Overview
- The Canada Revenue Agency began issuing the one-time top-up on Friday, June 5, as a payment equal to 50% of a recipient’s 2025–26 GST/HST credit.
- The top-up will deliver about $3.1 billion to roughly 12 million Canadians with payment amounts capped by household size, from up to $267 for a single adult with no children to $717 for larger families.
- The program uses eligibility from 2024 tax returns and the January 2026 GST/HST entitlement and will be sent automatically by direct deposit or by mail to those who qualified.
- Quarterly payments under the rebranded Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit will be increased by 25% starting in July, adding $8.6 billion over five years and extending coverage to about 500,000 more people.
- Payments may still appear on bank statements as the GST/HST credit while banks update systems and some eligible people may not get the top-up because they did not file 2024 taxes, their partner received the payment, or funds were applied to outstanding CRA balances.