Pat Martin and Tax Exemptions for Artists
Saturday, February 23rd, 2008Pat Martin is recommending a tax exemption for the first $50,000 of artistic income. Ireland and Australia already have tax exemptions in place for artists. With the low incomes of artists, this would be a great asset for artists—particularly emerging and mid-career artists.
Artists’ income are derived from various sources, including, if they’re lucky, government grants. Canada’s handling of artist grants is odd, considering that most grant money comes from the Canada Council or provincial arts councils such as the Ontario Arts Council. If a tax exemption for overall artistic income doesn’t get implemented, the least they could do is make governmental grants a source of non-taxable income. A tax exemption, coupled with the Canada Council’s recent announcement to increase funding for the arts, would be a welcome boost to the arts sector in Canada.
