OttawaCome the new year, Ottawans who use pre-authorized debit payments to cover their water bills or property taxes will see a 55-cent fee tacked onto each transaction.Starting in 2026, city to charge 55 cents for pre-authorized debit payments on tax, water billsJoseph Tunney · CBC News · Posted: Oct 23, 2025 4:23 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesStarting in the new year, the City of Ottawa will begin charging an extra 55 cents per transaction for pre-authorized debit payments on property tax and water bills.Starting in January, homeowners who pay their property tax or water bill with pre-approved debit payments will face a 55-cent charge by the city for each transaction.Come the new year, Ottawans who use pre-authorized debit payments to cover their water bills or property taxes will see a 55-cent service fee tacked onto each transaction.Some residents like Ralph Anzarouth say it feels like they’re being nickel and dimed.”It’s a minor inconvenience, but to me it sounds like a sneaky way of a cash grab masquerading as a benefit,” he told CBC’s Ottawa Morning. While the fee is so small many will likely shrug it off, Anzarouth believes it punishes homeowners for being responsible, and offered sarcastic praise for the city’s “innovation in modern revenue generation.”“It’s going to cost me about $11 a year,” he said. “I mean, it’s not a huge amount, but that amount can increase next year, or the year after, and it’s just another tax that we didn’t expect.”Online comments have been similarly critical, with many residents characterizing the service fee as a cash grab by the city.LISTEN | Why the city will start charging 55¢ for pre-authorized debit payment :Ottawa Morning4:39Why the city will start charging 55¢ for pre-authorized debit paymentWe’ll hear from Barrhaven East city councillor Wilson Lo on why the City of Ottawa will start charging people a small fee for pre-authorized debit payments in the new year.Property owners in Ottawa can pay their taxes in several ways, including a pre-authorized debit plan and an instalment plan, according to a city staff report in April. A pre-authorized plan is also available for water utility accounts, with payments withdrawn on the bill’s due date. The city sent a letter to residents earlier this month informing them of the new fee.New fee reflects true cost, city saysIn a statement, deputy city treasurer Joseph Muhuni said the new fee “reflects the cost of maintaining this service,” and helps offset the higher cost of processing automatic payments compared to other electronic payment methods.According to the staff report, each pre-authorized debit transaction costs the city 74 cents. The new fee “would recover the difference between the cost of administering PAD versus all other electronic payment types.”Muhuni said while the city would historically absorb those costs, with all taxpayers bearing the burden, the new fee takes a user-pay approach.The fee would raise approximately $820,000 annually, according to an estimate based on last year’s data.In 2024, the city had 108,894 tax accounts and 86,734 water utility accounts registered on a pre-authorized debit plan, with an additional 1,500 such transactions processed each year on average.Barrhaven East Coun. Wilson Lo said he understands residents’ frustration.”It is not a large amount of 55 cents, but when you combine it with everything else that the city charges, eventually everything adds up,” he said.ABOUT THE AUTHORJoseph Tunney is a reporter for CBC News in Ottawa. He can be reached at joe.tunney@cbc.ca
Residents blast city’s ‘sneaky’ new debit fee
