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Bill C-30 Just Passed: 5 Ways It Changes Your Wallet in 2026

  Canadian Money Brief Bill C-30 just received Royal Assent — and it touches your gas tank, your TFSA neighbour the RRSP, your CPP statement, and your tax return all at once. Here are the five changes that actually matter for your wallet. 1. The Federal Fuel Excise Tax Is Suspended Until September 7 The federal excise tax on gasoline and diesel is paused from April 20 through September 7, 2026 — shaving 10 cents per litre off gas and 4 cents off diesel at the pump. The tax break also extends to aviation fuel. If you're road-tripping this summer, the savings show up automatically; you don't need to do anything to claim it. Just don't expect it to last past Labour Day weekend, since the suspension is scheduled to expire September 7. 2. Home Buyers' Plan Repayment Window Triples — From 2 Years to 5 If you used your RRSP to fund a down payment through the Home Buyers' Plan, the grace period before you have to start repaying yourself is extending from two years to five, ...

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Canada’s Population Growth and the National Bank of Canada’s Report

 

According to a report by the National Bank of Canada, Canada is caught in a “population trap” for the first time in modern history and needs to limit immigration to escape it. A population trap is when the population is growing so fast that all available savings are needed to maintain the existing capital-labour ratio, making any increase in living standards impossible. 

National Bank’s report joins the growing chorus of concern that the influx of newcomers over the past two years, many of whom are temporary workers or students, is too much for the economy to handle.

Canada’s population grew by 1.2 million in 2023, a “staggering” amount when you consider that the next biggest surge was when Newfoundland joined the nation in 1949. From a global perspective, Canada’s population growth of 3.2% last year was five times higher than the average of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development nations. 

The economists say that Canada currently lacks the infrastructure and capital stock to adequately absorb current population growth and improve its standard of living. The strain is most evident in housing, with National saying the shortfall has reached a record of only one housing start for every 4.2 people entering the working-age population. Government programs are underway to address this, but to meet demand and reduce housing inflation, Canada would need to double its housing construction capacity to about 700,000 starts a year.

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