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For additional information relating to this article, please contact:

Thomas Storring	Director – Economics and Statistics
Tel: 902-424-2410	Email: thomas.storring@novascotia.ca

February 24, 2026
NOVA SCOTIA BUDGET 2026-27

The Province of Nova Scotia released its provincial budget for 2026-27 on February 23, 2026.   

Nova Scotia's 2026-27 budget anticipates a deficit of $1,240.9 million (after contingency), narrowing from the $1,249.1 million deficit now forecast for the 2025-26 fiscal year.  Over the subsequent three fiscal years, Nova Scotia's deficit is projected to contract to $809.5 million by 2029-30.

Nova Scotia's provincial government revenues are projected to grow 4.6% in 2026-27 while expenditures are projected to rise by 4.2%.  For 2027-28, revenues are projected to grow by 1.8% while expenditures rise 0.9%.  In 2028-29 and 2029-30, revenue growth is projected at 3.9% per year while expenditures grow 3.0% in 2028-29 and by 2.7% in 2029-30.

Nova Scotia's Budget plan includes a $50 million contingency provision in each fiscal year.                                                                                                                  

 

**UPDATE - a previous version of this chart had an incorrect scale in the vertical axis.  The chart above has been corrected.**

Measured as a share of GDP, the footprint of provincial government in Nova Scotia's economy amounts to 26.7% of GDP in 2026-27.  This is projected to shrink slightly to 25.6% of GDP by 2029-30.  Nova Scotia's deficit for 2026-27 amounts to 1.7% of  projected 2026 nominal GDP.  The deficit is projected to shrink to 1.0% of GDP by 2029-30. 

Nova Scotia's net debt is expected to amount to 39.4% of GDP in 2026-27, including the impacts of a change in accounting treatment of long term facilities (3.2% of GDP).  By 2029-30, Nova Scotia's net debt is projected to amount to 45.4% of GDP (41.7% without the adjustment for long term care facilities).  

Nova Scotia's 2026-27 Budget expenditures amount to $17,213 per capita, funded by revenues of $15,779 per capita and a deficit of $1,128 per capita.  Expenditures per capita are projected to rise by $883 by 2029-30 while per capita revenues rise $1,302 and the per capita deficit declines by $403.

Compared with last year's fiscal plan, Nova Scotia's revenue projections for 2026-27 are little changed (+$89.3 million) while expenditures have been revised up by $784.1 million.

With similar revenues and higher expenditures, Nova Scotia's deficit outlook has deteriorated compared to the 2025-26 projection.    

Nova Scotia's economic growth is projected to slow in 2026 with real GDP projected to rise by 1.5% while nominal GDP growth slows to 3.4%.  Despite recovery in exports, slowing population growth is projected to limit labour market expansion while construction activity (a strength observed in 2025) plateaus with more limited growth in 2026 and 2027.  For 2027 and beyond, Nova Scotia's economic growth is projected to stabilize at a slower pace.  Nova Scotia's economic outlook is sensitive to assumptions about major project expenditures in the medium term.  

Key Measures and Initiatives

Nova Scotia's Budget prioritizes economic growth, emergency preparedness, affordability, housing, health care and financial sustainability. Key measures include:

Economic growth

• $3.6 million more for the Green Hydrogen Action Plan and offshore wind development
• $25 million for the Subsurface Energy Research and Development Investment Program with Dalhousie University
• $300,000 to support growth in Nova Scotia’s mining industry
• $1.5 million for Invest Nova Scotia to drive more GDP growth in six priority sectors: defence and aerospace, clean and conventional energy, forestry and mining, fisheries and agri-food, housing and construction, artificial Intelligence and digital economy
• $8 million to move low-grade wood to market and lower wildfire risk
• $1.8 million for woodlot owners to build and upgrade access roads for harvesting
• $5 million to expand the Innovation Rebate Program 
• $1.5 million for an innovation hub to improve productivity in seafood 
• $1 million to attract investment in Nova Scotia’s strategic sectors
• $190,000 increase for aquaculture lab services
• $35.4 million through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program
• $39 million to continue supporting Nova Scotia’s film industry
• $46.3 million to keep the small business tax rate at 1.5 per cent and increase the threshold to $700,000
• $2.5 million to help businesses diversify their trade markets
• $1.6 million ($4-million over three years) to expand market diversification initiatives
• $1 million to help make more local food available in public institutions
• $958,000 to enhance air access 
• Extending the Capital Investment Tax Credit to December 31, 2035

