Answer in 30 Seconds
Quick Answer:
If you just had a baby or just moved to Canada with kids, the Canada Child Benefit is a tax-free monthly payment you have to claim. Fill out Form RC66, add the RC66SCH schedule if you became a resident in the last two years, and mail it to your tax centre. A mailed application pays out in about 11 weeks. Make sure your taxes are filed, because the CRA uses your return to calculate every payment.
- Three ways to apply: the Automated Benefits Application at birth registration, CRA My Account online, or paper Form RC66 by mail
- Newcomers: send Form RC66 plus Schedule RC66SCH (status in Canada and income)
- Keep proof: a dated copy of what you sent plus your PostPal mailing confirmation, no post office trip needed
Key Takeaways
- The CCB is a tax-free monthly payment for families raising children under 18, paid by the CRA.
- There are three ways to apply: the Automated Benefits Application when you register a birth, CRA My Account online, or paper Form RC66 by mail. Pick one. Do not double up.
- Newcomers and anyone who did not apply at birth usually use the paper RC66. If you became a resident of Canada in the last two years, attach Schedule RC66SCH.
- You have to file your taxes every year to start and keep your payments, even with no income. If you have a spouse or common-law partner, they file too.
- Mailed applications run about 11 weeks; online is about 8. Mail is the route when you cannot apply online or you are sending the RC66SCH.
- Keep a dated copy plus your PostPal mailing confirmation and you have a clean record of when it went out.
The Three Ways to Apply (and Who Uses Paper)
The CRA gives you three doors into the Canada Child Benefit. Most people only need one.
- The Automated Benefits Application (ABA). If you are the birth mother and you register your newborn with your province or territory, you can tick a box on the birth registration form to apply for the CCB, the GST/HST credit, and related provincial programs in one go. Easiest path there is. If you used the ABA, you are done. Do not re-apply through My Account or RC66, because a second application just creates confusion and slows your payments down.
- CRA My Account online. Sign in and use "Apply for child benefits." Fastest if your account is already set up.
- Paper Form RC66 by mail. The Canada Child Benefits Application (RC66), printed, signed, and mailed to your tax centre.
So who actually mails the paper form? Two big groups. People who did not apply at birth and now need to catch up, and newcomers to Canada who arrived with children. Newcomers in particular often have to use paper, because the RC66SCH schedule below is part of the package and that goes in the envelope. If you are in either group, the rest of this guide is for you.
Newcomers: You Also Need the RC66SCH
Just landed in Canada with kids? The CRA wants more from you than the base form, and there is a reason it works in your favour.
If you became a resident of Canada within the last two years, fill out and attach Schedule RC66SCH, Status in Canada and Income Information, to your RC66. The schedule does two jobs. It confirms your immigration and residency status, and it captures your income from before you arrived, from all sources, for up to two years prior.
Here is why that matters. The CRA needs an income figure to calculate your payment, and a new resident has not filed a Canadian return yet. The RC66SCH gives them that number, so you can start receiving the benefit as soon as you become a resident, without waiting until tax season. Skip the schedule and your application stalls. Send it complete and you get money moving sooner.
You Have to File Your Taxes
This is the part people trip over after the fact, so read it now. The CRA calculates your CCB from your tax return. No return, no calculation, no payment.
You do not re-apply every year. You apply once. But you do have to file your taxes every year to keep the payments coming, even if you earned nothing, and even if you have no tax to pay. If you have a spouse or common-law partner, they have to file too. Both returns. Every year. Miss a filing and your payments can pause until the CRA has the return in hand.
So the order of operations is simple. Get your application in. Then stay current on your taxes so the benefit recalculates each July and keeps flowing. The CRA spells this out in the CCB application guide.
What Goes in the Envelope
Keep the package tight. Send what the CRA asks for and nothing it has to chase you for.
