Income of individuals

Median total income of individuals rose in 2000 for the third straight year, and Canadian taxfilers' reliance on government transfer payments declined for the seventh consecutive year.

The median total income of individuals in Canada in 2000 was $21,600, up 1.1% from 1999 after adjusting for inflation.

(Total income includes income from taxable and non-taxable sources. The median is the point where exactly one-half of incomes are higher and the other half are lower.)

Median total income for individuals has been increasing since 1997, when it was $20,464 nationally after adjusting for inflation. The median in 2000, however, was still well below the level of $23,235 in 1990.

Median employment income, which includes wages and salaries and the proceeds from self-employment, increased a marginal 0.8% to $23,200 in 2000 from $23,005 in 1999, after adjusting for inflation. This was the result of an increase in wages and salaries, combined with virtually no change in the level of earnings from self-employment. Median employment income has been increasing for the past three years.

Data also showed that the economic dependency ratio - the amount of government transfer payments received for every $100 of employment income - has been declining since 1993. In 2000, taxfilers received $15.64 for every $100 of employment income, down from $16.62 in 1999 and far less than the peak of $26.92 in 1993.

Among the census metropolitan areas in 2000, taxfilers in Calgary relied least on transfer payments, receiving only $7.61 for every $100 in employment income. Those in Trois-Rivières received the most ($22.74).

On a regional basis, taxfilers in the Northwest Territories had the highest median total income for individuals ($27,800), followed by those in the Yukon ($26,000). Ontario taxfilers received $24,000 and those in Alberta $22,700. These four were the only provinces and territories reporting median total income above the national level.

Of all provinces and territories, taxfilers in Newfoundland and Labrador had the largest percentage increase (+2.5%) in median total income in 2000, after adjusting for inflation. Despite this increase, they also reported the lowest median total income ($15,900).

Median employment income advanced in most census metropolitan areas. Taxfilers in Oshawa had the highest median employment income, at $30,300; those in Trois-Rivières reported the lowest, at $20,500.

Note: The data for this release were obtained primarily from income tax returns filed in the spring of 2001.

The data for Neighbourhood income and demographics (13C0015, various prices), the Labour income profiles (71C0018, various prices) and the Economic dependency profiles (13C0017, various prices) are available for letter carrier routes, census tracts, urban forward sortation areas (the first three characters of the postal code), cities, towns, federal electoral districts, census divisions, economic regions, census metropolitan areas, provinces, territories and Canada.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Client Services (1-866-652-8443; 613-951-9720; fax: 1-866-652-8444 or 613-951-4745; saadinfo@statcan.gc.ca), Small Area and Administrative Data Division.