Keep an eye on what's in your chequing accounts, you might see a new payment from the federal government very soon.
Today marks the start of the federal government's Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit, with today having a one-time top-up payment included. Those have started to go out to around 12 million eligible Canadians.
The new program is meant to replace the old GST/HST Credit, but will still follow the same quarterly payout schedule. The one-time top-up can be up to $267 for single adults without children, and up to $533 for couples with two kids.
The one-time top-up is a bonus of 50% of the annual benefit amount. The government has also said the quarterly payment amounts will increase by 25% for the next 5 years, with the first quarterly payment expected in July.
If you meet the requirements, payments will be automatically sent out by mail, or by auto deposit if you have it set up with the federal government.
