For the 2024‑2025 payment period

RC4215(E) Rev. 24

The Canada Revenue Agency’s publications and personalized correspondence are available in braille, large print, e-text, and MP3. For more information, go to Order alternate formats for persons with disabilities or call 1‑800‑387‑1193.

La version française de ce guide est intitulée Remise canadienne sur le carbone.

Find out if this guide is for you

This guide gives information about the Canada Carbon Rebate (formerly know as the climate action incentive payment), such as:

• who is eligible
• when you get it
• how much you will receive

This guide uses plain language to explain most common tax situations. It is provided for information only and does not replace the law.

New measure for the 2024-2025 payment period

Rural supplement increase

The rural supplement has been increased to 20% for all eligible residents. For more information, read How much you can expect to receive.

Definitions

Common-law partner – a person to whom you are not married, with whom you are living in a conjugal relationship, and to whom one of the following situations applies. They:

• have been living with you for at least 12 continuous months. This includes any period you were separated for less than 90 days because of a breakdown in the relationship
• are the parent of your child by birth or adoption
• have custody and control of your child (or had custody and control immediately before the child turned 19 years of age) and your child is wholly dependent on that person for support

Kinship or close relationship programs – programs of the Government of Canada, a provincial or territorial government, or an Indigenous governing body for the care and upbringing, on a temporary basis, of a child in need of protection.

Unlike other foster care arrangements, the child is generally placed in the care of a grand-parent, an extended family member, or a close friend without being brought into the legal custody and guardianship of the province or territory. Certain jurisdictions may offer financial assistance to help individuals cover the expenses in caring for the child.

Married – you are legally married to someone.

Separated – you have been living apart from your spouse or common-law partner because of a breakdown in the relationship for a period of at least 90 days and you have not reconciled.

Once you have been separated for 90 days (because of a breakdown in the relationship), the effective day of your separation is the date you started living apart.

You would still be considered to have a spouse or common-law partner if there is no breakdown in the relationship and you were living apart for reasons such as:

• work
• studies
• health problems

Single – you are single, and no other marital status applies to you.

Spouse – the person to whom you are legally married.

Canada Carbon Rebate

The Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR) is a tax-free amount paid to help individuals and families offset the cost of the federal carbon pollution pricing. The quarterly CCR is available to eligible residents of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The CCR consists of a basic amount and a supplement for residents of small and rural communities.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible, you must be both a resident of Canada for income tax purposes and reside in a relevant province at the end of the month before and at the beginning of the month in which the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) makes a payment. In the month before the CRA makes a quarterly payment, you must also be at least 19 years old. If you are under 19 years old, you must meet at least one of the following conditions during the same period:

• You have (or previously had) a spouse or common-law partner.
• You are (or previously were) a parent and live (or previously lived) with your child.

Generally, you are not eligible for the CCR if, at the beginning of the month in which the CRA makes a quarterly payment, any of the following apply:

• You are not a resident of Canada for income tax purposes.
• You do not have to pay tax in Canada because you are an officer or servant of another country (such as a diplomat) or a family member or employee of such a person.
• You are confined to a prison or similar institution for a period of at least 90 consecutive days.
• The recipient is deceased (for more information, read If the recipient has died).

If you have children who are under 19 years of age

You can get the CCR for each of your children if all of the following conditions apply at the beginning of the month in which the CRA makes a payment. The child:

• is your child or is dependent on you or your spouse or common-law partner for support
• is under 19 years of age
• has never had a spouse or common-law partner
• has never been the parent of a child they lived with
• lives with you

If you are eligible for the Canada child benefit, an amount for each eligible child will be included in the calculation of the CCR.

If you share custody of a child

If you share custody of a child and are eligible for the CCR, each individual will get 50% of the amounts they would have received if the child lived with them all of the time.

How to register your children

Your child is automatically registered for the CCR if you are currently eligible for the Canada child benefit. If you become primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of another child, you can register them for the CCR by using one of the following methods:

• by applying for the Canada child benefits within the provincial or territorial birth registration process using the Automated Benefits Application (for more information, go to How to apply for child and family benefits when registering the birth of your newborn with the Automated Benefits Application)
• online by using the "Apply for child benefits" service in My Account
• by sending a completed Form RC66, Canada Child Benefits Application

If you turn 19 years of age before January 2025

Generally, you have to be 19 years of age or older to get the CCR. If you turn 19 years of age before January 2025, make sure that you file your 2023 income tax and benefit return. The CRA will automatically determine your eligibility for the CCR and, if you are eligible, your first payment will be issued in the quarterly payment after your 19th birthday. For more information, read When your CCR is paid.

