The Importance of Provincial Budgets: Elbows Up and No Bracket Creep!

Some of the right things are happening in Nova Scotia, from the perspective of improving standards of living in that province.  And that’s important news because according to the Fraser Institute, Canadians have suffered the worst five-year decline in their standard of living over the 2020-to-2024 period since the Great Depression.  It notes, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person decreased by 2.0% (0.4% annually) ; this despite aggregate GDP growth of 1.5% over the period.  Further, all ten provinces are experiencing stagnation, which is unique in our history.  So what’s the good news in Nova Scotia, at this critical juncture?

The first 1,256,938 tax returns have already been filed in the 2023 tax filing season and early stats tell us that both average tax refunds and average balances due are rising to unprecedented levels. In an inflationary environment, those are two great reasons to rush to your Tax Services Specialist’s office to get those tax returns done early and then discuss how to plan to make more and save more money – after tax - in 2024.  But there is a third reason too – a looming CRA strike on April 8, a day after strike voting ends.

Both BC and Alberta tabled their provincial budgets on February 28, while NWT and Nunuvut have already released theirs, February 8 and 23 respectively.  Key insights these documents provide regarding important tax changes for the 2023 appear below, together with the schedule of other provincial and territorial budget releases.

Taxpayers who turned 65 in 2022 will have some new tax filing nuances when preparing the 2022 tax return this spring.  Here’s what you need to know:

The first ‘record’ of accounting dates back as early as the Mesopotamian civilization, where simple documentation was maintained in the books. Around the 15th century, an Italian monk named Luca Pacioli, considered the father of accounting, developed the double-entry bookkeeping system, which changed the accounting landscape completely. The evolution of bookkeeping has a come a long way from the 15th century when accounting ledgers were completed by hand, compared to today’s digitized process.

CIBC’s latest annual Financial Priorities poll holds some disturbing revelations.  When survey respondents were asked how they are determining how much money they will need to retire: A shocking 33% indicated they are using their “best guess” and only 14% indicated they are arriving at a number with the help of an advisor.

With high inflation rates, currently 5.9% on average across the country – all Canadians are feeling the pinch. One could argue that those earning an income that varies significantly year-to-year are being hit even harder.