Overview
Calgary is the largest city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. Calgary's economy while diverse is home to 87% of Canada's oil and natural gas producers and 66% of coal producers. Canada is in Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the USA. The climate varies from temperate in the south to subarctic and arctic in the north. The official languages are English and French. All government documents and information services are available in both. English remains the dominant language in every province except Québec. There is also a sizeable francophone community in New Brunswick, which is the country's sole officially bilingual province. Canadian French is different from European French, but they are mutually intelligible. Given Canada's multicultural population, many other languages are spoken in the major cities, especially Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, Russian, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish. The main religion is Christianity. The economy of Canada is one of the world's wealthiest, with a high per-capita income, and it is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the G8. It is one of the world's top ten trading nations. Business is conducted in a similar way to that of the US, UK and Australia. Canadians will generally invite you to call them by their first names. Expatriate business dress is generally conservative, suits are the norm. Women hold positions at the highest levels. The security risk for expatriates in Canada is low. Risks include petty street crime mainly in low income neighbourhoods of major cities, as well as of terrorism. The currency of Canada is the Canadian Dollar (CAD). Banking is on a par with the rest of Western Europe and North America. Medical facilities are good, however the cost of treatment can be very expensive for expatriates if you don’t meet provincial residency requirements for health care. The population of Calgary is 1.4 Million (Metro) (2018 est.), while the inflation rate (CPI) is 2% for Canada as at December 2018. Xpatulator Hypothetical Tax for Canada is based on the current Federal personal income tax rates only which are progressive up to 33%. In addition to Federal income tax, an individual who resides in, or has earned income in, any Province or Territory is also subject to Provincial or Territorial income tax. For Xpatulator Hypothetical Tax purposes we have used an average Provincial / Territorial income tax rate of 16.9%. The combined maximum progressive Xpatulator Hypothetical Tax rate is therefore 49.9% based on Federal (33%) + Provincial / Territorial Taxes (16.9%).
Cost Of Living
The cost of living for expatriates / professional migrants in Calgary as at 1 January 2019 is very high in comparison to other places in the world. In Calgary, the cost of each basket, based on local prices, compared to the international average, is categorized follows (Exact cost of living percentages only available in personalised reports): 1) Alcohol (where available) & Tobacco: Very High 2) Clothing: High 3) Communication: High 4) Education: Very Low 5) Furniture & Appliances: Average 6) Groceries: Very High 7) Healthcare: Average 8) Household Accommodation: Average 9) Miscellaneous: High 10) Personal Care: Very High 11) Recreation & Culture: Very High 12) Restaurants Meals Out and Hotels: Very High 13) Transport: Very High Calgary is for example 55.8% more expensive than Houston TX for groceries, 32.6% more expensive for household costs than Kuala Lumpur, and 109.9% more expensive for transport costs than Dubai.Calgary is ranked as a minimal hardship location. The hardship premium for Calgary for an expat from Perth, is for example 0%, i.e. host location (Calgary) premium of 10% minus home (Perth) location premium of 10%.Want to know more about cost of living, hardship (quality of living) or expat salary in Calgary? Register subscribe to your home location and Calgary and run your personalised reports.