For immediate release: April 16, 2024
OTTAWA – Budget 2024 breaks new ground on tax fairness by partially closing the capital gains tax loophole for wealthy individuals and corporations. The move is estimated to raise $19.3 Billion over five years.
“We have been calling on the government to fix the unfair tax break on capital gains for a decade,” said Katrina Miller, Executive Director of Canadians for Tax Fairness, “today we are pleased to see them take action and decrease the tax gap between wage earners and wealthy investors.”
Under Budget 2024, the taxable income inclusion rate for income made from capital gains will move from one-half to two-thirds for individuals claiming gains over $250,000 and for all corporate capital gains. The move is expected to impact the top 0.13% of income earners, who have an average income of $1.4 million.
The increased funding will help Canada address pressing matters like the housing crisis, food insecurity, and the need for affordable childcare.
The budget also includes additional funding for the CRA to reduce wait times, make tax filing easier for low-income Canadians, and expand tax transparency on crypto-assets.
While Canadians for Tax Fairness celebrates these moves, they also contend that much more could be done to improve Canada’s tax system.
“We just saw President Biden present a budget that also increased the capital gains inclusion rate, but included a host of additional measures to make large corporations and rich individuals pay their fair share,” commented Miller, “Canada has left a lot of money in the pockets of very few people.”
The oil & gas industry has grown its profits by $30 billion since 2019 and the grocery industry has increased profits by $4 billion in the same time. Billionaires continue to grow their fortunes, with the number of billionaires in Canada reaching 53 with a combined wealth of $138 billion.
Canadians for Tax Fairness continues to call for a wealth tax, a permanent excess profits tax, and more robust tax fairness measures to make corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share.
Media contact:
Erica Shiner, Communications Coordinator
Canadians for Tax Fairness
