The Canada Workers Benefit just reset — and half of it now arrives early
The July 10 advance payment kicked off a new Canada Workers Benefit year, with maximums up to $1,633 for singles and $2,813 for families. Here's who gets it, how the advance works, and the filing deadline that decides everything.
July is reset month for almost every income-tested benefit in Canada — the CCB, the new Groceries and Essentials Benefit, OAS withholding — and the Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) is no exception. On July 10, 2026, the CRA sent out the first Advanced Canada Workers Benefit (ACWB) installment of the new benefit year, calculated from the 2025 return you filed this spring.
If you earn a modest working income, this is one of the few benefits that pays you for working — and you don't have to apply for any of it.
What the CWB is worth this year
The CWB is a refundable tax credit for lower-income workers. For the 2025 tax year — the one funding payments from July 2026 through June 2027 — the maximum basic amounts are:
- $1,633 for a single worker
- $2,813 for a family (couple, or single parent with an eligible dependant)
- Plus a disability supplement of up to $843 per eligible person
The maximums only apply at lower incomes. For singles, the benefit shrinks once adjusted net income passes $26,855 and disappears above $37,742. For families, the phase-out runs from $30,639 to $49,393. Quebec, Alberta, and Nunavut use different amounts and thresholds.
Half of it now arrives before tax time
You don't have to wait until you file next spring. The CRA automatically pays up to 50% of your CWB in three advance installments — July 10 and October 9, 2026, then early January 2027. At the maximums, that's roughly $272 per installment for a single worker and about $469 for a family. The rest is settled on your 2026 tax return.
There is no application. The advance is calculated from your 2025 tax return — but only if the CRA receives it before November 1, 2026. File later and you don't lose the CWB, but you lose the advance and wait until tax time for the whole amount.
A few quirks worth knowing:
- Couples get one basic payment. It goes to the spouse with the higher working income, not split between you.
- Mid-year changes mostly don't matter. A raise, a move, or a new partner won't change your advances this year — only death, emigration, or a long incarceration stops them.
- The disability supplement rides along. If you qualify, 50% of it is added to your advance installments automatically.
The planning angle
Because the CWB phases out steeply over a roughly $11,000 window for singles, extra income in that range is worth less than it looks — each additional dollar of pay also claws back benefit. That's the same math that applies to the CGEB and CCB, and it's why the take-home value of a raise or second income can surprise you. Run your situation through the family benefits & second-income calculator to see the CWB, CGEB, and CCB together, and check your take-home pay to see what your gross actually lands as.
The takeaway
If your 2025 working income was under roughly $38,000 (single) or $49,000 (family), check your account for a July 10 deposit labelled "Canada Workers Benefit." If it's missing and you think you qualify, the most likely culprit is the same one that pauses every July benefit: an unfiled 2025 return. File before November 1 and the advances catch up with you.
Figures: CRA 2025 tax-year Canada Workers Benefit parameters, canada.ca, retrieved July 2026.