The mortgage stress test is a federal qualification requirement in Canada that requires mortgage applicants to demonstrate they can afford payments at the higher of their contract rate plus 2%, or the Bank of Canada’s published qualifying rate, currently 5.25% (March 2026).
Introduced by OSFI (Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions) for federally regulated lenders through Guideline B-20, the stress test applies to all insured and uninsured mortgages. It is designed to ensure borrowers can withstand interest rate increases at renewal.
Synonyms:
stress test|mortgage qualification rate|B-20