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Taxes

2025-04-025 minutes

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The cycle of money in our system is generally as follows:

  1. Gross income, what you earn
  2. Taxable income, what the income tax is calculated on
  3. Payment of taxes
  4. Net income, what you have left, the taxed money

The goal of fiscality is to reduce the (income) tax.

The idea:

  1. Reduce taxable income
  2. This will reduce the income tax
  3. More money in your pockets

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Types of Income

Gross income is the money received before taxes and other deductions.

Taxable income is the amount on which tax calculations are based. There are several ways to reduce your taxable income, notably by contributing to your RRSP or FHSA.

Net income is the money left after paying taxes. Generally, what is deposited into a checking account with each paycheck. I also call this the taxed money.

Net Income = Gross Income - Tax

Taxes

Taxes work on an annual basis. They are due after completing your tax return. For most people, the employer facilitates this by deducting the tax directly from paychecks. In an ideal world, these deductions made by the employer are sufficient to fully cover your income tax. The balance at the end of the year is zero: you owe nothing to the government, and the government owes you nothing. This is rarely the case, as the employer can only base its calculations on employment income.

Let's say you earn $65,000 per year. In January, you decide to put $5,000 of your taxed money into your RRSP, reducing your taxable income to $60,000. Throughout the year, you will pay tax on your paychecks based on a taxable salary of $65,000 even though your actual taxable salary is $60,000. After filing your tax return, you will receive a tax refund equivalent to the tax paid (in excess) on that $5,000.

Info

Quebec is the only Canadian province where residents must file 2 tax returns: one provincial and one federal.

Tax Categories

There are 5 main categories of tax in Quebec:

  1. Income tax (provincial and federal)
  2. QPP - Quebec Pension Plan
  3. QPIP - Quebec Parental Insurance Plan
  4. EI - Employment Insurance
  5. Capital Gains Tax

Income Tax

Income tax generally constitutes the largest tax expense. Income tax is paid to the provincial and federal governments. Both systems work the same way; tax rates are defined by brackets. Basically, the first dollars earned are taxed less than the last dollars earned.

For example, let's use fictional brackets close to those of the Government of Quebec:

Bracket Rate
Less than 50,000 15%
Between 50,000 and 100,000 20%
Between 100,000 and 125,000 25%
More than 125,000 27%

What this table indicates is that the first $50,000 will be taxed at 15%. The next $50,000 at 20%. The next $25,000 at 25%, and the rest at 27%. Let's calculate the tax on a taxable income of $110,000.

Bracket Rate Income tax Calculation
Less than 50,000 15% 7,500 50,000 * 0.15
Between 50,000 and 100,000 20% 10,000 50,000 * 0.2
Between 100,000 and 125,000 25% 2,500 10,000 * 0.25
More than 125,000 27% 0

Thanks to this table, we can calculate the income tax and deduce the effective (average) tax rate. Finally, we find the marginal tax rate, which represents the rate of the last applicable tax bracket.

In our example, we therefore conclude:

Value Source
Taxable Income $110,000
Income tax $20,000 7,500 + 10,000 + 2,500
Effective Tax Rate 18.18% 100 * (20,000 / 110,000)
Marginal Tax Rate 25% 3rd bracket

QPP - Quebec Pension Plan

Note

For people outside Quebec, you rely on Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) which, fundamentally, serves the same purpose. The rules and principles are very similar, if not the same.

This is the public pension plan in Quebec. The employee contributes 50%, and the employer contributes the other 50%. In 2025:

  • The maximum pensionable earnings are $81,200
  • The maximum contribution is $4,735
  • The more money you earn, the more you contribute, the more you will receive at retirement

If you earn less than the maximum pensionable earnings, you will contribute less. If you earn more than the maximum pensionable earnings, you will contribute the maximum amount. Don't forget that the employer contributes as much as the employee.

At your retirement, you will be able to benefit from the plan's pensions. The age at which you start receiving your pension will determine the amount of the pension. The later you claim the pension, the higher the pension will be. For example, in 2025, a person who claims their pension at age 63 will receive a maximum of $1,227 per month for life, while a person who claims at age 69 will receive $1,914 per month for life.

QPIP - Quebec Parental Insurance Plan

This is the same principle as the QPP, but on a smaller scale. The employee and the employer contribute to the plan. In 2025, the employer contributes more than the employee:

  • The maximum insurable earnings are $98,000
  • The maximum employee contribution is ~$484
  • The maximum employer contribution is ~$678

If you have children one day, you will be able to benefit from the plan. The QPIP is an income replacement plan; employment income is required to be eligible.

EI - Employment Insurance

In the same vein as the QPIP, the employer contributes more than the employee. In 2025:

  • The maximum insurable earnings are $67,500
  • The maximum employee contribution is ~$1,077
  • The maximum employer contribution is ~$1,508

As its name suggests, Employment Insurance provides temporary income to unemployed workers. Employment Insurance also offers special benefits in case of illness, pregnancy, or other reasons. To be eligible, you must have contributed minimally in the past year.

Capital Gains Tax

Capital gains represent the profits made from a sale. For example, the sale of a cabin or stocks. Taxation is simple: 50% of the capital gains are added to the taxable income.

The rest is tax-free. By its nature, capital gains allow you to reduce your tax, since 50% of the gains are completely tax-free.

An example:

Sale of a cabin (bought for $160,000):
$220,000

Profit on the sale:
220,000 - 160,000
$60,000

Tax-free amount (50% of gains):
0.5 * 60,000
$30,000

Taxable capital gain (50% of gains):
0.5 * 60,000
$30,000

Taxable employment income:
$75,000

Taxable income:
75,000 + 30,000
$105,000

Tax Credits

Tax credits reduce the taxes you pay to help folks in lower income brackets. However, the application is on a case-by-case basis, as the eligibility criteria differ.

For more information, you can visit the Revenu Québec page and the Government of Canada page.