Did you know that there is new free money for families coming in 2022?
Yes!
What is it?
Let's start with the Free Money that we already receive.
The only work that you have to do to receive your free money, is file your TAXES!
You could potentially receive the Canada Child Benefit, Tax free from the Federal government, depending upon your previous tax year's Adjusted Family Net Income (AFNI) and the ages of your children. This program was started in 2016 and started becoming indexed in 2018 to reflect the rising cost of living. I'm not sure if they have accounted for the 4.7% inflation rate yet but I will still take the tax free money and not complain.
For the 2021–2022 benefit year that began in July 2021, the maximum annual benefit is $6,833 for each child under age 6 and $5,765 for each child aged 6 to 17.
(https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/news/2021/07/canada-child-benefit-5th-anniversary--indexation0.html )
if you have more children then you could potentially receive an increase in amount.
We personally have received between $130-400 per month from CCB with two children. When we had one full time income while my husband went to university to get his Education degree, we received the higher amount of $400 and when we were back to two incomes, then we received the lower end of $130 per month. Check out my blogpost about how we put my husband through university without any student loan debt
Alberta Child and Family Benefit (ACFB)
Combined with the Federal CCB portion is the Provincial portion dependent upon which province you reside in. For myself, living in Alberta, this means that we potentially receive the Tax Free Alberta Child and Family Benefit in addition to the CCB, depending upon our income level and again number of children in our care.
Canada Child Benefit Young Child Supplement
In 2021, there was an additional Canada Child Benefit Young Child Supplement which you received if you were already receiving the CCB payment.
The CCB young child supplement (CCBYCS) provides up to four tax-free payments in 2021 to families with children under the age of six to help pay for a wide range of expenses. Families may be entitled to receive up to $1,200 per child under the age of six.
In case you missed getting it last year, here is what you could have received:
If you were every curious about how much money you should be receiving from the government, there is always a calculator for that.
Canada Workers Benefit:
For low-income individuals and families who have earned income from employment or business. The advantage of this program is that you can receive up to 50% in advance payments instead of waiting for tax time, especially if you need the money right now.
Eligibility
You are eligible for the Canada workers benefit (CWB) if you:
earn working income
are a resident of Canada throughout the year
are 19 years of age or older on December 31, or you live with your spouse or common-law partner or your child
Amount:
Make sure you file your taxes because this amount is dependent upon your income and your province. The maximum amount you can expect to receive is $2,379 for families if your Adjusted family net income is less than $17,348.
GST/HST Credit
Then there is the standard GST/HST credit which is a Tax free quarterly payment to help individuals and families with low-moderate income levels to offset the GST/HST costs.
Eligibility:
-19 years old
-have or (had) a spouse or common in law partner
-are (or were) a parent of a child who lived with you
How much you can expect to receive
Your GST/HST credit payments are based on your net family income and the number of children under 19 years old that you have already registered for the CCB (Canada Child Benefit) and the GST/HST credit.
For the 2020 base year (payment period from July 2021 to June 2022), you could get up to:
$456 if you are single
$598 if you are married or have a common-law partner
$157 for each child under the age of 19
More Extra money for lower income families includes:
Canada Learning Bond:
This provides additional money to your RESP up to $2,000 per child.
The role of the parent is to ensure that their child has a Social Insurance Number, has an RESP set up and then picks a provider which seems minor because you don't need to have made any personal contributions. Just make sure you apply before your child turns 15.
Now!
What's New in 2022!
The Federal government has approved a plan to help Canadian families save money on child care costs over the next couple years. This plan includes an average
$10/day for regular child care spaces for children under 6 years old.
They also hope to have achieve a
50% reduction in average fees by the end of 2022.
Their aim is to increase the GDP by 1.2% over the next 20 years. I'm not really sure what this will specifically look like yet but the federal government, in partnership with 9 provinces and 1 territory, hope to save majority of Canadian families thousands of dollars in child care costs per year. This chart demonstrates the type of savings they are aiming for. I have highlighted my own province Alberta which estimates a gross annual savings of $5,610 which includes a 50% average fee reduction. Also the government hopes to save families a gross annual savings of $8,610 per child with the $10/day child care cost plan.
This plan hopes to include increasing child care spaces as well.
These seem like lofty goals and some patience will be needed because this plan is slated to roll out over the next couple months to years.
What does this Mean?
So, if this means extra money in your budget, there is potential to increase your savings for your child's Post Secondary Education!
Next check out 4 Steps to Start Your RESP
and
Now Go and Be Intentional in checking out how much free money you already have and will receive!
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