Anyone who has stood at a checkout recently and done the mental math on what their grocery cart used to cost versus what it costs now already knows the gap has been widening for a while. Since 2020, food prices have climbed faster than overall inflation, adding roughly $782 in extra costs for the average Canadian household compared to what they would have spent otherwise.
Governments on both sides of the provincial divide have been responding to that pressure lately. Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette announced just this week that the province will permanently eliminate the QST on a range of everyday grocery items starting July 15, from pre-cut fruits and vegetables to granola bars, salted nuts, and individually sold muffins.
At the federal level, relief is coming in the form of a direct deposit. Announced back in April, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is sending a payment to eligible Canadians next Friday, and for most people, it arrives automatically with nothing to fill out or apply for.
The payment works out to 50% of what you were receiving through the GST/HST credit for the 2025-26 benefit year. In practical terms, a single person earning $25,000 a year can expect $267, while a family of four bringing in $40,000 will see $533. Zoom out to the full year, and the picture gets bigger: factoring in what follows, a single person could collect up to $950 in 2026, while a family of four could see as much as $1,890.
That’s because the June 5 payment is a bridge into a new program called the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB), which permanently replaces the GST/HST credit starting July 3. The quarterly payments under the new benefit run 25% higher than what the old credit was delivering, with that increase locked in for five years based on your 2025 tax return. More than 12 million Canadians are expected to receive payments through the combined benefit structure.
To receive next week’s CGEB payment, you need to have filed your 2024 tax return and been collecting the GST/HST credit as of January 2026. Worth knowing: the deposit may show up in your account under the GST/HST credit name rather than the new benefit name, so don’t be caught off guard when it lands.
