Porting Your Mortgage in Canada (2026): How to Move Without Breaking Your Term

You bought a house at 2.49% in 2021. Today's rates are higher, you need to move, and the thought of giving up your low rate is painful. The good news: most Canadian mortgages can be ported — meaning you take your existing rate, balance, and term to a new property without paying a break penalty. Here is exactly how it works in 2026, with the rules and traps every mover should know.

What Porting Actually Is

A mortgage port lets you move your existing mortgage from one property to another. Specifically, you keep:

• The interest rate
• The remaining term (e.g. 2 years left of a 5-year fixed)
• The lender (you must port to the same lender — you cannot port to a different bank)

What you do not keep automatically: the loan amount or amortization. Those usually need to be re-applied for if you are buying a more expensive home.

The Three Common Port Scenarios

1. Straight Port (Same Mortgage Amount)

You sell your $700K home (mortgage $400K) and buy a $750K home, putting the extra $50K from sale proceeds toward closing. Your $400K mortgage stays at the same rate, term, and amortization on the new property.

Penalty: None.
Re-qualification: Limited — most lenders just confirm income hasn't dropped.

2. Port and Increase

You sell your $700K home (mortgage $400K) and buy a $900K home — you need an extra $200K of mortgage.

The lender does a blended-rate calculation: your existing $400K stays at your old rate, and the new $200K is added at today's rate. The blended weighted-average rate becomes your new mortgage rate.

Example:

• Existing: $400K at 2.49% (3 years left of 5-year term)
• New money: $200K at 4.30%
• Blended rate ≈ 3.09% on $600K total
• Term reset to 5 years (most lenders) — sometimes 3 years to match remaining

Penalty: None.
Re-qualification: Full — new file, full income docs, full stress test (max 5.25% or contract+2%).

3. Port and Decrease

You sell your $700K home (mortgage $400K) and buy a $500K home with a smaller mortgage of $300K. The extra $100K of mortgage is paid down at closing.

Penalty: Usually a partial prepayment penalty on the $100K being paid down (3 months interest or pro-rated IRD).

Eligibility Rules

To port, you generally need:

• A portable mortgage (most major banks; many monolines; almost no HELOCs)
• The new property to be your principal residence
• Sale and purchase to close within 30-120 days of each other (most lenders cap at 90 days; some allow 120)
• To re-qualify at current GDS/TDS and stress-test rules
• The new property to meet the lender's standard appraisal/inspection requirements

If your sale and purchase do not close within the allowed window, the lender treats it as a payout (full break penalty) followed by a new mortgage application.

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Real-Dollar Math: Port vs. Break

Scenario. You have a $500K mortgage at 2.79%, 30 months remaining on a 5-year fixed. The big-bank IRD penalty would be ~$22,000.

Option A — Port and Increase to $700K mortgage:

• $500K stays at 2.79% for 30 more months
• $200K new at 4.30% for 60 months (term reset)
• Blended rate ≈ 3.22%
• No penalty paid

Option B — Break and re-mortgage at today's rates:

• Pay $22,000 IRD
• New $700K mortgage at 4.30% for 60 months
• Higher rate on the entire $700K

Savings from porting over the next 30 months: Roughly $15,000-$18,000 vs. breaking. Almost always worth it if you can match the timing.

When Porting Does Not Make Sense

• Today's rate is significantly lower than your existing rate. Then breaking and re-locking saves more than the penalty.
• You are downsizing significantly. The penalty on the paid-down portion may exceed the savings.
• You need a different product (e.g. switching from variable to fixed, or wanting a HELOC).
• You can't close the new purchase within the lender's port window. Bridge financing helps here, but talk to your broker before listing.

Common Porting Mistakes

1. Not telling your lender early. Most lenders need at least 30-45 days notice to process a port. Don't list your home before having "port-eligible" written into your file.
2. Assuming all variable mortgages are portable. Some are; many are not. Check your commitment letter.
3. Forgetting to re-qualify for the new amount. A port-and-increase is a full new application. Pull your credit, prepare income docs, and budget for an appraisal.
4. Not getting a written port confirmation. Verbal "yes you can port" from a branch is worthless without the lender's official port letter.
5. Closing the sale too early. If you close the sale 90+ days before the purchase, most lenders treat it as a payout. Some will hold the rate for 30-90 days; a few for 120 days.