Stop believing the lies and inform yourself

Tax Season 2015: First Nations pay more tax than you think

Fewer than half of all aboriginal people qualify for tax exemptions - and even less can actually use them

By Aleksandra Sagan, CBC News Posted: Mar 02, 2015 5:00 AM ET Last Updated: Mar 09, 2015 10:53 AM ET

 

There's a common misconception in Canada that aboriginal people don't pay taxes, but, in fact, tax exemption applies to fewer than half of aboriginal Canadians — and even they have to have very specific work and living arrangements to benefit from it.

Misunderstandings about aboriginal people and taxes "absolutely" exist — even among First Nations themselves, says Manny Jules, chair of the First Nations Tax Commission.

[Non-First Nations people] feel that no status Indian pays anything in terms of tax," he said. "People do pay taxes — excise tax, income tax, sales tax — all of those."
Only some status Indians are exempt from paying taxes, and even then, it's in very specific situations.

Who is exempt?

First Nations people who are recognized as status Indians under Section 6 of the Indian Act may be eligible for some tax exemptions.

The act has existed since 1876 and initially conferred Indian status on male members of certain bands, their children and their wives. Later amendments extended it to others who may have lost it over subsequent generations — women who married non-status men and their children, for example.

READ MORE: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/taxes/tax-season-2015-first-nations-pay-more-tax-than-you-think-1.2971040?cmp=rss