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Home  ->  Filing Your Return -> Canada Carbon Rebate (formerly Climate Action Incentive)

Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR) - formerly Climate Action Incentive (CAI) Quarterly Payments

Income Tax Act s. 122.8

The Climate Action Incentive refundable tax credit was included in the 2018 Federal Budget and enacted for 2018 and later years as part of Bill C-86, Budget Implementation Act 2018, No. 2.  It is now a quarterly payment, instead of being refunded as a tax credit on the tax return.  The payment was renamed in 2024 as the Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR). The tax return must be filed to be eligible to receive the quarterly payments.

Canada Carbon Rebate Topics

CAI Paid Quarterly Starting in 2022

April 2023 CAI Payments Delayed For Many

Provinces Affected

Who is Not Eligible

Who is Eligible

Carbon Rebate Incentive Annual Amounts

Carbon Rebate 10% Supplement for Residents of Small and Rural Communities, Increasing to 20% starting April 1, 2024

Claiming the Carbon Rebate / Climate Action Incentive (CAI) 2022 and Later Tax Returns

Claiming the Climate Action Incentive 2021 Tax Return

Claiming the Climate Action Incentive 2020 and Earlier Years

Federal Government CAI and Fuel Charge Exemption Resources

Other Provinces and Territories and Climate Action Measures

Carbon Rebate/CAI Paid Quarterly Starting in 2022

The 2021 Federal Budget announced that starting in 2022, the CAI will be paid to taxpayers at the beginning of each quarter, instead of being included on the tax return.  The 2022 CAI was not claimed on the 2021 tax return, but the 2021 tax return had to be filed in order to receive the quarterly payments, the same way that other quarterly payments and refundable tax credits depend on the tax return being filed.  If you live outside a census metropolitan area, schedule 14 of the 2021 tax return must be completed.  The legislation for this change was included in Bill C-19 Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1, which received Royal Assent on June 23, 2022.

The quarterly payments started in July 2022 with a double payment, for the first two quarters of the 2022-2023 fuel charge year (April 2022 to March 2023.  See the December 3, 2021 news release.

April 2023 CAI Payments Delayed For Many

Taxpayers whose 2022 personal income tax returns were not assessed on or before March 24th did not receive their April 14, 2023 climate action incentive payments.  See Climate action incentive payment on the CRA website.  However, this information was added to the website after March 31st. Thanks to Jamie Golombek, CIBC Managing Director, Tax & Estate Planning, for sharing the Toronto Sun article GOLDSTEIN: Carbon tax rebates delayed for all but early tax filers.

It appears that the April payment will be made on May 15th for the missed April payments.  Check your CRA My Account to see if it indicates a payment for that date is in progress.

Provinces Affected

The provinces for whom this credit is available for 2024-25 are:

bullet Alberta
bullet Manitoba
bulletOntario
bullet Saskatchewan
bullet New Brunswick
bulletNewfoundland and Labrador
bulletNova Scotia
bulletPrince Edward Island

New Brunswick announced in their 2023 Budget that they would be adopting the federal "backstop" for carbon taxation as well.  No start date was indicated.

The above provinces have not adopted the federal system for pricing carbon pollution, or their systems do not meet the federal standard for reducing carbon pollution.  A federal fuel charge applies to these provinces, 90% of which is returned to residents through the Canada Carbon Rebate (formerly Climate Action Incentive) payments.

For those jurisdictions that have voluntarily adopted the federal system, direct proceeds are directly returned to the governments of those jurisdictions, not to the residents.

Who is Not Eligible:

bullet non-resident of Canada at any time in the tax year (i.e., 2019 for 2020 CAI)
bullet those confined to a prison or similar institution for a period of at least 90 days during the tax year
bullet those exempt in Canada at any time in the tax year due to being an officer or servant of the government of another county, such as a diplomat, a family member who resided with such a person, or an employee of such a person
bullet person in respect of whom a children's special allowance (CSA) was payable at any time in the tax year
bullet taxpayers who died before the first day of the payment month ("specified month"). The payment months are January, April, July, and October.

