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Will the $2,000 tax credit for those aged 70 and over be back in 2023 and 2024? asks one of our readers, Roger Bouchard.
We can never be certain of the sustainability of an incentive or a tax assistance measure.
But this maximum credit of $2,000 for eligible people aged 70 or over, and $4,000 for a household where both spouses are eligible, will remain in 2023. The estimated annual cost of this measure introduced in 2018 is 1.8 billion dollars. We are talking about a refundable tax credit for assistance to seniors, which aims to provide financial assistance to eligible individuals, who must be 70 years of age or older on December 31, and who have to deal with modest incomes.
However, its calculation is modified this year.
In 2023, it is offered to households whose family income does not exceed $64,515 for a single person, and $119,404 when both spouses are eligible. By extrapolation, the income should not exceed around $79,726 for a person with an ineligible spouse. As for the credit actually obtained, it is reduced this year from a family income of $25,755 for a single person and $41,885 for a couple.
Until 2022, this reduction was made at a rate of 5% for each dollar exceeding the threshold. For 2023 and subsequent years, a mechanism for revaluing this rate has been introduced into the legislation. The rate of reduction will be 5.16% for the current taxation year.
In its documentation, Revenu Québec specifies that it will do the calculation for the individual if he does not request it when filing his income tax return. In addition, to benefit from it, the eligible person, and, if applicable, his spouse on December 31, must file his return. Finally, the individual is not eligible if he or his spouse is exempt from tax.