Capital gains fell for the top earners in Canada in 2022, according to new data, while income from dividends rose.
On Monday, Statistics Canada released a report on income earnings for the 2022 year. The agency found that capital gains received by the top income group fell in 2022 compared to a year earlier.
“The top one per cent of filers saw their capital gains decrease by 30.3 per cent from 2021 to 2022, an average decrease of $34,200,” Statistics Canada said.
“Filers in the top 0.1 per cent (-29.0 per cent or -$139,900) and the top 0.01 per cent (-13.4 per cent or -$177,000) also saw decreases.”
In contrast, dividend income rose among Canada’s top earners during that same period, accounting for a large portion of their total income, Statistics Canada said.
“In contrast to wage and salary income, dividend income increased for the top income groups from 2021 to 2022, but at a much slower rate than from 2020 to 2021,” Statistics Canada reported.
“Average dividend income increased for the top one per cent by 0.8 per cent to $97,100 in 2022, while the top 0.1 per cent (+4.6 per cent to $479,700) and the top 0.01 per cent (+1.5 per cent to $2,178,600) also saw increases.”
Data on capital gains earned by Canada’s high-income individuals in 2022 comes after Ottawa moved to raise the inclusion rate on capital gains taxes in the 2024 budget.
Earlier this month, Bloomberg News reported that estimates from the C.D. Howe Institute suggested the move to raise the inclusion rate is not likely to generate as much revenue as the Trudeau government expects.
The estimates say the changes will add a net $3.3 billion to the federal government’s revenues over a period of five years.