2018 Tax Comparison of Canadian Dividends vs Interest

The tables on this page compare taxes payable by province/territory in 2018 for three different types of investment income:

- Canadian eligible dividends

- Canadian non-eligible Canadian dividends, and

- other investment income such as foreign dividends and interest.

The calculations assume that the income is earned by a single person, and that there is no other type of income included in taxable income. The tax rates used are as known on July 22, 2019. The total taxes payable include any alternative minimum tax, where applicable.

Taxes Payable on Eligible Dividends

Note: Eligible dividends gross-up % is 38%, as it has been since 2012.

Actual Eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable (Refundable) in 2018
Actual Eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$30,000	$41,400	$0	$390	$332	$0	$822	$0	$(680)	$(828)	$450	$0	$792	$0	$0
50,000	69,000	0	450	1,652	0	3,733	1,778	(942)	(1,200)	600	246	2,003	0	0
60,000	82,800	1,588	2,024	4,690	1,813	7,228	4,707	748	490	2,393	2,919	4,243	1,741	1,666
80,000	110,400	4,777	5,207	10,556	5,122	13,514	10,321	3,992	3,944	5,802	7,943	10,265	5,013	4,898
100,000	138,000	7,767	8,197	16,135	8,105	19,559	15,691	6,978	7,893	9,690	12,636	16,804	7,997	7,885

Taxes Payable on Non-Eligible Dividends

Note: Non-eligible dividends gross-up % is 16% in 2018.

Actual Non-eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable in 2018
Actual Non-eligible Dividends	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$15,000	$17,400	$0	$(27)	$655	0	0	0	$(380)	$(348)	$0	0	$96	$0	$0
30,000	34,800	837	850	2,530	1,294	1,005	1,323	(597)	(696)	300	1,616	1,574	807	685
50,000	58,000	4,393	3,879	7,044	5,564	5,372	5,918	875	1,170	3,454	5,882	5,795	4,463	3,679
60,000	69,600	6,517	5,746	9,683	8,166	8,062	8,741	2,010	2,836	5,348	8,524	8,491	6,741	5,676
80,000	92,800	10,765	9,888	15,967	13,533	13,589	14,332	5,158	6,328	9,915	14,154	14,169	11,297	9,668
100,000	116,000	16,265	16,070	23,503	20,385	20,224	21,338	10,278	11,457	16,874	21,038	21,752	17,105	15,346

Taxes Payable on Other Income (foreign dividends, interest, etc.)

Interest Income	Taxable Income	Total Federal + Provincial Income Taxes Payable in 2018
Interest Income	Taxable Income	AB	BC	MB	NB	NL	NS	NT	NU	ON	PE	QC	SK	YT
$15,000	$15,000	$479	$404	$963	$479	$479	$488	$159	$246	$479	$701	$403	$479	$683
30,000	30,000	3,837	3,828	4,955	4,407	4,534	4,408	3,107	2,796	4,021	4,771	5,318	4,192	3,893
50,000	50,000	9,024	8,642	10,656	10,211	10,220	10,691	7,439	6,549	8,806	10,638	11,326	9,575	8,448
60,000	60,000	12,074	11,462	13,981	13,743	13,920	14,303	10,249	9,099	11,771	14,068	15,128	12,875	11,398
80,000	80,000	18,174	17,120	21,152	20,807	21,400	21,816	16,009	14,599	17,930	21,393	22,752	19,475	17,298
100,000	100,000	24,647	23,852	29,104	28,528	29,132	29,680	22,762	20,695	25,377	29,223	31,242	26,448	23,700

Notes re all three tables:

	BC includes MSP premiums payable for 2019 based on 2018 income.
	Ontario - includes Ontario Health Premium.
	QC includes contribution to the health services fund and prescription drug insurance plan premiums.
	QC taxes are net of tax credit for person living alone.

To see the tax results for your own income situation, and how it would change if the type of investment income changes, use our Detailed Canadian Income Tax and RRSP Savings Calculators, or our very simple Investment Income Tax Calculator. However, the Investment Income Tax Calculator does not include BC MSP in the total taxes, because MSP is not actually part of the income tax system. In the detailed Canadian Income Tax and RRSP Savings Calculator, the BC MSP is shown at the bottom of the calculator, but not included in the total taxes payable.

TaxTips.ca Resources

Tax Comparison of Investment Income for Seniors

Tax Comparisons of Taxes Payable on Employment Income by Province and Territory

Tax Tip: Interest and foreign dividends are not as tax-efficient as Canadian dividends!

Revised: October 26, 2023