The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting families and children as we weather the lasting impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Today, on its 6th anniversary, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould, highlighted that the maximum annual Canada Child Benefit will increase to help families cope with the rising cost of living. For the 2022-23 benefit year, families most in need can receive up to $6,997 per child under the age of six and $5,903 per child aged six through 17.
The Canada Child Benefit was introduced in 2016 and is a key component of the Government of Canada's Affordability Plan. Since its inception, the benefit has played a key role in reducing the number of children living in poverty and continues to be central to the Government of Canada's efforts to reduce poverty by 50% by 2030, relative to 2015 levels.
The Canada Child Benefit has been indexed since 2018. The amount Canadians receive is based on the adjusted family net income reported on their tax return from the previous year.
Since 2015, the Government of Canada has delivered real improvements to make life more affordable coast to coast to coast, including making a historic investment of up to $27 billion over five years to build a Canada-wide early learning and child care system in collaboration with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners. This investment allows governments to work together toward achieving an average parent fee of $10-a-day by March 2026 for licensed child care spaces, starting with a 50% fee reduction on average for licensed early learning and child care spaces by the end of 2022.
