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Canadian Income Survey: Territorial estimates, 2022

Released: 2024-06-19

In 2022, families and unattached individuals living in the territories had a median after-tax income of $89,500, little changed from the previous year after adjusting for inflation. The Northwest Territories ($100,500) had the highest median after-tax income, followed by Nunavut ($86,200) and Yukon ($84,500).

The poverty rate in the territories was 24.2% in 2022, while the share of people in households with some form of food insecurity was 36.4%. Higher prices of goods and services may have been important contributors to higher poverty and food insecurity levels in Canada in 2022.

Residents in the territorial capitals typically have higher incomes than those living outside the capital. The median after-tax income of families and unattached individuals in 2022 was $108,300 in Yellowknife, while it was $104,300 in Iqaluit and $86,700 in Whitehorse.

The Canadian Income Survey estimates are based on samples. Because sample sizes in the three territories are relatively small, territorial estimates tend to have a high sampling variability, which can lead to larger year-over-year changes than those that would be observed if the samples were larger. For this reason, caution should be used when comparing year-over-year territorial estimates.

Almost one-quarter of people living in the territories are below the poverty line

According to the Northern Market Basket Measure, 24.2% of the population living in the territories was below the poverty line in 2022, compared with 20.2% in 2021. The poverty rate for Yukon was 12.9% (about 5,200 people) in 2022, while it was 17.1% (about 7,300 people) for the Northwest Territories and 44.5% (about 16,700 people) for Nunavut. In comparison, according to the 2018-base Market Basket Measure, 9.9% of the population in the provinces was living in poverty in 2022.

Statistics Canada also reports low income using the low-income measure. According to the low-income measure after tax (LIM-AT), 16.0% of the population of the territories (about 19,300 people) lived in low income in 2022. By comparison, the low-income rate for the provinces was 11.9% in 2022.

It should be noted that unlike the Market Basket Measure, the LIM-AT does not take into account regional differences in cost of living.

Over one-third of people living in the territories experience some form of food insecurity

In 2022, 36.4% of people in the territories lived in a household that experienced marginal, moderate or severe food insecurity. This represented a 10.0 percentage point increase from the 2021 rate of 26.4%. Food insecurity rates varied by territory, with Nunavut (62.6%) having the highest rate in 2022, followed by the Northwest Territories (27.6%) and Yukon (21.4%). In comparison, 22.9% of people in the provinces lived in households that reported some form of food insecurity in 2022.

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  Note to readers

These territorial results are from the Canadian Income Survey (CIS). Households in remote areas with very low population density are excluded from the survey. Survey coverage of the population is about 96% for the Northwest Territories, 94% for Yukon and 93% for Nunavut.

Estimates for 2022 reflect an improved weighting methodology and an extended target population for income data, from people aged 16 years and older to people aged 15 years and older.

The CIS estimates are based on probability samples and are therefore subject to sampling variability. Because sample sizes in the three territories are relatively small, territorial estimates tend to have a high sampling variability. For this reason, users are recommended to use caution when comparing year-over-year territorial estimates. Very few estimates at the territorial level have been found to present statistically significant differences between different years.

Definitions

An economic family refers to a group of two or more people who live in the same dwelling and are related to each other by blood, marriage, common-law union, adoption or a foster relationship. This concept differs from the census family concept used for sub-provincial data in the Annual Income Estimates for Census Families and Individuals.

This release analyzes income based on medians. The median is the level of income at which one half of the population has higher income and the other half has lower income.

After-tax income is the total of market income and government transfers, less income tax.

Market income consists of employment income and private pensions, as well as income from investments and other market sources.

Government transfers include benefits such as Old Age Security, the Guaranteed Income Supplement, the Canada Pension Plan and the Quebec Pension Plan, child benefits, employment insurance, social assistance, the goods and services tax or harmonized sales tax credit, and provincial tax credits.

For 2020, 2021 and part of 2022, government transfers include emergency response and recovery benefits in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Northern Market Basket Measure is an adaptation of the provincial market basket measure (MBM) and is intended to capture the spirit of the MBM (i.e., to represent a modest, basic standard of living) while accounting for adjustments needed to reflect life in the territories.

Low income is calculated using the low-income measure after tax (LIM-AT). Individuals are defined as having low income if their adjusted after-tax income falls below 50% of the median adjusted after-tax income. Adjusted after-tax income is derived by dividing household income by the square root of the household size and assigning this value to all individuals in the household. The median observed in the 10 provinces was used to establish the LIM-AT threshold for estimates in the three territories.

Food insecurity is the inadequate or insecure access to food due to financial constraints. Food insecurity in this release refers to people living in households that experienced marginal, moderate or severe food insecurity.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).

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