Eligible Canadians will receive their first quarterly payment under a new government benefit from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) this week.
It marks the first instalment of the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB), formerly known as the Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) credit.
First tabled in January, Bill C-19, the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit Act, increases the value of the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit by 25 per cent for five years, starting July.
It’s a change the government says will deliver $8.6 billion in additional support over the 2026-27 to 2030-31 period, including to 500,000 additional individuals and families.
Payment varies based on income and family size, and is recalculated every July based on the information from the previous year’s tax return.
The maximum amount for a single individual is $679 per year, and the maximum for a single individual with four or more children is $1,826.
For married or common-law couples, the maximum is $890, and the maximum for couples with four or more children is the same as for singles, $1,826.
These amounts are broken into quarterly payments, with the first on landing on Friday, July 3.
Despite its new name, the eligibility, payment calculation and structure of the benefit will be the same as the previous GST/HST credit.
Residents of Canada for tax purposes who are 19 years or older in the month before the government makes a payment, and at the start of the month when a payment is made, are eligible for the CGEB within certain income thresholds.
Individuals do not need to apply for the benefit because the CRA checks for eligibility when assessing tax returns. Those who are entitled to the benefit will start receiving quarterly payments automatically.
Bill C-19 also included a one‑time payment to individuals equal to 50 per cent of the GST credit’s annual 2025-26 value, which eligible Canadian’s received on June 5. The maximum amount individuals received was $717.
Canada’s Department of Finance previously said: “Combined with the one-time top-up, this means that a family of four will receive up to $1,890 this year, and about $1,400 a year for the next four years; and a single person will receive up to $950 this year, and about $700 a year for the next four years.”
Previous payments this year on Jan. 5 and April 2 were classified as GST/HST credit payments, while a fourth quarterly payment of the CGEB will be made on Oct. 5 this year.
However, payments that are less than $50 per quarter are delivered as a single payment in July.
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