Community building, safety and emergency preparedness 

• $6.8 million to contract four dedicated fixed wing water bombers
• $3 million to improve fire services
• $2.2 million funding for the Nova Scotia Guard
• $10.9 million more to help people facing gender-based violence with rent supplements
• $460,000 continuing support for the Minister’s Roundtable on Gender-based Violence and the high-risk domestic violence table
• $33.4 million to expand the province’s trunked mobile radio network and access to cellular service across the province 
• $110.3 million to build and renovate schools
• $40 million to support ongoing child care transformation
• $10.8 million for modular child-care centres on school properties (recoverable)
• $8.6 million to address growth in school enrollment
• $59.1 million to transform disability support and transition adults with disabilities to community living
• $5 million to help make improvements to the Victoria Highland Civic Centre
• $2 million to address systemic racism
• $1.5 million to help African Nova Scotian communities remove systemic barriers and support housing
• $496,000 to address systemic hate, inequity and racism
• $430,000 this year ($935,000 over two years), to support work emerging from the Environmental Racism Panel
• $450,000 increase (total of $1.6 million), to fund habitat restoration and wetlands protection
• $300,000 to establish an Office for Children and Youth
• $373,000 for upgrades to the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility 
• $4.4 million to establish Artificial Intelligence capabilities, including AI enabled applications
• $2.6 million to increase public safety and enhance provincial policing with a single records system for all police
• $33.8 million for cybersecurity enhancements to improve cyber threat detection and response
• $1 million to pilot artificial intelligence traffic signals in Halifax
• $120.1 million in capital for Halifax Harbour Bridges 
• $476.1 million in capital for highways and structures 
• $52.5 million in capital to buy land for future needs 

Housing 

• Implementing the First Time Homebuyers Pilot Program 
• $34.3 million for Actions to Accelerate Skilled Trades Growth plan, including $5 million for the new Institute of Skilled Trades
• $30.8 million for post-secondary student housing for NSCC (Cumberland and Kingstec)
• $18.5 million for the Affordable Housing Development Program
• $18.1 million for the National Housing Strategy Action Plan 
• $46.4 million to build new public housing units in Sackville, Glace Bay, Kentville, Middleton, Shubenacadie, Springhill, Windsor and Shannon Park, and maintain
  existing public housing units 
• $25.2 million to create 378 new supportive housing units 
• $9.6 million to create 75 more emergency shelter beds and enhance supports for Nova Scotians experiencing homelessness
• $5 million more (total of $77 million) to increase the number of active rent supplements to 10,500

Affordability

• $681.2 million to continue tax saving measures (average: $1,400 per household): indexing tax brackets, increasing basic personal and age amounts, maintaining 1% HST cut, continuing Your Energy Rebate
• $100.4 million this year for Nova Scotia school food programs
• $56.5 million in student assistance, an increase of $6.7 million
• $32.5 million for the Heating Assistance Rebate Program, permanently increasing the amount to $400 per year 
• $24.7 million to continue the More Opportunities for Skilled Trades tax refund
• $20.5 million more for income assistance, including annual indexation 
• $19.8 million more (total of $64.6 million) for low-income pharmacare
• $7.8 million more to support children and youth in the care of the Minister
• $1.6 million more (total of $12 million) for the Property Tax Rebate for Seniors

