Canadian Association of Retired Persons says rebate, meant to recognize hardworking Canadians, is ‘an affront to our members’
Most Canadian seniors on pension aren’t eligible for the newly announced $250 tax rebate from the federal government. And they’re not happy about it.
The Working Canadians Rebate “is meant to recognize hardworking Canadians but it’s really an affront to our members,” says Bill VanGorder, advocacy and education officer with the Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP).
The rebate excluded Canadians living on fixed incomes like CPP and OAS and facing mounting financial challenges as pensions fail to keep pace with inflation, says VanGorder.
Moreover, he says, pensioners have spent decades working and contributing to the Canadian economy.
CARP has told its members to contact their members of parliament to register their displeasure with how this rebate has been framed, says VanGorder. “That’s where the real pressure happens.”
Not all pensioners will be excluded. A pensioner who has continued to work, files his/her 2023 income tax return by Dec. 31, and claims the tax credit for CPP or QPIP will be able to get it, according to a federal Finance Department official who emailed the National Post last Friday.
VanGorder suggests the income cut-off should be less than $150K and the amount of the rebate should be larger — given to Canadians who are struggling the most.
CARP has suggested “a more reasonable cap, such as $90,000, would better target those in genuine financial need,” according to the organization’s official response to the rebate, which he shared with the National Post. “The $250 rebate is … too small to meaningfully address inflationary pressures.”
Among the Canadian population of seniors, VanGorder notes, are a doubly vulnerable group – seniors who are disabled and can’t work. “It just shows a lack of understanding about where they’re at in terms of the income” of vulnerable Canadians.
VanGorder illustrates this thought by pointing out that the federal Liberals raised Old Age Security by 10 per cent in July 2022, but only for seniors 75 and over.
However, the seniors aged 65-74 are more recent recipients of OAS, says VanGorder, and new to the struggles of living on a fixed income.
VanGorder expressed wonder at the NDP’s initial support for the measure. “It’s hard to understand how they would.”
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