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OTTAWA — A controversial federal policy that would allow families to split their incomes for tax purposes would make a lot of sense, as long as it is accompanied by other measures so that the benefits would be shared by all kinds of families, says University of Calgary economist Jack Mintz.

In a research paper, Mintz and doctoral student Matt Krzepkowski argue that the current tax system is unfair because it penalizes single-earner families.

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“Given that Canada’s income system aims to treat people in similar circumstances as equally as possible, it is certainly time to let couples split their income so they do not face a penalty in higher tax rates than those faced by couples bringing home the same amount of total pay,” they write.

But they say the tax reform should also recognize that single-earner families have some advantages that dual-earners do not, such as more unpaid time spent raising children and taking care of the home.