Tax Time – Who are You Working for Anyway?

I remember long ago, about 35 years ago to be more precise, a period in my life when I was a tax-protestor. One of my friends worked as an investment broker on Bay Street in Toronto. He thought that I was wasting my time fighting the tax man, because like many others, he figured that there were two things in life that were unavoidable – death and taxes.

He told me that although he paid the highest marginal income tax rates in Canada, he focused not on how much the government took from him but on how much he had left when they were finished. Then he smiled and showed me his pay cheque.

A CHOICE TO MAKE

Anyone can pay little or no tax in Canada. It’s just a matter of how much income you are happy to settle for. And it’s not a moral judgement if you decide less is more, or alternatively, if you decide that more is better.

The thing is, we live in an amazing country, full of resources, lifestyle choices, opportunities for business and for accessing virtually anything our hearts desire. We just have to add value for value. That often means making enough money to exercise those choices financially.

So you are free to live the life you love, but part of the payment is that a portion of your income and spending will go toward taxes.

I’d still rather live here than in any other country in the world, although being able to earn an income here makes visiting those other countries possible.