2026 NS Solar Rebate & Financing Timeline

2026 is a transition year for solar funding in Nova Scotia. Some programs have closed. Others are still active. The quick map:

What's closed

• SolarHomes (Efficiency NS rebate): closed to new homeowner applications in April 2025. It's still open to registered non-profits. If you applied before that date and your project is still in flight, contact Efficiency NS directly to confirm your status.
• Canada Greener Homes Grant: closed since February 2024. The companion Greener Homes Loan stopped accepting new applications in October 2025; existing approved loans continue through completion.

What's still active

• Federal Clean Technology Investment Tax Credit (Clean Tech ITC): a 30% refundable credit against eligible solar capital, but only for taxable corporations, partnerships with corporate partners, and certain trusts. It isn't available to individual homeowners, so most Nova Scotia homeowners will use Halifax Solar City, municipal PACE, or private financing instead.
• Halifax Solar City: 4.75% fixed, 10-year term, paid through a Local Improvement Charge separate from your property tax. Available HRM-wide. See our full Halifax Solar City explainer.
• Municipal PACE programs: Annapolis Royal, Berwick, Wolfville, Kentville, Bridgewater, Mahone Bay, Lunenburg, Yarmouth, Digby, Antigonish, New Glasgow, Stellarton, and others. Use our PACE lookup tool to see your municipality's rate, term, and max loan.
• NS Power net metering: credits at the rate you pay, settled each January 1. Systems of 27 kW or less need no NS Power application; larger systems, homes included, go through the Commercial Net Metering Program. See how solar credits work.

What this means for the math

With SolarHomes gone, sticker prices haven't actually changed, but the up-front cash needed is higher for most homeowners because the rebate isn't there. The federal Clean Tech ITC doesn't fill that gap for individual homeowners; it's reserved for corporations, partnerships with corporate partners, and certain trusts. For a home, the financing path (Solar City, PACE, or private financing) is what actually closes the gap.

For most Nova Scotia homeowners, the practical decision in 2026 is which financing path fits, not whether to chase a closed rebate. Our financing comparison pagelays the three real options side-by-side.

What we don't do

We don't quote against rebates that have ended. If a competitor's proposal references SolarHomes or the Greener Homes Grant in 2026, that's a red flag. The math should stand on what's actually available today.