Find out if you pass Canada's OSFI B-20 mortgage stress test — and discover the maximum home price you can qualify for based on your income and debts.
| Under $500,000 | 5% |
| $500K – $999,999 | 5% on first $500K 10% on remainder |
| $1M – $1,499,999 | 10% minimum |
| $1,500,000+ | 20% (no CMHC) |
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The mortgage stress test is a rule set by OSFI (the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions) under Guideline B-20. It requires all federally regulated lenders — including every major Canadian bank — to verify that you could still afford your mortgage payments at a significantly higher interest rate than the one you're actually getting.
The test was introduced in 2018 after concern that many Canadians were taking on mortgages they could only afford at historically low rates. If rates rose, a wave of defaults could threaten the financial system. The stress test builds in a safety cushion.
2026 Status: OSFI confirmed in January 2026 that the stress test rules remain unchanged. The qualifying rate is the higher of your contract rate plus 2%, or the 5.25% floor. Since current 5-year fixed rates are around 4.04–4.29%, the operative qualifying rate today is approximately 6.04–6.29% — well above the 5.25% floor.
Several significant updates have been made to Canadian mortgage rules recently:
November 2024: Borrowers with uninsured mortgages (20%+ down) switching to a new lender at renewal are now exempt from the stress test, provided the loan amount and amortization stay the same. This ended a major competitive disadvantage for renewal-eligible borrowers.
December 2024: The maximum home price eligible for CMHC-insured mortgages increased from $1,000,000 to $1,499,999. First-time homebuyers and buyers of newly built homes can now use 30-year amortization on insured mortgages.
Important: The stress test applies to federally regulated lenders (banks). Provincial credit unions and private lenders are not subject to OSFI's B-20 and may qualify you using different (sometimes more flexible) criteria. However, rates at alternative lenders may be higher.
If you're close to the limit, there are several strategies: pay down existing debts to lower your TDS ratio; increase your down payment to reduce the mortgage amount; apply with a co-borrower (spouse or family member) to add income; choose a shorter amortization (counterintuitively, a shorter amortization means lower total interest, but higher monthly payments — this doesn't usually help); or work with a mortgage broker to find the lowest available rate, which lowers your qualifying rate accordingly.