The federal grocery rebate is available this week. Who is eligible ...

As announced in the federal budget in March, the grocery rebate to help combat rising food costs will be available to eligible Canadians on July 5, alongside the next quarterly GST/HST credit payment.

The federal government is doubling the one-time GST rebate for lower-income Canadians, a $2.5-billion measure that it’s calling a “grocery rebate.”

Who is eligible for the grocery rebate?

The rebate will be available to those who are eligible to receive the GST/HST credit for January 2023. The rebate is based on your 2021 tax return, so to be eligible you must file a tax return for 2021, even if you have no income to report.

According to the CRA, you may be entitled to the grocery rebate, but not the July HST/GST credit, which is based on your 2022 tax return – or vice versa.

How much is the rebate for?

The grocery rebate will be equivalent to double the GST/HST credit amount received in January and depends on your family situation.

If you are single, you will receive:

$234 (no children)

$387 (with 1 child)

$467 (with 2 children)

$548 (with 3 children)

$628 (with 4 children)

If you are married or have a common-law partner, you will receive:

$306 (no children)

$387 (with 1 child)

$467 (with 2 children)

$548 (with 3 children)

$628 (with 4 children)

When will eligible Canadians be able to access the rebate? And how will it be accessible?

The grocery rebate will be delivered through a one-time payment from the Canada Revenue Agency on July 5. If you don’t receive the rebate on July 5, the CRA says to wait 10 days and then contact the agency.