Canada Dental and Housing Benefits
The federal government finally released some details about how these two new benefits will be administered and how individuals can apply for the benefits.
Both benefits will be administered by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and you will need to apply online using your CRA My Account or My Service Canada Account (MSCA).
Canada Dental Benefit
The interim Canada Dental Benefit is intended to help lower dental costs for eligible families earning less than $90,000 per year. Parents and guardians can apply if the child receiving dental care is under 12 years old and does not have access to a private dental insurance plan.
Depending on your family net income, a tax-free payment of $260, $390, or $650 is available for each eligible child for each period. This interim dental benefit is available for 2 periods. You can get a maximum of 2 payments for each eligible child. Benefit payments are administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
The first benefit period is for children under 12 years old as of December 1 2022 who receive dental care between October 1 2022 and June 30 2023.
The Basics of the Canada Dental Benefit:
- For children born on or after December 2 2010
- Families earn less than $90,000 per year
- Do not have access to a private dental insurance plan
- Up to $650 per child per period
- First dental care period: October 1 2022 to June 30 2023
- Second dental care period: July 1 2023 to June 30 2024
- The parent that receives the CCB is eligible to apply
- Shared custody: each parent can receive 50% of the benefit
For all the online details and to apply, search: Canada Dental Benefit
What is the benefit
Combined family income under $70,000 eligible for the full benefit of $650 per child; family income $70,000 – 80,000 $390 per child; family income $80,000 – 90,000 $260 per child; family income over $90,000 do not qualify
How to apply
Apply online using CRA My Account or using My Service Canada Account (MSCA). If you do not have online access, get registered now. You can search CRA My Account to find out how. If you do not have direct deposit set up with CRA you can do so online as well.
When you are ready to apply for your benefit, you will need all the claim information:
- Dental care provider’s name, address and phone number
- Date or expected date of your child’s dental appointment; do not apply until you have an appointment scheduled
- Your employer’s name, address and telephone number; same for your spouse
- Cost of dental care service, or expected cost
Validating your claim
CRA may request your dental care receipts at a later date to validate your claim, so keep your receipts for up to six years!
Canada Housing Benefit
The one-time top-up to the Canada Housing Benefit aims to help low-income renters with the cost of renting. You may be eligible for a tax-free one-time payment of $500 if your income and the amount that you pay on rent qualify.
The Basics of the Canada Housing Benefit
- 2021 net income: $35,000 or less for families; $20,000 or less for individuals
- Have 2022 eligible rent that you paid in the 2022 calendar year
- Equal to at least 30% of your 2021 net income
- If you share rent (roommates), each of you can claim even if only one individual was making payments to the landlord; use the portion of the rent that you paid
- If you paid rent to a parent or another relative, only include this as rent if the payment would be considered by the CRA as rental income for tax purposes for the parent or relative who received it.
How to apply
Applications for the one-time top-up to the Canada Housing Benefit will open on December 12 2022. Apply online using CRA My Account or using My Service Canada Account (MSCA). If you do not have online access, get registered now. You can search CRA My Account to find out how. If you do not have direct deposit set up with CRA you can do so online as well.
To apply for the Canada Housing Benefit, applicants will need to provide the address of their principal residence, the total rent paid in the 2022 calendar year for that residence, as well as the name and contact information of the persons to whom the rent was paid.
Impacts on other benefits
The one-time top-up to the Canada Housing Benefit does not reduce other federal income-tested benefits such as the Canada Workers Benefit, Canada Child Benefit, Goods and Services Tax Credit, and Guaranteed Income Supplement.
Impacts on provincial or territorial benefits will be determined at the discretion of each province or territory. We are not aware at this time if there is any impact for Manitobans.
Keep your receipts
Keep your records and receipts to support the amounts in your application for six years. The CRA routinely checks to confirm that recipients were entitled to the payment they received.
If your application is selected for review, the CRA may ask you to provide additional information.
Anni Markmann is a Personal Income Tax Professional and Certified Financial Planner; living, working, and volunteering in our community. Contact Ste Anne Tax Service at 204.422.6631 (phone or text!) or 36 Dawson Road in Ste Anne (near Co-op) or info@sataxes.ca