Harper Government looking for hundreds of thousands of families not currently registered for the increased child care benefit
July 7, 2015 – Québec, Quebec – Employment and Social Development Canada
An estimated 1,510 families with children in Québec are eligible to receive money under the Harper Government’s boosted Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB), but are at risk of not receiving the benefit unless they apply. The Honourable Pierre Poilievre, Minister of Employment and Social Development, asked for help today from the media and the public to encourage families to apply for the benefit.
The majority of families with children, approximately 3.8 million, are known and will automatically receive the boosted UCCB or be contacted by the Government to confirm their information. However, an estimated 200,000 eligible families, including 16,700 in the province of Quebec, are not currently captured by the Government’s UCCB system and may miss out on receiving money that is owed to them unless they apply. In 2015 alone, this represents potentially millions of dollars in unclaimed benefits.
Under the boosted UCCB, families will receive almost $2,000 per year for each child under 6 and $720 per year for each child aged 6 through 17. The new benefit amounts will be retroactive to January 1, 2015, and be reflected in monthly payments to families in July 2015. The increases to the UCCB are expected to more than double the number of families that benefit—from 1.6 million to more than 4 million.
If your family is not currently receiving the UCCB, has never received the UCCB, or has never applied for the Canada Child Tax Benefit, and you still have children under 18 in your care, please go to www.canada.ca/taxsavings in order to find out how you can apply.
Aaron Bell
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Employment and Social Development
819-994-2482
aaron.bell@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca
Media Relations Office
Employment and Social Development Canada
819-994-5559
media@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca
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