GST Payment Dates and Everything You Need to Know About The GST/HST Credit

When Will I Receive My GST/HST Credit Payment?

The GST/HST credit payment is paid quarterly.

Here are the 2024 GST/HST payment dates:

• January 5, 2024
• April 5, 2024
• July 5, 2024
• October 4, 2024

Keep in mind that payments could take up to 10 business days to show up in your bank account.

If you don’t receive your payment within 10 business days of the above dates, you should contact CRA at 1-800-367-1193.

What is the GST/HST Credit?

In short, the GST/HST credit is a non-taxable amount of money that is paid out quarterly to Canadians with lower incomes.

Its purpose is to offset the GST/HST that they pay.

GST stands for goods and services tax, which is the 5% tax applicable in every province on most goods and services, either by itself or combined with HST.

The harmonized sales tax, or HST, is the combination of GST and any provincial sales tax.

HST is used in 5 provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia where it is 15%; and Ontario where it is 13%.

Who is Eligible for the Credit?

To be eligible for the GST/HST credit, you must be a Canadian resident for income tax purposes in the month prior to the payment being made, and at the beginning of the month the payment is made.

Also, one of the following must apply:

• You are at least 19 years old or above
• You have, or had in the past, a spouse or common-law partner
• You are, or were in the past, a parent who lives or lived with your child

In general, you won’t be eligible for the GST/HST credit if any of the following apply:

• You are not a Canadian resident for income tax purposes
• You are not required to pay tax in Canada because you, one of your family members or your employer is/are an officer or servant of another country (for example, a diplomat)
• You are incarcerated in a prison or similar institution for a period of 90 consecutive days or more

Keep in mind that you can’t receive the credit for a child, spouse or common-law partner that meets any of the above criteria at the beginning of the month that the payment is made.

How to Apply for the GST/HST Credit

So, you meet the eligibility criteria, and you want to apply to receive the GST/HST credit.

How do you do it?

First off, you’ll need to file a tax return for 2023, whether you had income coming in that year or not.

If you’re a newcomer to Canada, then you can send Form RC151, GST/HST credit application for individuals who become residents of Canada for the year that you became a Canadian resident.

You can also apply for retroactive GST/HST credit payments for up to 3 years prior to the current year.

If you want to receive the credit for your spouse or common-law partner, providing that they were your spouse or common-law partner by December 31, 2023, you can fill out the section titled “Information about your spouse or common-law partner” on the first page of your tax return.

All you need to do is fill out their SIN and net income, even if they had no income for the year.

Only one of you will receive the credit, and it will be whoever files their taxes first – the amount of the credit will be the same regardless of who receives it.

If you have a child that meets the requirements below at the beginning of the month that the payment is made, you’ll be able to receive their credit lumped in with your own credit.

These requirements are:

• That the child is your child, or is dependent of you and/or your spouse or common-law partner
• They must be under the age of 19
• They must have never had a spouse or common-law partner
• They must live with you
• They must never have had a child themselves that they have lived with

If you and the other parent of the child are in a shared custody situation, you can apply to each receive half of the child’s GST/HST credit.

Your child automatically gets signed up for the GST/HST credit if you consented on their provincial or territorial birth registration form, or if you already applied for the CCB (Canada child benefit).

But, you can always later register the child for the GST/HST credit through My Account “Apply for child benefits” or by sending in Form RC66, Canada Child Benefits Application.

Once the child turns 19, they will automatically be excluded from their parent or guardian’s credit.

For the child to receive the credit after they turn 19 years old, they must file a tax return for themselves, and their eligibility will be evaluated.

How Much Money Can I Expect to Receive from the Credit?

The amount you will receive from the GST/HST credit if you are deemed eligible by the CRA depends on two criteria:

• The number of children under 19 years old that you have registered who are eligible to receive the credit
• Your adjusted family net income for 2023

You can get a rough estimate of how much you will receive by using the Child and family benefits calculator.

Frequently Asked Questions