That includes everything from income taxes, payroll taxes, health taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, fuel taxes, vehicle taxes, profit taxes, import taxes, to various "sin" taxes, and much more.
Some of these taxes are visible but many are hidden, making it nearly impossible for the average Canadian to get a clear sense of all the taxes imposed by different levels of government.
Therein lies the value of Tax Freedom Day. It's a handy measure of the total tax burden imposed on Canadian families by the federal, provincial and local governments.
In 2016, we estimate the average Canadian family consisting of two or more people will earn approximately $105,200 in income and pay a total of $45,200 in taxes. In other words, the average Canadian family will pay 43 per cent of its income in taxes.
Charles Lammam is director of fiscal studies and Milagros Palacios is senior economist with the Fraser Institute. They are co-authors of .
