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There are other provincial tax changes, but those two are the ones that affect payroll withholdings. Unlike my son, most employees in B.C. or P.E.I. won’t have a confused phone call moment. The change will register, if it registers at all, as a marginally smaller direct deposit and a payroll department quietly updating a formula.

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It doesn’t have to work this way. In some countries, withholding isn’t the default; taxpayers pay the government themselves, which guarantees an acorn moment for every taxpayer, whether they want one or not.

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For example, Hong Kong doesn’t withhold salary tax at source. Instead, individuals directly pay the government on a provisional basis: an estimate based on prior income, paid in two instalments and reconciled against a final assessment once actual income is known. Twice a year, every taxpayer confronts an actual number they must personally remit.

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Switzerland offers another version of the same idea, split cleanly by residency status.

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Foreign nationals without permanent status have tax withheld monthly from their pay, same as Canada. But Swiss citizen and permanent resident taxes aren’t withheld at all. Instead, they receive provisional tax bills directly from their canton through the year and settle the final balance, or receive a refund, only once their return is assessed.

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For most of the population, tax is something they’re billed for and have to actually pay, not something that quietly disappears from a pay stub.

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Canada’s withholding system isn’t going anywhere soon. Our federal and provincial governments are too invested in the current regime and addicted to the regular cash injections.

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But genuine tax reform, the comprehensive kind this country has needed for years, could open the door to more transparency even within a withholding system.

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The United Kingdom has already shown one version. Since 2014, its government has mailed every taxpayer a personalized annual summary showing exactly what they paid in income tax and national insurance and a plain breakdown of where it went: health, education, defence and debt interest. Canada could do something similar since governments should never fear taxpayers understanding what government actually costs.

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My son got his acorn moment because he picked up the phone. Every government in this country, federal and provincial, has had decades to plant that moment for Canadians on purpose. None of them have bothered. So, plant it yourself by asking what you actually pay and demand your governments finally show their work.

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Better-informed Canadians make better decisions with their money, families, careers and votes.

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Kim Moody, FCPA, FCA, TEP, is the founder of Moodys Tax/Moodys Private Client, a former chair of the Canadian Tax Foundation, former chair of the Society of Estate Practitioners (Canada) and has held many other leadership positions in the Canadian tax community. He can be reached at kgcm@kimgcmoody.com and his LinkedIn profile is https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimgcmoody.

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