With high grocery prices, housing costs, and a generally soaring cost of living, money is tight for everyday Canadians.
Food bank usage has hit record highs, and heightening unemployment makes a challenging situation even more difficult for many individuals and families.
However, some benefits are available that can help alleviate the stress on your wallet a little.
Canadians are already taking advantage of the federal holiday tax break until February 15 — here’s a list of things the tax break applies to.
GST credits dropped earlier this month, and there are still many opportunities to receive money from the federal and provincial governments in January 2025.
If you’re eligible, ensure your direct deposit is enabled as you look forward to the following.
Advanced Canada Workers Benefit (ACWB)
The ACWB is granted to those entitled to the Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) on their income tax returns. It’s an advance payment of up to 50 per cent of the CWB granted across three payments throughout the year.
The first payment of 2025 is scheduled for Friday, January 10.
You are eligible if:
The maximum basic benefit for the CWB is $1,518 for single individuals; meanwhile, families can earn up to $2,616. The maximum disability supplement amount is $784 for individuals and families, based on adjusted net income.
Canada Child Benefit (CCB)
Canadian parents eligible to receive child tax payments can expect the money to arrive in their accounts on January 20.
Child tax payments increased by 4.7 per cent in the summer of 2024. This means the maximum benefit for children under six increased by $350, from $7,437 to $7,787. For children aged six to 17, it increased by $295, from $6,275 to $6,570.
Another much-needed federal child tax booster will come to all eligible Canadian parents in six months when the new benefit year begins.
BC Family Benefit and bonus
If you live in BC, you might also receive the provincial Family Benefit on January 20, with a bonus.
The 25 per cent bonus on the Family Benefit kicked in in July 2024 and will apply until June 2025.
The benefit is paid monthly to about 340,000 families with children in the province via direct deposit or mailed cheques.
Eligible residents may receive a total annual amount of $2,188 for their first child, $1,375 for their second child, and $1,125 for each additional child until June 2025.
Payments will arrive in conjunction with the CCB, which drops on January 20.
Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR)
The Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR), formerly known as the Canada Climate Action Incentive Payment (CAIP), is a quarterly, tax-free amount that helps eligible individuals and families offset the cost of federal pollution pricing. It will drop on January 15.
Canadians in Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, and Saskatchewan are eligible.
However, residents of provinces or territories with their own pollution pricing systems — including the Yukon, Quebec, Northwest Territories, and BC — do not qualify for the CCR.
Here is a breakdown of the rebate based on the number of people in your family. Use this tool to estimate your rebate amount.
Ontario Trillium Benefit (OTB)
The OTB is the combined tax-free payment of the Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit, the Northern Ontario Energy Credit, and the Ontario Sales Tax Credit. It will go out on January 10.
You should be eligible for at least one of the three credits to receive money.
For the Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit, you could get a maximum of $1,248 if you are between 18 and 64 years old; $1,421 if you are 65 or older; $277 if you live on a reserve or in a public long-term care home; and $25 for the time you lived in a designated college, university or private school residence in 2023, according to the province’s website.
The Northern Ontario Energy Credit allows singles to receive a maximum of $180 and families to receive a maximum of $277.
Finally, in the case of the Ontario Sales Tax Credit, you can receive up to $360 and may receive an additional credit of up to $360 for your spouse or common-law partner and each dependent child who is under 19 years of age on the 1st of the payment month. The credit doesn’t impact your GST/HST credit payments.
