More than 280 doctors from across Canada voiced their support for controversial federal reforms to end certain tax benefits of incorporation for high earners, including many physicians.
Sixty percent of Canadians doctors are incorporated, and under the current rules, they’re able to reduce their taxes by holding investments inside their businesses, diverting income to family members and converting income into capital gains. The federal government is proposing to eliminate these advantages, arguing that many wealthy people are exploiting the rules to avoid paying their fair share of tax.
In an open letter to Finance Minister Bill Morneau, Dr. Mei-Ling Wiedmeyer and other doctors argued the reforms are a “first step” toward a fairer tax system.
“We need a comprehensive tax policy review, including the processes that benefit the wealthiest Canadians,” said Wiedmeyer, a Vancouver family physician, in a press release. “Even as a physician with a fee-for-service practice where I contribute to overhead, and with children for whom I’ve taken maternity leave, I still think our tax dollars need to equitably go towards funding areas such as childcare programs and Indigenous health.”