Archived - Fall Economic Statement 2022

Doubling the GST Credit for Six Months

Starting November 4, 2022, an estimated 11 million low and modest-income current GST Credit recipients will automatically receive an additional payment. Single Canadians without children will receive up to an extra $234, and couples with two children will receive up to an extra $467. Seniors will receive an extra $225 on average.

The Canada Dental Benefit

As a first step towards making dental care more affordable, in September 2022, the government introduced legislation to implement the Canada Dental Benefit, to provide eligible parents or guardians with direct, up-front tax-free payments to cover dental expenses for their children under 12-years-old. This will benefit an estimated 500,000 Canadian children.

For those without dental coverage and with an annual family income under $90,000 per year, the Canada Dental Benefit will provide payments of up to $650 per year, over the next two years.

A Top-Up to the Canada Housing Benefit

Building on the Canada Housing Benefit, introduced in 2020, the government introduced a $500 top-up to the Benefit. Upon Parliamentary approval, it will deliver a tax-free payment directly to 1.8 million low-income renters who are struggling with the cost of housing.

The federal benefit will be available to applicants with an adjusted net income below $35,000 for families, or below $20,000 for single Canadians, who pay at least 30 per cent of their income towards rent.

A New, Quarterly Canada Workers Benefit

The Canada Workers Benefit is a refundable tax credit that tops up the income of about 3 million of our lowest-paid—and often most essential—workers in a typical year. It is currently delivered through tax returns, meaning Canadians who receive it need to wait until the tax year is over to receive the support that helps them pay for day-to-day essentials like groceries and rent.

The 2022 Fall Economic Statement proposes to provide $4 billion over six years, starting in 2022-23, to automatically issue advance payments of the Canada Workers Benefit to people who qualified for the benefit in the previous year, starting in July 2023 for the 2023 taxation year.

The CWB would provide up to $1,428 for single workers or up to $2,461 for a family this spring through the existing tax return payment, and then new advance payments for 2023 across three quarterly advance payments starting in July, putting more money in workers’ pockets to help cope with the rising cost of living.

Eliminating Interest on Student Loans

The 2022 Fall Economic Statement proposes to eliminate interest on Canada Student Loans and Canada Apprentice Loans, including those currently being repaid, beginning on April 1, 2023, pending Royal Assent.

Lowering Credit Card Transaction Fees for Small Businesses

The government intends to enter into negotiations with the payment card industry and businesses to lower credit card transaction fees for small businesses in a manner that does not adversely affect other businesses and protects existing reward points for consumers.

On November 3, the government published draft legislative amendments to the Payment Card Networks Act. Should the industry not come to an agreed solution in the months to come, the government will move forward with these draft legislative proposals in the new year and move forward on regulating credit card transaction fees.

Everyone should have a safe and affordable place to call home. But that goal is increasingly out of reach for far too many Canadians. In addition to the top-up to the Canada Housing Benefit, the government is moving forward with its ambitious package of measures to build more homes and make housing more affordable across the country. We will:

• Help young Canadians afford a downpayment faster with the new Tax-Free First Home Savings Account, which will allow prospective first-time home buyers to save up to $40,000 tax-free toward their first home. Like an RRSP, contributions would be tax-deductible, and withdrawals to purchase a first home—including investment income—would be non-taxable, like a TFSA. Tax-free in; tax-free out. The government expects that Canadians will be able to open and begin contributing to an account in mid-2023.
• Help Canadians save on closing costs by doubling the First-Time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit to provide up to $1,500 in direct support to home buyers, starting in 2022, to offset the increasing closing costs involved in buying a home.
• Crack down on house flipping by ensuring that profits from properties held for less than 12 months are fully taxed, starting in 2023, with certain exceptions for unexpected life events (e.g. death, divorce). This measure will ensure that investors who flip homes pay their fair share, and play a role in lowering housing prices for Canadians.
• Introduce a new, refundable Multigenerational Home Renovation Tax Credit to provide up to $7,500 in support for constructing a secondary suite which will help families preserve traditions of caring for an aging grandparent at home, or help parents to afford to support a child with a disability move back home, starting January 1, 2023.