Here's why some provinces won't get the final Canada Carbon Rebate payment

The final Canada Carbon Rebate payment is officially landing next week — but if you live in the wrong province, you might have noticed that you never see a dime of this payment. But do you actually know why?

As the federal government winds down this carbon tax rebate, folks across Canada are asking why only some people are getting the money, and why other provinces don't get the Canada Carbon Rebate at all.

Set to roll out on Tuesday, April 22, this final government payment from the Canada Revenue Agency marks the end of an era. The quarterly rebate was tied to the consumer carbon tax — officially called the federal fuel charge — which ended on April 1. That means this is the last time eligible Canadians will get cash back through this specific program.

But not every province or territory used the federal carbon pricing system when it was active.

The rebate only applied in places where Ottawa collected and redistributed the carbon tax for the provinces — that's Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, P.E.I. and Saskatchewan. If you're living in one of these spots, you're in line to receive your final CCR payment.

So what about the rest of the country?

People in B.C., Quebec and the Northwest Territories don't get the Canada Carbon Rebate because those three jurisdictions set up their own carbon pricing systems that met federal standards, which meant they never used the federal fuel charge — and therefore, never got the federal rebate in the first place.

Instead, they run their own provincial or territorial programs, most of which have their own associated rebates — including the BC Climate Action Tax Credit and the Northwest Territories Cost of Living Offset. These are separate from the CCR and got paid out through the GST/HST Credit, not as a standalone cheque.

The last round of those payments already went out earlier this month on April 4, so if you're in one of those regions, that was likely your last carbon-related rebate.

The same goes for residents of Nunavut and Yukon, territories that did use the federal fuel charge but handled the issuance of the carbon rebates separately — under the Nunavut Carbon Credit and the Yukon Government Carbon Price Rebate. If you're in one of those territories, your rebate payments don't show up as a Canada Carbon Rebate, but instead are also paid out via the GST/HST Credit.

Quebec, on the other hand, uses a cap-and-trade system instead of a fuel charge, so it never had a carbon tax rebate either.

It's also worth noting that this final CCR payment is a bit juicier than usual. Like every April, the amounts have increased across the board. A family of four in rural Alberta, for example, can now expect $547.20 — including the 20% rural supplement.

Payments vary based on province, family size and location, with individuals in larger cities getting slightly less — but unlike most other government payments, they aren't impacted by income.

To get this final carbon tax rebate on schedule next Tuesday, though, there's a catch. The Canada Revenue Agency required Canadians to file their 2024 tax returns electronically by April 2 in order to get the payment on schedule.

That deadline was key because the April payment kicks off the new benefit year, which is based on your most recent return. While your income doesn't affect the Canada Carbon Rebate, the CRA still needs up-to-date info about your household situation, your province or territory and even your municipality to calculate the right amount — especially if you're eligible for the rural supplement.

But if you missed that early April 2 tax-filing deadline, don't panic. You'll still get the rebate once your return is processed — it might just take six to eight weeks to show up in your bank account.

This final payout wraps up a program that's been a regular line item on many Canadians' direct deposit notifications since 2019. But with the consumer carbon tax now in the rearview, the Canada Revenue Agency won't be issuing any more CCR payments moving forward.

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