Second Step: Prepare and Submit Evidence

Once a Complaint Form is filed, you will be informed of the deadline for providing evidence in support of your complaint:

A) For residential properties with 3 or fewer dwellings, and farm land, this deadline is shown on your Notice of Hearing.  The Assessment & Tax Business Unit then has until 7 days prior to the hearing date to file their evidence in support of the assessment, following which you may file your rebuttal evidence at least 3 days prior to the date of the hearing.

B) For residential properties with 4 or more dwellings and all non-residential properties, this deadline is shown on your Notice of Hearing.  The Assessment & Tax Business Unit then has until 14 days prior to the hearing date to file their evidence in support of the assessment, following which you may file your rebuttal evidence at least 7 days prior to the date of the hearing.

ARB staff can provide information regarding the process to assist you, but they cannot offer an opinion or advice regarding the merit of your complaint.

In written hearings, the Board bases its decision solely on its review of the written evidence and submissions provided by the parties without further input. Both parties must agree to use this hearing format.

In teleconference, videoconference and in-person hearings, the Board bases its decision on the written evidence as well as verbal submissions made by the parties. During the hearing, the parties can explain their evidence and may be asked to respond to questions for clarity.

Listed below are some ideas to think about when gathering information for your ARB hearing:

• Comparable sales of similar properties to support the requested value as of the valuation date (July 1 of the previous year).
• Recent sale of the subject property.
• Estimates of your property’s value in the current market from a professional appraiser, assessor, or realtor that reflect the value of the subject as of the valuation date.  Note that the ARB is not bound by any outside appraisal or opinion of value but may use some of its components or comparables in its review.
• Repair estimates from a reputable contractor for physical problems (e.g., cracked foundation, roof leaks, etc.). Keep in mind not every defect will lower the value of your property, such as defects that result from normal wear and tear.
• Assessments of similar properties located in your neighbourhood. Assessment information is available at assessmentsearch.calgary.ca.
• In presenting comparisons between your property and other comparable properties, compare features such as location, lot and building sizes, age, structure type, quality of finishes, level of services, basement (finished or unfinished), garages, carports, outbuildings, level of renovation or repairs and detrimental conditions that may affect the property.
• Photographs of your property or business and other properties or businesses you are using as comparisons can be useful to establish whether a comparable is similar (inferior or superior). This is especially important if condition or quality is an issue.
• For apartment condominium units, compare additional features such as the floor your unit is on, view, corner, inside or end unit, floor plan, parking, elevators and building amenities.
• In presenting comparisons between your business and other businesses in similar premises, describe the square footage, net rent, location, age, use and quality of the buildings where the businesses are located.
• Maps are helpful to locate properties used in comparisons.
• Use a computer spreadsheet program to create your comparison chart or prepare one by hand.
• You may have witnesses appear on your behalf if you wish.
• When applicable, legal arguments can be presented based on legislation and case law.

Hyperlinks to websites are not accepted. You must provide the specific information you wish the panel to consider.

Hearings of the ARB are open to the public and documents filed as evidence in respect of a complaint will form part of a public record.

1. All Calgary ARB decisions going back to 2019, and provincial legislation and legal cases are published and freely available on The Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) website.
2.  See the summary of leading case law provided by the ARB.

Use the Evidence Disclosure tab of the ePortal to upload your evidence and to view the City’s evidence. The ePortal automatically shares evidence with the ARB and the City. This eliminates the need to submit documents manually to multiple parties and provides much larger upload limits than most e-mail providers.  Parties receive an e-mail confirmation or notification of each Evidence Disclosure filing in the ePortal.

For parties with multiple complaints, the Evidence Disclosure tab provides features to help improve the user experience, like filtering entries, notification of upcoming deadlines, and notification of disclosures from the other parties. Additionally, users can group multiple complaints together, save these groups and submit common evidence to grouped files.

Evidence must be filed by the legislated deadlines. Evidence must be received no later than 11:59 pm MT on the disclosure deadline indicated on the front of the Notice of Hearing. If filing in-person, evidence must be delivered during office hours. Disclosure documents should be page-numbered and have no passwords or other security features enabled. Failure to comply with the rules governing disclosure due dates may result in your complaint being dismissed.

Paper evidence must be delivered to both the ARB and the City by mail or in-person to:

If you have any questions for the Assessment and Tax Business Unit, they can be reached at 403-268-2888 or by email at asmt.tribunal@calgary.ca. See the Calgary ARB Procedural Rules and Methods for Disclosure of Evidence for further details.