If you are a new resident of Canada

If you are a new resident of Canada, fill out and sign Form RC151, GST/HST Credit and Canada Carbon Rebate Application for Individuals Who Become Residents of Canada. Mail the completed form to your tax centre (read Tax centre addresses).

How much you can expect to receive

The amount you will receive depends on your family situation and your province of residence.

The CCR is not subject to a reduction based on income.

To get the quarterly payments, you and your spouse or common-law partner, if you have one, must file an income tax and benefit return. The payment will be paid to the spouse or common-law partner whose tax return is filed first. No matter which one of you receives the payment, the amount will be the same.

You have to file a tax return every year to continue receiving the CCR.

The CCR includes a 20% rural supplement for residents of small and rural communities. The increased supplement and retroactive payments from April and July will be issued together in the October 2024 payment. To be eligible for the rural supplement, you must reside outside of a census metropolitan area (CMA). For the 2023 and 2024 taxation years, after Royal Assent is received, the relevant census will remain the 2016 Census. If you do, you must tick the box on page 2 of your tax return. If both you and your spouse or common-law partner reside outside of a CMA, you should both tick the box. To find out if you qualify for the rural supplement, go to Find out if you qualify for the supplement for residents of small and rural communities.

You can use the online calculator to get an estimate of your payment at Child and family benefits calculator.

Base year and payment period

The base year is the year of the tax return from which information is taken to calculate the CCR amount for the payment period. The payment period is the 12-month period during which the CCR is paid, which runs from April 1 of the year following the base year to March 30 of the next year.

When your CCR is paid

The CRA normally sends payments on the 15th of April, July, October, and January. For the 2023 base year, once your 2023 income tax and benefit return is filed and if you are eligible, the first payment will be issued on April 15, 2024.

If you get your T1 refund by direct deposit, you will also get your CCR by direct deposit.

If you do not receive your payment on the scheduled day, wait 10 business days before calling 1-800-387-1193.

When you should contact the CRA

You should tell the CRA immediately about certain changes, as well as the date they happened or will happen. This section explains what the changes are and how you should tell the CRA about them.

If the number of children in your care has changed

The CRA may need to recalculate your CCR based on new information when any of the following situations apply:

• your child is born, a child starts to live with you, or you share custody of a child (read If you have children who are under 19 years of age)
• a child for whom you are getting benefits no longer lives with you on a full-time basis, stops living with you, becomes a spouse or common-law partner or a parent, or has died. You can tell the CRA by using one of the following methods:
  • My Account
  • calling 1-800-387-1193

If your marital status has changed

If your marital status changes, let the CRA know by the end of the month following the month in which your status changed. This could affect the amount of your CCR. You can tell the CRA by using one of the following methods:

• My Account
• calling 1-800-387-1193
• sending Form RC65, Marital Status Change

Only one payment for the CCR is allowed per family for each quarter. If you were both getting payments as individuals before you were married or became common-law partners, and you both continued to get payments after your marital status changed, one of you will have to repay the amounts you got after your status changed. Either your payment or your spouse or common-law partner's payment will be adjusted to include the payment for both of you.

Do not tell the CRA of your separation until you have been separated for a period of at least 90 days.

If the recipient has died

An individual is not eligible to get the CCR after they die. The CRA may send out a payment after the date of death if the CRA is not aware of the situation. If this happens, you have to return the payment and let the CRA know the date of the death of the recipient so that the information can be updated. Read Tax centre addresses.

If the deceased recipient was married or living common-law

If the deceased recipient's CCR included an amount for a spouse or common-law partner, the CRA will automatically determine the spouse or common-law partner's eligibility for the remaining payments for themselves and for any of their children. If the surviving spouse or common-law partner did not file a tax return, they have to do so to get the payments.

If the deceased recipient was single, separated, divorced, or widowed

If the recipient died before the month in which the CRA makes a payment, no more payments can be made in that person's name or to that person's estate.

