“Reimbursement for groceries”
It is in fact a repetition, under another name, of a measure implemented in November 2022 and renewed this year. It doubles the amount of the goods and services tax credit, up to $467 for a couple with two children and $234 for a single person. The additional amount decreases gradually from a certain income threshold, for example $49,200 for a single person without children or $40,000 for a couple with two children. It is not known when the one-time payment of this “grocery rebate” will be issued by the Canada Revenue Agency.
Dental care
After children under 12 last year, Canadians with household incomes below $90,000 who are uninsured will be eligible for partial reimbursement of their dental care costs by 2025. The program will expand to those under 18, seniors and people with disabilities by the end of 2023. Those with household incomes under $70,000 will not pay a deductible. The Canada Dental Care Plan will cost $13 billion over five years, it is announced. Neither the terms nor the eligible coverage were specified.
No more RESP money
For more than 25 years, students have been restricted from withdrawing more than $5,000 per 13-week session in “educational assistance payments” under the Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). More than half a million students withdraw funds in this way each year, it is reported. The limit will increase to $8,000 for full-time students, and $2,500 to $4,000 for part-time students. The 2023 budget also provides the possibility for divorced or separated parents to open a joint RESP for their children.
Break on booze
Excise duties on alcohol are in principle automatically indexed to inflation at the beginning of each tax year, on the 1er april. This is significant revenue for Ottawa, with “other excise taxes and duties” bringing in $11.4 billion last year. Normally, if we go by the forecasts of the Ministry of Finance, excise duties on alcohol should have been increased by 6.3% in 2023. They will only be increased by 2%, a “temporary” measure that does not only applies this year. The expected cost of this flower to drinkers: 100 million this year.
Miscarriage
A brand new paid leave will be offered to women who experience a miscarriage. The 2023 budget provides for changes to the Canada Labor Code, which applies to federally regulated sectors such as banking and telecommunications, for this sad event which would concern “from 15% to 25%” of pregnancies. Details on the duration of this leave and even on its scope, for example for fathers, have not, however, been disclosed. “This new leave will also apply to parents who plan to have a child by adoption or surrogate mother,” it says.
Framed mortgages
Faced with the rise in interest rates, which mainly affects homeowners who have opted for a variable rate, the federal government wants to encourage the banks to be conciliatory. Through the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a “guideline” is announced for these financial institutions to provide relief, such as extending amortization periods “even beyond 25 years “. This guideline will not be binding, but it is hoped that it will “ensure Canadians fair treatment and equitable access” to relief measures.