BC Family Benefit Payments Going Out

If you haven’t seen it yet - keep an eye on your bank account as the first of three enhanced BC Family Benefit payments have started to trickle in.

The enhanced Benefit will provide families with moderate and low incomes, and children under 18, with more money in the first three months of 2023. The credit will provide as much as an additional $350 from January to March for a family with two children.

Finance Minister Katrine Conroy says due to global inflation and the rise in day-to-day expenses that come with raising children, a little extra money could hopefully help take a bit of pressure off family budgets.

Approximately 75% of B.C. families will receive the enhanced credit and approximately 84% of those families will receive at least an additional $50 per month, per child. Eligibility is based on income and number of children. It is automatically determined when someone registers for the Canada Child Benefit, usually through their income tax return. Most families will receive the benefit as a direct deposit from the Canada Revenue Agency, alongside the federal Canada Child Benefit program.

The province says that since fall, it’s provided approximately $2 billion in supports to help people with increased costs through the BC Affordability Credit, BC Family Benefit, support for back-to-school expenses, a one-time BC Hydro rebate and a cap to keep rent increases below the rate of inflation.