Canada Childcare Benefit (CCB)

Canada Child Benefit (CCB) provides monthly financial assistance to eligible low or modest-income parents with a dependent child. Children are an expensive bundle of joy — on average, raising a child in Canada will cost you nearly $15,000 per year, according to MoneyWise.

CCB’s monthly payments give parents a reliable and steady pool of funds they can use to soften the drastic financial demands of providing for the little one’s basic needs.

This comprehensive article covers everything about Canada Child Benefit — What it is, CCB eligibility, how to apply for CCB, how much you can get, and more.

Payment Calendar

This year's CCB payment dates are shown in the table below.

What is Canada Child Benefit?

CCB is a Canada Revenue Agency administered program that gives families a tax-free monthly payment per child that phases out once they start earning more.

This payment may include Child Disability Benefits (CDB) or can be obtained with other province or territory relevant programs, like GST/HST credit.

Canada Child Benefit is a culmination of Canada Child Tax Benefit, National Child Benefit Supplement, and Universal Child Care Benefit: Federal benefits programs enacted to help Canadian families with child care.

CCB is geared towards diminishing family poverty in middle and low-income households.

In 2016, 1.3 million children lived in poverty in Canada — that's one out of every five children. In just one year since CCB took effect, the child poverty rate declined to 9 percent in 2017.

CCB Eligibility

The two most basic CCB qualification requirements are that you must live with a child under the age of 18. You also have to file an income tax every year even if you haven't earned any income for the given year.

In addition to that, you need to meet all of the following criteria:

Residency

You, your spouse, or your common-law partner needs to be a:

• Canadian citizen
• Permanent resident
• Protected person
• Temporary resident (anyone who lived in Canada for at least 18 months and has a valid permit with a resident status for the 19th month)
• An Indigenous person under the definition of the Indian Act

Primary caretaker

You must be the primary caregiver for the child. This is the person that’s responsible for overseeing the child's daily needs and activities, ensuring the child’s medical needs are met, and handling child care when required.

• CRA presumes the female parent as the child's primary caregiver in a family with spouses or common-law partners. Hence, she must apply for CCB.
• When the other parent holds the primary responsibility, that parent must obtain a signed letter from the female parent stating that they are responsible for the child's upbringing.
• If the child resides with same-sex parents, then either one of the partners can apply for CCB.
• If the child lives with one parent part-time, they will have to determine whether they have shared custody.
• If the child lives with both parents for an equal amount of time, CRA pays each parent a different amount based on their net income.
• If the child resides primarily with one parent, that parent can apply and receive CCB.
• If the child resides mainly with the other parent, that parent is considered to have full custody and will be able to receive CCB.
• If the child primarily lives with the other parent but is temporarily living with you, you can apply for CCB benefits and receive the payment for that timeframe. The payment will cease when the child returns to the other parent, who will then have to reapply to start receiving CCB again.

Those living with a foster child are not qualified to receive the benefit during the months in which they're receiving Child's Special Allowance payments.

CCB Application Process

CRA gives applicants multiple ways to apply for Canada Child Benefit. But before we explain the different ways to apply, let's first go over when you should apply.

When to apply for CCB?

CRA recommends that you apply for CCB in the following situations:

• Birth of a child
• You gain custody of a child
• There is a change in shared custody arrangement
• A child lives with you or returns to live with you after temporarily residing elsewhere
• You, your spouse or partner meet CCB's eligibility requirements

The Application Process:

Birth of child

CRA allows you to register your baby to receive CCB right after birth. All you need to do is fill out the birth registration form at the hospital or birthing centre (Ontario, Cuba, British Columbia, and Alberta residents have the option to register online).

Then, provide consent to your province or territory to share your information with the CRA.

You will just need to input your Social Insurance Number (SIN) and submit the form. It will then be sent to the CRA.

If you are eligible, you should start receiving benefits within eight weeks.

Suppose you prefer registering your newborn's birth through an online application instead of a paper form. In that case, you can do so through your provincial or territorial website (note that this service is not available for Yukon and Nunavut residents.

Apply online

If you didn't register your child for benefits at birth, you could still apply online through your personal CRA account.

Once you sign in to your account, you can start the application process by clicking on 'Apply for child benefits.'

At this stage, you will be required to confirm your personal details and your child's name, gender, place and date of birth.

Finish and submit the application. If qualified, you will receive the payment within eight weeks.

In some instances, you may be required to submit additional documents with your application. We will explain these exceptional cases later in this article.

By Mail

To apply by mail, fill out Form RC66-21e Canada Child Benefits Application. Mail the form along with any additional documents to your local tax centre.

Keep in mind that submitting via mail has the longest processing time. If eligible, expect a response in 11 weeks.

CCB Payment Amount

Your benefit payment will be calculated based on the number of children under your care, your children’s age, your marital status, and your adjusted family net income (AFNI) based on the previous year's tax return.

Also, your payments are recalculated every July based on your adjusted family net income of the prior year. So if you get a new job this year and make a higher salary, it won't impact your CCB payments starting in July 2022.

