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Federal qualifying rate: contract + 2.00 pts or 5.25%, whichever is higher · checked November 1, 2026Rules & sources
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Qualifying rate calculator

Short answer

Your qualifying rate is the greater of your contract rate plus 2 points or 5.25%, under OSFI and federal insured rules. At 4.12%, the insured 5-year average for 2026-08, it's 6.12%. The floor only sets the test when your rate is below 3.25%. Enter your rate below.

Rules checked against primary sources Page updated How we source rules

Qualifying rate calculator

Your contract rate in, the rate lenders test you at out, with both payments.

Bank of Canada average, insured 5-year+ fixed: 4.12% (2026-08).
Amortization
0123456789105.25% floor6.12%QUALIFYING RATE · CONTRACT 4.12%
You're tested at6.12%4.12% + 2 points (above the 5.25% floor).
Payment you'd make
$2,396
monthly
Payment the lender tests
$2,911
monthly
Difference
$515
21% higher
Income it takes (GDS only)
$89,579
mortgage alone at 39%

Estimate, not advice. Educational estimate only, not financial, mortgage, tax or legal advice. Lenders, insurers and governments set their own rules and can change them; confirm with a licensed professional before you decide.

Qualifying rate 6.12%; tested payment $2,911 versus $2,396.

Assumptions & sources

Assumptions

  • Qualifying rate = max(contract + 2, 5.25%), the same for fixed and variable rates.
  • Payments: monthly, semi-annual compounding (the Canadian convention for fixed rates).
  • The last stat counts only the mortgage payment; property tax, heating and condo fees also go into GDS.

Sources

  1. OSFI — Minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages (effective January 29, 2026). Checked .
  2. Department of Finance Canada — Statement on the insured mortgage stress test (December 2023) (effective December 12, 2023). Checked .
  3. Justice Laws — Interest Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. I-15, s. 6. Checked .
  4. Bank of Canada — Effective rate on new insured fixed mortgages, 5 years and over (series V122667780) (effective August 1, 2026). Checked .
Qualifying rate and tested payment per $100,000 (25 years)
Contract rateQualifying rateSet byPayment at contractPayment tested
2.50%5.25%5.25% floor$447.97$595.92
3.00%5.25%5.25% floor$473.25$595.92
3.25%5.25%rate + 2$486.17$595.92
3.50%5.50%rate + 2$499.27$610.39
4.00%6.00%rate + 2$526.02$639.81
4.50%6.50%rate + 2$553.47$669.82
5.00%7.00%rate + 2$581.60$700.42
5.50%7.50%rate + 2$610.39$731.55
6.00%8.00%rate + 2$639.81$763.21
6.50%8.50%rate + 2$669.82$795.36
7.00%9.00%rate + 2$700.42$827.98

Below a 3.25% contract rate the floor sets the test; from 3.25% up it's your rate + 2.

Worked example: a $450,000 variable-rate mortgage at 3.74%

A buyer choosing a variable rate at the Bank of Canada's average for new insured variable mortgages (3.74%, 2026-08).

Worked example: a $450,000 variable-rate mortgage at 3.74%: inputs, steps and result
Contract rate (variable)3.74%
Mortgage$450,000
Amortization25 years
Rate + 2 points5.74%
Floor5.25%
Qualifying rate (the greater)5.74%The buffer sets it
Payment you'd make$2,304
Payment the lender tests$2,810$506 a month more than you'd pay

Variable rates get no softer test: the same contract + 2 formula applies. Here the buffer still beats the floor, so every quarter-point the variable rate falls lowers the tested payment too, until the rate drops below 3.25%.

Open this example in the calculator →Computed November 1, 2026.

How this calculator works

The tool applies one rule: qualifying rate = the higher of your contract rate + 2 points and 5.25%. It then works out the monthly payment at both rates on the same balance and amortization, with semi-annual compounding as Canadian fixed-rate mortgages use.

Worked example: a $450,000 mortgage at 4.12% over 25 years is tested at 6.12%. The payment the lender uses is several hundred dollars a month higher than the one you'd make, and that higher payment is what has to fit under the GDS and TDS limits. To see whether it does, use the stress test calculator or the GDS/TDS tool.

Mitey the yeti seated on a stone, reading a small book and pointing at a line
Mitey reads the qualifying-rate line twice: once for the buffer, once for the floor.Every rule this tool uses is under "Assumptions & sources" with the date we checked it, and the address bar keeps your numbers.

Frequently asked questions

Is the qualifying rate the same for variable-rate mortgages?

Yes. OSFI's minimum qualifying rate is the greater of the contract rate + 2 points or 5.25% for fixed, variable and adjustable mortgages, and the federal insured test uses the same formula.

When does the 5.25% floor apply?

Only when your contract rate is below 3.25%. At 3.25% or higher, your rate + 2 is at least 5.25% and sets the test.

Is the qualifying rate the Bank of Canada's posted rate?

Not since June 1, 2021. Between 2016 and 2021 the benchmark was the Bank of Canada's 5-year conventional posted rate; today the floor is a fixed 5.25% set by OSFI and the federal government.

Primary sources

  1. OSFI — Minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages (effective January 29, 2026). Checked .
  2. Department of Finance Canada — Statement on the insured mortgage stress test (December 2023) (effective December 12, 2023). Checked .
  3. OSFI — OSFI confirms minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages (effective December 15, 2022). Checked .
  4. Justice Laws — Interest Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. I-15, s. 6. Checked .
Stress test calculatorPass or fail at a price, and what the test costs you.Open →The stress test rulesWho sets the rate, who must pass, and the exemptions.Open →Variable rates and the stress testSame formula, different risks.Open →