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Free Statistics

1996 Poverty Lines

Last updated: February 10, 1997

The LICOs are published by Statistics Canada. Persons and families living below these income levels are considered to be living in "straitened circumstances." There are 35 different LICOs, varying according to family size and size of community. The LICOs are more popularly known as Canada's poverty lines.

Low-Income Cut-Offs (LICOs), 1996
 Population of Community of Residence
Family Size500,000 +100,000-499,99930,000-99,999Less than 30,000*Rural
1 $17,132 $14,694 $14,591 $13,577 $11,839
2 $21,414 $18,367 $18,239 $16,971 $14,799
3 $26,633 $22,844 $22,684 $21,107 $18,406
4 $32,238 $27,651 $27,459 $25,551 $22,279
5 $36,036 $30,910 $30,695 $28,562 $24,905
6 $39,835 $34,168 $33,930 $31,571 $27,530
7 + $43,634 $37,427 $37,166 $34,581 $30,156

Notes: This table uses the 1992 base. Income refers to total pre-tax, post-transfer household income.

*Includes cities with a population between 15,000 and 30,000 and small urban areas (under 15,000).

Source: Prepared by the Canadian Council on Social Development using Statistics Canada's Low Income Cut-Offs, from Low income cut-offs Catalogue # 13-351-XPB, January 1997.

Reading this table

Example: A family of four living in a very large Canadian city with an income (before taxes and after transfers) of less than $32,238 in 1996, would have been living below the poverty line. A similar family living in a village would not be below the poverty line, unless their income was less than $22,279.

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Canadian Council on Social Development, 190 O'Connor Street, Suite 100, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 2R3
Tel: (613) 236-8977, Fax: (613) 236-2750, Web: www.ccsd.ca, Email: council@ccsd.ca