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Your GST credit just got a new name and a raise

GM Gurjot Mann, CPA  ·  Jun 13, 2026  ·  7 min read

You checked your account on June 5 and saw a deposit that was bigger than your usual GST credit. You're not imagining it. The payment was real, and it's the start of a change to one of the most common tax-free benefits in Canada.

Here's the thing. The GST/HST credit is getting a new name and a bigger payout. Starting in July 2026, it becomes the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit. Same rules, same schedule, more money.

About 12 million people get this credit. Most never think about it. But this year is different, and the details matter if you want every dollar you're owed.

In this guide, you'll learn what actually changed, how much you'll get based on your family size, and the one simple thing you have to do to keep the payments coming. No jargon. Just the facts you can act on.

What changed, in one minute

Here's the short version. The GST/HST credit isn't going away. It's getting renamed and topped up.

As of July 2026, it becomes the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit, or CGEB. The eligibility rules, the math, and the four-times-a-year schedule all stay the same. The only real change is the amount. Payments go up by 25%.

Before that raise kicks in, there was a one-time bonus. A top-up landed on June 5, 2026. That's the bigger deposit you saw.

So two things are happening:

Why our government did this

Food has gotten expensive over the last few years. Since 2020, grocery prices have climbed faster than overall inflation. The CRA points to an average extra cost of $782 per household. The CGEB is meant to take some of that pressure off for people with low and modest incomes.

The benefit was announced in January 2026 and the law passed soon after. The June top-up was the bridge to get money out the door before the new payments start.

The June 5 top-up payment

Who got it

You got the top-up if two things were true:

If both are true, you didn't need to apply. The CRA sent it automatically, by direct deposit or cheque, depending on how your CRA account is set up.

Didn't file your 2024 return yet? You can still file it. Once it's assessed, the CRA will check if you qualify and send any amount you're owed.

How much it was

The top-up equalled 50% of your annual GST/HST credit for the July 2025 to June 2026 period.

A quick example. If your annual credit was $400, your top-up was $200. Simple as that.

Here are the maximum top-up amounts:

If you share custody, each parent gets half of what they'd get with full custody.

Why it might say “GST/HST credit” in your bank

Don't panic if the deposit was labelled the old way. Banks need time to update their systems. The CRA says the payment may still show up as the GST/HST credit for now, even though it's the new top-up. The label will catch up.

The new Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit

When it starts and how the raise works

The first CGEB quarterly payment goes out July 3, 2026.

From there, every payment is 25% higher than the old GST credit amount. That higher level holds for five years, from July 2026 through June 2031.

Same payment dates. Same eligibility. Same automatic process through your tax return. Just a bigger number.

How much you'll get going forward

For the July 2026 to June 2027 period, here are the maximum annual amounts:

So a family of four (a couple with two kids) tops out around $1,358 a year. Your actual amount depends on your income from your 2025 tax return. Lower income means a higher payment.

What a full year of 2026 looks like

Because 2026 has both the top-up and the new raised payments, the calendar-year total is higher than usual. The CRA gives two headline numbers:

Those are maximums. Real amounts vary with income and family size. But it gives you a sense of the bump this year.

Do you need to do anything?

The one thing that triggers payment

File your tax return. That's it.

You don't apply for this benefit. The CRA figures out your eligibility from your return and pays you automatically. No form, no phone call.

But the return is the switch. No return, no payment. Here's the breakdown:

Even if you had no income, you still file. People skip this and miss money they're owed. Don't be one of them.

New residents of Canada

New to Canada? You may need to apply once, since the CRA doesn't have a tax history for you yet. That's done with Form RC151. After that first step, future payments follow the normal automatic process.

Why you might not get paid

If a payment didn't show up, there's usually a clear reason. The common ones:

If you think you qualified and got nothing, check your CRA account first. You can still file a late 2024 return and get a retroactive payment if you're eligible.

What happens after 2031

The 25% raise is set for five years. It runs July 2026 through June 2031.

What happens after that isn't locked in. The benefit continues, but the higher amount is tied to that window. Treat the raise as a five-year boost, not a permanent new baseline. If anything changes before 2031, it'll come through a future budget or announcement. For now, plan around the five-year horizon and don't assume the bigger number lasts forever.

The bottom line

The change sounds bigger than it is. The GST/HST credit got a new name, the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit, and a 25% raise that runs through 2031. A one-time top-up landed June 5 to bridge the gap.

Here's what to remember:

That last point is the whole game. No return, no payment. File even with zero income.

Money questions like this come up all year, and the rules keep shifting. We break them down in plain language every week. Come back and see us for the next one.

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