Climate Action Incentive Payment Amounts for 2025-2026

This program has been discontinued. On March 15, 2025, the federal government eliminated the consumer carbon fuel charge, and the CRA confirmed there would be no further quarterly Climate Action Incentive Payments (CAIP) — renamed the Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR) — after the April 2025 payment. There is no “2025-2026 benefit year” for this credit: October 2025 and January 2026 CAIP/CCR payments described in earlier drafts of this article never occurred. The information below reflects the final active amounts (based on the 2024 tax return) and the closure of the program, not an ongoing benefit.

What Is the CAIP?

The federal carbon pricing system charges a levy on fossil fuels at the point of production or import. This levy is passed along through higher prices for gasoline, natural gas, and propane. The CAIP is designed to return the bulk of these revenues directly to residents, ensuring the carbon price does not disproportionately harm average and lower-income households.

The CAIP is:

• Tax-free
• Paid quarterly: April, July, October, January
• Based on your most recently filed tax return
• Automatic — no separate application required

Eligible Provinces (While the Program Was Active)

CAIP/CCR was paid to residents of provinces that used the federal fuel charge rather than their own equivalent system. Before the program closed, the eligible provinces were:

• Alberta
• Saskatchewan
• Manitoba
• Ontario
• New Brunswick
• Nova Scotia
• Prince Edward Island
• Newfoundland and Labrador

British Columbia has its own provincial carbon tax and does not receive the federal CAIP.

Quebec operates a cap-and-trade system (through the Western Climate Initiative) and does not receive the federal CAIP.

Final Payment Amounts (2024 Base Year — April 2025 Only)

The program was cancelled before a full 2025-2026 benefit year could begin. The only payment made using the “2024 base year” rates below was the single April 2025 payment — there was no July 2025, October 2025, or January 2026 instalment.

Why There’s No “Quarterly Breakdown” Anymore

Because the April 2025 payment was the last one, the amounts above are not a slice of an ongoing annual figure — they are what a single family received, once, before the program ended. An Ontario family of four (two adults, two children) received one payment of $151 + $75.50 + $37.75 + $37.75 = $302.00 in April 2025 and nothing further.

Rural Supplement

Residents of small and rural communities received a 20% supplement on top of their base CAIP/CCR amounts, for the same reasons cited when the program was active (longer driving distances, less access to public transit, more reliance on home heating oil or propane). This supplement also ended with the program.

Example — Rural Alberta family of four (2 adults, 2 children), April 2025 payment:

• Base amount: $228 + $114 + $57 + $57 = $456
• Rural supplement (20%): $91.20
• Total (final, one-time) payment: $547.20

Who Qualifies for the Rural Supplement?

The CRA determines rural eligibility based on your postal code as reported on your most recently filed tax return, cross-referenced with Statistics Canada’s census metropolitan area (CMA) and census agglomeration (CA) data. If you live outside a CMA or CA, you generally qualify for the rural supplement.

You do not need to apply separately — the CRA applies the supplement automatically if your postal code qualifies.

Who Is Eligible?

To receive the CAIP, you must:

1. Be a Canadian resident for income tax purposes on the first day of the payment month
2. Live in an eligible province on the first day of the payment month
3. Be 19 or older, or have been married/common-law, or be a parent living with a child

Children are automatically included for families where the primary caregiver files a return. The Canada Child Benefit (CCB) determination typically identifies which parent claims the children for CAIP purposes.

Income Does Not Affect Eligibility

Unlike many benefits, the CAIP has no income threshold. A family earning $500,000 and a family earning $30,000 in the same province receive the same CAIP amount. The political design is intentional — a flat-per-person payment is transparent and simple, and ensures that households who drive less than average come out ahead even at higher incomes.

How to Receive the CAIP

Simply file your tax return. The CRA automatically determines your eligibility and calculates your payment. You do not need to check a box, fill out a separate form, or apply anywhere.

For the fastest payments, ensure your direct deposit information is current in CRA My Account. Paper cheques are mailed if no direct deposit is on file.

If you miss filing your return, you will not receive the CAIP for that benefit year. Filing late will generate retroactive payments for any missed quarters once the return is assessed.

CAIP and Benefit Stacking

Because the CAIP is non-taxable income, receiving it does not affect:

• Your GST/HST credit amount
• Canada Child Benefit (CCB)
• Old Age Security (OAS) or GIS clawback thresholds
• Your marginal tax bracket
• Any means-tested provincial benefits

This makes the CAIP a pure benefit — it doesn’t interact negatively with other credits.

What Happened to the CAIP

Canada’s federal consumer carbon levy was eliminated on March 15, 2025 by the Liberal government under Prime Minister Mark Carney (who became PM in March 2025, before the subsequent federal election) — not by a Conservative government, and not merely an “announced plan.” Because the CAIP/CCR was funded entirely by consumer carbon pricing revenue, the CRA confirmed there would be no further quarterly payments after the April 2025 instalment. The federal backstop tax on large industrial emitters (a separate program) remains in place; only the consumer-facing fuel charge and its associated rebate ended.

If you were eligible for the CCR but have not yet filed your 2021–2024 tax returns, you may still be able to claim retroactive payments once those returns are assessed — see the CRA’s Canada Carbon Rebate page for details.

Sources

• CRA — Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR), formerly the Climate Action Incentive Payment (CAIP) — program closed
• Government of Canada — Carbon pricing overview