Canadians were invited to “celebrate” Tax Freedom Day on Sunday by conservative think tank the Fraser Institute.
But based on the institute’s fact sheet on taxes, there was little to celebrate.
Tax Freedom Day is considered the “day you start working for yourself,” according to the institute because, up until then, the income you’ve earned is equal to the amount of taxes the average family has paid.
In 2018, the average Canadian family will earn $115,724 in income and pay a total of $50,464 in taxes (43.6 per cent), according to the institute. If the average Canadian family had to pay its total tax bill up front, it would have worked until June 9 to pay the total tax bill imposed on it by all three levels of government (federal, provincial, and local).
“Tax Freedom Day in 2018 is the same as in 2017,” the institute said in a news release, “because the average Canadian family’s total tax bill is expected to increase at a similar rate this year (3.1 per cent) as its income (3.3 per cent).
“Tax Freedom Day for each province varies according to the extent of the provincially levied tax burden. The earliest provincial Tax Freedom Day falls on May 22 in Alberta, while the latest falls on June 26 in Newfoundland and Labrador.”
