Toronto 
Fraser Institute, an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization in a new study says an average Canadian family spent over 36% of its income on taxes in 2020.
In the 2021 edition of The Canadian Consumer Tax Index, Fraser Institute added up all the visible and hidden taxes (paid to the federal, provincial and local governments) including income, payroll, sales, property, carbon, health, fuel and alcohol taxes and found that an average Canadian family, including both families and unattached individuals, earned cash income of $96,333 and paid total taxes equaling $35,047 which amounted to 36.4% of cash income.
The report says since 1961, the average Canadian family’s total tax bill has increased nominally by 1,992% and 33.5% of the average family’s income went to pay taxes in 1961 while 56.5% went to basic necessities in 1961.
Credit: Fraser Institute
According to the report, taxes have grown much more rapidly than any other single expenditure for the average Canadian family: expenditures on shelter increased by 1,671%, clothing by 629%, and food by 767% from 1961 to 2020.
The 1,992% increase in the tax bill has also greatly outpaced the increase in the Consumer Price Index (773%), which measures the average price that consumers pay for food, shelter, clothing, transportation, health and personal care, education, and other items.
Credit: Fraser Institute
Fraser Institute study finds there a sharp drop-off in the tax bill in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the agency expects the tax bill to increase again as government revenues rebound and the economy recovers.
Economist at the Fraser Institute and co-author of the study, Jake Fuss said, “Throughout the COVID pandemic, as tax revenues decreased for governments nationwide, taxes remained the largest household expense for Canadian families.”
More on the study: Taxes versus the Necessities of Life: The Canadian Consumer Tax Index 2021 edition