Who is Eligible:

Only residents of the affected provinces on the first day of the payment month and the last day of the previous month are eligible, and the resident must meet at least one of the following criteria at that time:

bullet 19 years of age or older, or, if they are under 19 years of age:
bullethave (or previously had) a spouse or common-law partner, or
bullet is (or previously were) a parent who lives (or previously lived) with their child

The months specified for the 2021 taxation year are the months of April, July, and October of 2022, and January 2023.  Thus, if a person has turned 19 before one of those months they will be an eligible individual.  If they are under 19 before one of those months they will still be a qualified dependant.

If there are adult children age 18+ (19+ for the 2022 and later payments) in the household they should file their own tax return in order to claim the full adult climate action incentive, as well as to receive the GST/HST credit if they are eligible.

Carbon Rebate / Climate Action Incentive Annual Amounts

The 2024-25 annual payment amounts for a family of 4 will range from $760 in New Brunswick to $1,800 in Alberta.

See the following Department of Finance announcements:

Canada Carbon Rebate amounts for 2024-25 - 4 quarterly payments starting April 2024

Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2023-24 - 4 quarterly payments starting April 2023

Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2022-23 (cheques to be mailed quarterly starting July 2022, with 2 quarters being paid in the initial payment)

Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2021 (2020 tax return)

Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2020 (2019 tax return)

Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2019 (2018 tax return)

CAI payment amounts for subsequent years will be specified by the Minister of Finance.

Carbon Rebate 10% Supplement for Residents of Small and Rural Communities, Increasing to 20%

If you reside outside of a census metropolitan area (CMA) on December 31, as defined by Statistics Canada, then you are eligible for a 10% supplement to the baseline amount of the CAI.  This supplement is proposed to be increased to 20% starting in April 2024, as per the October 26, 2023 announcement by the federal government. The legislation for this increase is included in Bill C-59.

See the Canada Revenue (CRA) information Find out if you qualify for the 10% supplement for residents of small and rural communities

Claiming the Carbon Rebate / Climate Action Incentive (CAI) 2022 and Later Tax Returns

To receive the Canada Carbon Rebate payment on April 15, 2024, you and your spouse or common-law partner (if applicable) must have your income tax and benefit return filed electronically on or before March 15, 2024. For tax returns processed after this date, the April payment will be included in a subsequent payment after your return is assessed.

Rural Supplement: You must tick a box on page 2 of the return (for affected provinces) if you reside outside of the listed census metropolitan areas.  All residents of PEI are entitled to the rural supplement, and do not need to tick a box to apply.

Claiming the Climate Action Incentive 2021 Tax Return

Tax Return Schedule 14, Climate Action Incentive for tax year 2021 - had to be completed if you lived outside a census metropolitan area, for Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario or Saskatchewan.  See the tax package for your province, Schedule 14.

Claiming the Climate Action Incentive 2020 and Earlier Years

The CAI was claimed on the federal income tax return up until the 2020 tax return, and was calculated on Schedule 14 Climate Action Incentive.  The CAI is included in the 2020 Detailed Canadian Tax Calculator, near the bottom of the calculator.  The CAI amount must be entered by the user (as a negative amount) and is not checked.

For the amounts for the 2020 tax return see Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2021 (2020 tax return).  Links for earlier years can be found above.

Federal Government CAI and Fuel Charge Relief Resources

Canada Revenue Agency - Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR) - formerly Climate Action Incentive Payment

Fuel charge relief - exemption from federal fuel charge for fishers, farmers and certain others, links to exemption certificates

Other Provinces and Territories and Climate Action Measures

Alberta repeals the provincial carbon tax on May 30, 2019

BC Carbon Tax and Low Income Climate Action Tax Credit

Newfoundland and Labrador Carbon Pricing Plan - until June 30, 2023

Northwest Territories - Implementing Carbon Pricing in the NWT

Nova Scotia Cap-and-Trade Program, Energy Efficiency Nova Scotia - until June 30, 2023

Nunavut and Pollution Pricing

Prince Edward Island Climate Change Plan, Energy Efficient Equipment Rebates and Energy Rebate - until June 30, 2023

Quebec - The Carbon Market, a Green Economy Growth Tool

Yukon and Pollution Pricing

Revised: February 15, 2024

 

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