Health care

• $1.6 million for front-line IT support for physicians and clinicians
• $9.6 million for digital tools to help Nova Scotians find and access healthcare
• $3.2 million to improve 811 services
• $47.5 million to hire more paramedics and emergency medical responders 
• $47.1 million to pay more to family doctors
• 11.8 million to retain critical physician specialists
• $7.7 million to train and mentor medical students
• $4.2 million more (total of $14.9 million) for the Physician Assessment Centre of Excellence program to assess international doctors 
• $1.7 million for more physicians covering emergency departments
• $7.6 million to create local clinical placements for Cape Breton University medical students and offer primary healthcare at the Marconi Clinic
• $5.7 million in operating funding to train more rural doctors at the Cape Breton medical campus
• $570,000 to create residency seats for medical students participating in a pilot program to train more rural family doctors
• $3.1 million to hire and train staff for the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre’s redeveloped emergency department 
• $1.8 million for a new operations centre to improve emergency health services in Halifax 
• $5.2 million to train and staff the South Shore Regional Hospital expansion and new MRI
• $2.5 million to hire and train staff for new modular dialysis units in Strait Richmond, All Saints and Roseway hospitals
• $2 million to start staffing, training and equipping the Yarmouth emergency department expansion
• $2.8 million to hire and train staff in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality Health Care redevelopment project
• $1.3 million to start hiring and training staff for the Cape Breton Cancer Centre
• $40.1 million for the Multidisciplinary Oncology Partnership
• $30.1 million to improve hospitalist coverage
• $1.3 million more to expand the insulin pump program and sensor-based glucose monitoring program
• $953,000 for dental surgery for children and adults with disabilities
• $13.4 million increase for new diagnostic imaging equipment and staff
• $84.8 million to continue to improve primary care, including recruiting more family doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and family practice nurses
• $4.7 million toward the first phase of the Menopause Centre of Excellence 
• $8 million more to expand insured mental health and addictions care services 
• $7 million to open Integrated Youth Services 
• $1.8 million in support for overdose prevention and harm reduction programs
• $1.2 million to provide integrated primary healthcare and mental health and addictions care for seniors with complex needs experiencing homelessness
• $500,000 for improvements to the Mental Health and Addictions Provincial Crisis Line 
• $700,000 to support improved addictions and mental health crisis response in community
• $873.8 million toward the plan to build 5,700 new and replacement long-term care spaces by 2032 
• $20.8 million in operating funding for seven long-term care facilities opening this year
• $26.5 million more for the Home Support Direct Funding Program
• $26.5 million in continued funding for the Seniors Care Grant
• $25.9 million more to support Seniors’ Pharmacare (total of $235.9 million)
• $12.3 million more to support seniors’ attendant care
• $10.2 million more to deliver home care services to Nova Scotians
• $4.9 million more to support seniors living in long-term care
• $1.9 million more for the home oxygen program
• $1.8 million in continued investment for the provincial wound care program
• $850,000 to help provide home support services to seniors in 16 buildings in Cape Breton, Truro and Halifax
• $1.2 billion in capital expenditures for the Halifax Infirmary Expansion Project and Cape Breton Regional Municipality Health Care redevelopment project 
• $144.5 million in capital for construction and renewal of hospitals and medical facilities in Amherst, Yarmouth, South Shore and the IWK 
• $24.7 million for the construction of modular units to expand dialysis service in Shelburne, Springhill and Richmon County
• $21 million in capital for medical facilities repairs and renewals 
• $16 million capital funding for the repair and replacement of medical equipment 
• $233.5 million to continue One Patient One Record roll out 
• $5.5 million to better connect the home care sector to support front-line staff 

Fiscal stability

• Over the next four years, civil service cuts of 5% every year and 3% cuts for the broader public service
• Reducing grants by $130.4 million in 2026-27
• Increasing the Financial Institutions Capital Tax from 4% to 6%
• Harmonizing the Vaping Tax with the Federal tax
• Implementing a new electric and hybrid vehicle levy
• $41.9 million for Enterprise Resource Planning System (SAP) modernization costs to increase government security (capital)

Nova Scotia Budget 2026-27

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