The following amounts are applicable for payments between July 2021 and June 2022.

Parents with one child:

• If your AFNI is below $32,028, then you will receive the maximum benefit for each child depending on their age:
• Children under six years of age: $6,833 per year or $569.41 per month
• Children between ages 6 to 17: $5,765 per year or $480.41 per month

From here, the payment amount will slowly decrease as your AFNI increases. Here is a breakdown of the relationship between CCB payment and AFNI:

• If your AFNI is between $32,028 to $69,395, your total payment will reduce by 7 percent of the amount of your income that's greater than $32,028.
• If your AFNI is above $69,395, your total payment will decrease by $2,616 plus 3.2 percent of the amount of your income greater than $69,395.

Parents with two children:

• If your AFNI is between $32,028 to $69,395, your total payment will decrease by 13.5 percent of the amount of your income that's greater than $32,028.
• If your AFNI is above $69,395, your total payment will reduce by $5,044 plus 5.7 percent of the amount of your income greater than $69,395.

Parents with three children:

• If your AFNI is between $32,028 to $69,395, your total payment will reduce by 19 percent of the amount of your income that's greater than $32,028.
• If your AFNI is above $69,395, your total payment will decrease by $7,100 plus 8 percent of the amount of your income greater than $69,395.

Parents with four children:

• If your AFNI is between $32,028 to $69,395, your total payment will reduce by 23 percent of the amount of your income that's greater than $32,028.
• If your AFNI is above $69,395, your full payment will decrease by $8,594 plus 9.5 percent of the amount of your income greater than $69,395.

Alternatively, CRA has an online Child and Family Benefits calculator you can use to quickly get a CCB estimate.

CCB Payment Dates 2022

You will receive a CCB payment every month. If you don’t receive your payment for a certain month, wait for five working days from the deadline and then contact CRA.

5 Unique Cases When You Need Additional Documents

CRA highlights five specific scenarios when you will be required to provide supplemental documents along with the CCB application.

Other parent is the primary caretaker

CRA considers the female parent to be the child's primary caregiver by default. If you're the other parent, and you handle your child's upbringing, you will have to acquire a signed statement from the female parent verifying that you're the primary caregiver.

Child is one year of age or older

If the child was born outside Canada or within Canada but are a year or older, you will have to provide one acceptable proof of birth document listed on CRA's website.

Child started living with you more than 11 months ago.

In this case, you will need to provide proof of your citizenship status, proof that you live in Canada, proof of birth for the child, and proof that you're the primary caregiver for the child. The acceptable documents that can be submitted as evidence are listed here.

You and your partner are new or returning to Canada.

If you or your spouse or common-law parent is a non-resident of Canada during any time through the year, you need to fill up and submit Schedule RC 66SCH along with the CCB form.

Also, you will have to submit Form CTB9, Canada Child Benefit, each year, or part of a year, that your spouse or common-law partner is a non-resident of Canada.

Leaving a violent or abusive situation

CRA has made special provisions for domestic violence victims to receive benefits while safeguarding both the parent and child. You will never need to contact your abusive spouse or partner to provide information to CRA. If you do not have access to proof of citizenship or your child’s birth documents, you can simply send one of the alternative documents CRA has listed here.

6 Situation Changes That Could Affect Your CCB Payment

CRA advises that you notify the agency immediately if any of the following applies to you. Doing so as soon as possible will prevent any payment delays or interruptions.

Address

If you have moved, notify the CRA of your new address.They need to know your current address even if the direct deposit information and your bank has not changed.

Marital status

If you have gotten married, separated, or are or have a common-law partner, let CRA know so that they can recalculate the payment and send you the correct amount.

Changed bank account

If you are planning to change your bank account, wait till you receive your first CCB deposit in your new account. It can sometimes take up to a month for payment to show up in new bank accounts. If the payment fails to deposit in the new account, you will receive a cheque.

Resident status

If you, your spouse, or common-law partner are new to Canada, CRA will need the newly immigrated person's social insurance number, birth date, address, income statement, and immigration date.

Your personal information is incorrect or different

If your personal information or annual income is different than what is shown in CRAs payment notice, let the CRA know immediately so they can recalculate your CCB amount.

There has been a death

If the CCB recipient has passed away, notify the CRA as soon as possible. The surviving spouse or common-law partner will be able to continue receiving the benefit without having to file a new application.

If you're the CCB recipient and your spouse or partner has died, notify the CRA about the date of their death. CRA will recalculate the payment based on the updated family net income.

If someone other than the parent is the primary caregiver of the child, they will have to reapply for CCB by filling out Form RC66 or through their personal account on CRA's website.

Change in custody

Notify the CRA if you're starting or ending shared custody, if the child is living with a parent temporarily, or a child is no longer under the original primary caregiver.

In addition to considering employment income for loan qualifications, we also count CCB income and and other forms of government income when applying for child tax loans. You can borrow as much as $1,500 and get the funds instantly.