Households supporting other households
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Canadian households voluntarily transferred $8.5 billion to other households in 2008. This is twice the amount of court-ordered alimony and child support payments that households received, and it is comparable in size to government transfers like social assistance and child tax benefits.
Voluntary interhousehold transfers occur when one household monetarily supports another. This includes parents who support students away at school, immigrants sending money to family back home or someone helping a friend.
The number of households that sent transfers increased from 3.6 million in 1998 to 5.4 million in 2008. The share of households grew from 31% to 41%.
Taking inflation into account, Canadian households sent 46% more funds in voluntary interhousehold transfers in 2008 than in 1998. Over the same period, real household income increased 33% and charitable donations rose 32%.
The incidence and amount of transfers increases with household income. In 2008, both incidence and amount were twice as high among households in the top quarter of the income scale than among those in the bottom quarter.
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