Canadians rip on the wealthy upset by the capital gains tax hike

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The federal budget announced on Tuesday proposes a higher capital gains tax for wealthy, property-owning Canadians.

Though these changes — coming into effect on or after June 25 — will only impact a small portion of the wealthy population, many are up in arms about them.

You don’t have to worry about the tax increase unless you’re making over $250,000 in capital gains. As an individual, your personal income taxes on capital gains will not increase if you are not part of the moneyed 0.13% of Canada’s population with an average income of $1.42 million.

Here’s the deal…right now, the very wealthy pay taxes on only 50 per cent of their capital gains. A working person pays taxes on 100 per cent of their wages. While Pierre Poilievre is just fine with this, the government is not. It’s not fair and we’re fixing it.

— Ken Hardie (@KenHardie) April 17, 2024

“To make Canada’s system fairer, the inclusion rate — the portion of capital gains on which tax is paid — for capital gains for individuals with more than $250,000 in capital gains in a year will increase from one-half to two-thirds. Individuals will continue to only pay tax on 50% of any capital gains up to $250,000 per year,” the government said in a press release following the budget announcement.

The budget notes that 28.5 million Canadians are “not expected to have any capital gains income” next year. Meanwhile, around three million others are expected to earn capital gains below the $250,000 annual threshold.

Why are so many people upset about a tiny segment of the rich paying more taxes?

Canadian netizens are asking the same question, with many ripping on the helpless uber-wealthy as well as their defenders while most of the nation suffers housing and cost-of-living crises.

so if the capital gains tax causes all the rich people to leave canada in an adorable lil huff, can I have their mansions? my cat needs room to stretch

— Clare Blackwood (@clareblackwood) April 18, 2024

this is what the CPC sounds like complaining about an increase in capital gains tax on the wealthiest 0.13% of Canadians pic.twitter.com/wkYNbcLEMr

— Supriya Dwivedi (@supriyadwivedi) April 16, 2024

Won’t someone think of the rich people! 🙄

The #capitalgainstax increase is for those making $250K A YEAR in capital gains. Not income. Capital gains. You have to be a multi-millionaire to earn that & the $ increase in tax is nominal. It’s chump change for someone that wealthy. pic.twitter.com/DBw98KlFSw

— kate | mostly good with money (@mgoodwmoney) April 19, 2024

Someone even called the phenomenon “simping for landlords.”

imagine simping for landlords.

— Armageddon Speaking (@ArmageddonSpeak) April 18, 2024

Have the 0.13% of Canadians considered skipping the avocado toast?

— ᴍᴀɴɴʏ ᴘᴇᴛᴇʀs ᴅᴇsɪɢɴ  (@mannypdesign) April 18, 2024

hot tip: anyone in your feed complaining about the change in capital gains tax is so far removed from the daily struggles of most canadians they can be safely ignored and/or mocked.

— Duncan Kinney (@duncankinney) April 17, 2024

People complaining on here about Canada’s capital gains tax law like they actually make capital gains

— Lily (@nope_its_lily) April 16, 2024

“Wealthy Canadians demand the Liberals also raise taxes on the capital gains of the poor,” reads the headline of an article by Canadian satire publication, The Beaverton.

Wealthy Canadians demand the Liberals also raise taxes on the capital gains of the poorhttps://t.co/CCCGrNYMHX

— The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) April 18, 2024

Many are calling out Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who has verbally campaigned for everyday Canadians and the working class, but is against taxing the rich.

Do you think #PierrePoilievre & the @CPC_HQ have figured out yet that part of the new capital gains rate was to bait them into defending the right of the ultra wealthy to hoard empty investment properties at the expense of young people and families who cant find homes? #cdnpoli

— CEO, Pierre Poilievre’s Baloney Factory (@JanA55_D) April 18, 2024

Unlike what the poster below believes, capital tax gains are not “commie nonsense.”

Wtf is a “capital gains tax”

Sounds like commie nonsense to me

— Albertan Beech 🌾 (@albertanbeech) April 18, 2024

According to the Canadian Senate’s website, the country introduced a capital gains tax in 1972 after the Royal Commission for Taxation recommended it.

“Since then, capital gains have been taxed as ordinary income — originally, only one-half of capital gains were included as income,” it reads. “This inclusion rate was later raised to three-quarters and most recently lowered to two-thirds in the last federal budget.”

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more about who the government defines as “wealthy” in the new budget here.

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