Your RC66 mailing checklist:
☐ A completed, signed Form RC66
☐ Schedule RC66SCH, completed and signed, if you became a resident in the last two years
☐ Any supporting documents the form asks for given your situation (for example proof of birth, or documents establishing primary care for the child)
☐ A copy kept for yourself, dated
Two small things that save a delay. Sign it. An unsigned RC66 can be sent back, and that is weeks lost. And if your situation calls for proof of birth or status documents, send copies, not originals, and keep your originals at home. The CRA will tell you on the form what your case needs.
Where to Mail Your RC66
The RC66 goes to your tax centre, and the right one depends on where you live. Send it to the wrong centre and it gets redirected, which adds days onto an already slow process.
We keep a verified, current address so you do not have to dig through canada.ca for it. See where to mail your RC66 (Canada Child Benefit) and copy it exactly as listed.
You do not need a printer or a trip to the post office to send it. Type or upload your RC66 and any schedules at postpal.ca/send. We print it, fold it into an envelope, and put it in the mail through Canada Post the next business day for about $6 flat. Then a dated mailing confirmation lands in your inbox.
How Long It Takes
Set your expectations now so the wait does not rattle you. A mailed RC66 takes about 11 weeks for your first payment to show up. Applying online runs about 8 weeks. Mail is slower, but for a lot of newcomers and catch-up applicants it is the route that fits, because the RC66SCH has to travel with the form.
One quirk worth knowing. If you are applying for a child who started living with you more than 11 months ago, the CRA reviews the file differently and a mailed application can land closer to the 8-week mark. Either way, your payment is normally backdated to when you became eligible, so the wait costs you time, not money.
Get it in sooner and you wait less, plainly. There is no advantage to sitting on it.
Keeping Proof Without Leaving the House
Benefit applications go missing sometimes. It happens. So keep a record of what you sent and when, and you can always point to it.
Two things, kept together, do the job. A dated copy of your completed RC66 and any schedules, saved as a PDF or kept on paper. And your PostPal mailing confirmation, the dated email you get the day we mail it. Put them side by side and you have clear evidence the application went out on a given date, which is exactly what you want if you ever have to call the CRA and ask where things stand.
No post office line for any of this. No envelope to lick. The confirmation arrives in your inbox on its own.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to file taxes to get the CCB?
Yes. The CRA calculates your payment from your tax return, so you have to file every year to start and to keep receiving the benefit, even if you had no income. If you have a spouse or common-law partner, they have to file too.
I'm a newcomer. Which form do I send?
Form RC66 plus Schedule RC66SCH. If you became a resident of Canada in the last two years, the RC66SCH captures your status and your pre-arrival income, which the CRA uses to calculate your first payments before you have filed a Canadian return.
How long does a mailed RC66 take?
About 11 weeks for your first payment. Applying online runs closer to 8 weeks. If the child started living with you more than 11 months ago, a mailed application can land nearer the 8-week mark.
I applied at birth registration. Should I also send an RC66?
No. If you used the Automated Benefits Application when you registered the birth, you have already applied. Sending an RC66 on top of that can delay your payments. Pick one method only.
How much will I get?
It depends on your family net income, how many children you have, and their ages, and it is recalculated each July. We will not quote a figure here. Use the CRA's child and family benefits calculator for an estimate tied to your own numbers.
Do I need to apply again every year?
No. You apply once. After that, filing your taxes each year is what keeps the benefit recalculating and flowing.
Do I have to go to the post office to mail it?
No. Type or upload the form at postpal.ca/send, and we print, envelope, and mail it through Canada Post the next business day, then email you a dated confirmation.
Conclusion
The benefit is real money and it is waiting on one form. Fill out the RC66, add the RC66SCH if you are new to Canada, sign it, and get it to the right tax centre. Then keep your taxes filed so the payments keep coming. That is the whole job, and the sooner the envelope goes out, the sooner the first payment shows up.
When your application is ready, we handle the sending. Type or upload your RC66 and any schedules, and PostPal prints, envelopes, and mails the package through Canada Post the next business day for about $6 flat, then emails you a dated confirmation for your records. No printer, no post office, no trip out.