Worked examples

All examples use the July 2026 to June 2027 benefit year: adult base $445, child $234, single supplement up to $234, phase-in at 2% above $11,564, phase-out at 5% above $46,432. Quarterly figures are the annual figure divided by four. Rounding is to the nearest cent in the arithmetic and to the nearest dollar where a table rounds.

Example 1: single person, $30,000 income

Priya lives alone in Winnipeg and earns $30,000. Her supplement is fully phased in, because $30,000 is above $23,264. Her credit is $445 + $234 = $679 a year, or $169.75 a quarter. Her income is below the $46,432 phase-out threshold, so no reduction applies. This is the maximum for a single person with no children.

Example 2: single person, $50,000 income

Marc lives alone in Halifax and earns $50,000. His maximum is also $679, but his income exceeds the phase-out threshold by $3,568 ($50,000 − $46,432). At 5%, the reduction is $178.40. His credit is $679 − $178.40 = $500.60 a year, or $125.15 a quarter. He keeps most of the credit because he is only a short way up the phase-out slope.

Example 3: single person, $20,000 income, supplement still phasing in

Aisha lives alone in Saskatoon and earns $20,000. Her supplement is 2% of the $8,436 by which her income exceeds $11,564, which is $168.72. Her credit is $445 + $168.72 = $613.72 a year, or about $153.43 a quarter. She receives less than the $679 maximum not because of a reduction, but because the supplement has not yet finished phasing in. At $23,264 she would reach the full $679.

Example 4: couple, two children, $40,000 income

Daniel and Emily live in Hamilton with two children aged 7 and 10, and their combined income is $40,000. Below the phase-out threshold, so no reduction: $890 for the couple plus $468 for two children = $1,358 a year, or $339.50 a quarter. This is the maximum for their household.

Example 5: couple, two children, $55,000 income

The same family a year later, with combined income of $55,000. The excess over $46,432 is $8,568, and 5% of that is $428.40. Their credit is $1,358 − $428.40 = $929.60 a year, or $232.40 a quarter. Compare Example 2: the reduction in dollars is larger here than for the single person at $50,000, because the excess income is larger — but the family keeps far more overall, because their maximum was larger to begin with.

Example 6: single parent, one child, $30,000 income

Sophie lives in Quebec City with her 6-year-old daughter and earns $30,000. Her first child counts at the adult rate, so her credit is $445 (herself) + $445 (first child at the adult rate) + $234 (single supplement) = $1,124 a year, or $281 a quarter. Her income is below the phase-out threshold, so there is no reduction. If her daughter turns 19, Sophie's household becomes a single adult with no children, and the credit would be recalculated from the $679 maximum instead.

Example 7: couple, no children, $60,000 income, near the cut-off

James and Laura live in Calgary with no children and combined income of $60,000. Their excess over $46,432 is $13,568, and 5% of that is $678.40. Their credit is $890 − $678.40 = $211.60 a year, or $52.90 a quarter — just above the $50 quarterly floor, so it still arrives in four payments. At $64,232 their credit would reach zero. A single person at $65,000, by contrast, is already past the single cut-off of $60,012 and receives nothing for that benefit year.