The first benefits of the new year will go out Friday, with eligible Canadians receiving goods and services tax (GST) or harmonized sales tax (HST) credits from the federal government.
It’s the third quarterly payment of the 2023 base year that will roll out to Canadians with low and modest incomes.
These tax-free quarterly payments are meant to help individuals and families offset the GST or HST that they pay on a range of products and services.
The GST/HST credit amounts may also include payments from the provincial and territorial programs.
The payments come amid a two-month “tax holiday” announced by the federal government during which Canadians don’t have to pay GST/HST on dozens of items.
The GST/HST credit payments are calculated based on your marital status, the adjusted family net income and the number of children under the age of 19 years who have been registered for the Canada Child Benefit as well as the GST/HST credit, according to the Canada Revenue Agency.
Single Canadians who don’t have children could get up to $519 in GST/HST credit in total for the full year between July 2024 and June 2025.
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The January payment will be roughly a quarter of the yearly entitlement a person is due based on their 2023 tax return.
Married couples or common-law partners with no children could receive a maximum payment of $680 for the full year.
For each child under the age of 19, parents are entitled to up to $179 in GST/HST credit for the year.
If parents share custody, then they may be eligible for half of the GST/HST credit for a child.
If the total GST/HST credit calculated in July 2024 was less than $50 per quarter, then the lump sum amount for the year would’ve been paid that month, CRA says. Hence, no payments will be made to these individuals and families in January.
Who can get GST/HST credit?
To be eligible for this month’s GST/HST credit payments, a person should be at least 19 years old and must have been residing in Canada in December and beginning of January.
Canadians under the age of 19 could also be eligible if they have (or had) a spouse or common-law partner or are (or were) a parent and live (or lived) with their child.
The adjusted family net income for the 2023 base year should be no more than $70,000.
If eligible, people who filed their 2023 tax returns will get payments by direct deposit or cheque, even if they didn’t earn any income last year.
The next quarterly GST/HST credit payment will be made on April 4, 2025.
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