Canada’s Child Benefit (CCB) is administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). This is a tax-exempt monthly payment to eligible families to help with the cost of raising a child under the age of 18. CCBs may include child disability pensions and related state and territory programs.
Who can get the Canada child benefit
You must meet all of the following conditions:
- You live with a child who is under 18 years of age
- You are primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of the childSee who is primarily responsible
- You are a resident of Canada for tax purposes
- You or your spouse or common-law partner must be any of the following:
- a Canadian citizen
- a permanent resident
- a protected person
- a temporary resident who has lived in Canada for the previous 18 months, and who has a valid permit in the 19th month other than one that states “does not confer status” or “does not confer temporary resident status”
- an individual who is registered, or entitled to be registered under the Indian Act
You cannot get the Canada child benefit (CCB) for a foster child for any month in which Children’s special allowances (CSA) are payable.
You may get the CCB if you live with and care for a child under a kinship or close relationship program from the governments of Canada, a province, a territory or an Indigenous governing body, as long as CSA are not payable for that child.
For more information, see Children’s special allowances.
Who is primarily responsible for the care of the child
The person who is primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of the child should apply for the CCB. That person is responsible for things such as:
- supervising the child’s daily activities and needs
- making sure the child’s medical needs are met
- arranging for child care when necessary
When there is a female parent who lives with the child
When two individuals who are spouses or common-law partners reside in the same home as the child, the female parent is presumed to be primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of all the children in the home. She should be the one applying for the CCB. The female presumption is a legislative requirement and only one payment per household can be issued under the Income Tax Act. No matter which parent receives the CCB, the amount will be the same.
However, if the other parent is primarily responsible, they should apply and attach a signed letter from the female parent stating that they are primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of all the children in the home.
If the child resides with same-sex parents, only one parent should apply for all the children in the home.
Child custody arrangements and your benefits
If a child only lives with you part of the time, you need to determine if you are considered to have shared custody.
Determine if you have shared custody
Does the child spend their time:
When to apply
You should apply for the Canada child benefit (CCB) as soon as any of the following situations happen:
- your child is born
- a child starts to live with you, or returns to live with you after a temporary period with someone else
- you begin, end, or change a shared custody arrangement
- you get custody of a child
- you, or your spouse or common-law partner, start to meet the eligibility conditions under Who can apply
If the child started living with you more than 11 months ago, you will need to provide additional documents.
You don’t need to apply separately for related provincial and territorial programs. The CRA will determine your eligibility when you apply for the CCB.
How to apply
- Through Birth registration
Processing time: you should receive your payment within 8 weeks.
You can apply for the CCB when you register the birth of your newborn with your province/territory.
In most cases, the birth registration is done by paper form at the hospital or birthing centre. Residents of Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta also have the option to register online.
Be sure to provide your consent and social insurance number (SIN) in order for the Vital Statistics Agency of your province or territory to securely share the pertinent birth registration information with the CRA. If you do not give your consent, your information will not be sent to the CRA, and you will need to apply for the CCB another way.
For more information about birth registrations with your province/territory you can select your province or territory below to be redirected to the provincial or territorial website where you live.
- Online Through My Account
Processing time: you should receive your payment within 8 weeks.
If you didn’t apply for the CCB when you registered the birth of your newborn, you can apply online using My Account (your personal CRA account).
- Sign in to My Account
- Go to “Apply for child benefits”
- Confirm your contact information, your marital status and your citizenship
- Add your child’s name, gender, date and place of birth
- Review and submit your application
If you’re asked to submit additional documents, go to “Submit documents” in My Account.
- By Mail
Processing time: you should receive your payment within 11 weeks.
- Fill out and sign Form RC66, Canada Child Benefits Application
- Include any additional documents needed for the situations described below
- Mail the form to your tax centre