If the recipient died during or after the month in which the CRA issued the CCR and the payment has not been cashed, return it so that the CRA can send the payment to the person's estate.

If the recipient was getting a payment for a child, the child's new caregiver should contact the CRA to request the CCR for that child.

If you are moving

If you move, let the CRA know your new address immediately. Otherwise, your payments may stop, even if you use direct deposit and your bank account does not change. You can change your address by using one of the following methods:

• My Account
• calling 1-800-387-1193
• sending Form RC325, Address change request

Other changes

Call 1-800-387-1193 to tell the CRA, if:

• any of the personal information, such as your name, marital status, or the spousal or child information shown on your CCR notice is incorrect
• you (or your spouse or common-law partner) are no longer a resident of Canada

Tax centre addresses

Send your letter and any documents to the tax centre that serves your area.

Digital services for individuals

The CRA's digital services are fast, easy, and secure!

My Account

My Account lets you view and manage your personal income tax and benefit information online.

Use My Account throughout the year to:

• view your benefit and credit information and apply for certain benefits
• view your notice of assessment or reassessment
• view uncashed cheques and request a replacement payment
• change your address, phone numbers, direct deposit information, marital status, and information about children in your care
• manage notification preferences and receive email notifications when important changes are made to your account
• check your tax-free savings account (TFSA) contribution room, your registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) deduction limit, and your first home savings account (FHSA) participation room
• track the progress of certain files you have submitted to the CRA
• make a payment online to the CRA with the My Payment service, create a pre-authorized debit (PAD) agreement, or create a QR code to pay in person at Canada Post for a fee. For more information on how to make a payment, go to Payments to the CRA
  
• view and print your proof of income statement
• manage authorized representatives and authorization requests
• submit documents to the CRA
• submit an audit enquiry
• manage multi-factor authentication settings

To sign in to or register for the CRA's digital services, go to:

• My Account, if you are an individual
• Represent a Client, if you are an authorized representative

Receive your CRA mail online

Set your correspondence preference to "Electronic mail" to receive email notifications when CRA mail, like your notice of assessment, is available in your account.

For more information, go to Email notifications from the CRA.

For more information

If you need help

If you need more information after reading this guide, go to Canada Carbon Rebate or call 1-800-959-8281.

Direct deposit

Direct deposit is a fast, convenient, and secure way to receive your CRA payments directly in your account at a financial institution in Canada. For more information and ways to enrol, go to Direct deposit or contact your financial institution.

Forms and publications

The CRA encourages you to file your return electronically. If you need a paper version of the CRA's forms and publications, go to Forms and publications or call 1-800-959-8281.

Electronic mailing lists

The CRA can send you an email when new information on a subject of interest to you is available on the website. To subscribe to the electronic mailing lists, go to Electronic mailing lists.

Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS)

For tax information by telephone, use the CRA's automated service, TIPS, by calling 1-800-267-6999.

Teletypewriter (TTY) users

If you use a TTY for a hearing or speech impairment, call 1-800-665-0354.

If you use an operator-assisted relay service, call the CRA's regular telephone numbers instead of the TTY number.

Formal disputes (objections and appeals)

You have the right to file an objection if you disagree with an assessment, determination, or decision.

For more information, go to File an objection.

CRA service feedback program

Service complaints

You can expect to be treated fairly under clear and established rules, and get a high level of service each time you deal with the CRA. For more information about the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, go to Taxpayer Bill of Rights.

You may provide compliments or suggestions, and if you are not satisfied with the service you received:

1. Try to resolve the matter with the employee you have been dealing with or call the telephone number provided in the correspondence you received from the CRA. If you do not have contact information for the CRA, go to Contact the CRA.
2. If you have not been able to resolve your service-related issue, you can ask to discuss the matter with the employee's supervisor.
3. If the problem is still not resolved, you can file a service-related complaint by filling out Form RC193, Service Feedback. For more information and to learn how to file a complaint, go to Submit a service feedback.

If you are not satisfied with how the CRA has handled your service-related complaint, you can submit a complaint with the Office of the Taxpayers' Ombudsperson.

Reprisal complaints

If you have received a response regarding a previously submitted service complaint or a formal review of a CRA decision and feel you were not treated impartially by a CRA employee, you can submit a reprisal complaint by filling out Form RC459, Reprisal Complaint.

For more information, go to Reprisal Complaints.