, and state the rebate at the system's actual tonnage.
A third question is timing. If the current system still works, waiting for the federal rebate in early 2027 adds $2,000, or up to $10,000 below the median income. If it has failed, waiting is rarely practical, and whether the rebate will cover installs made before launch has not been settled. The National Heat Pump Rebate guide covers that decision.
Sources
Last full source check: October 10, 2026.