Thursday, July 9, 2026 Every July, a wave of federal benefit payments resets for the new benefit year — and 2026 brings one of the biggest shifts in years. Between a permanent 25% boost to the old GST/HST credit, a fresh Canada Child Benefit increase, and the largest quarterly OAS bump of the year, millions of Canadian households will see different numbers land in their accounts this month. Here's what actually changed, and what to check in your own CRA account. The GST/HST Credit Has a New Name — and a Bigger Payout The GST/HST credit has officially been replaced by the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB) . It's not a new program from scratch — it runs on the same CRA infrastructure and eligibility rules — but the payment amounts are 25% higher, and that increase is locked in for five years. The first CGEB payment went out on July 3, 2026. Under the new structure: A single individual with no children can receive up to roughly $679 per year (about $170 per quart...
Major IT Outage Disrupts Key Services Across Canada
A significant IT outage has caused widespread disruptions across Canada, affecting airports, banks, border crossings, and hospitals. The issue originated from a faulty update deployed by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, impacting computers running Microsoft Windows.
Airports: The outage led to numerous flight cancellations and delays, particularly affecting U.S.-based carriers like United Airlines and American Airlines. Porter Airlines, operating within Canada and to some U.S. locations, also experienced significant disruptions.
Banks: TD Bank and other financial institutions faced operational challenges, causing inconvenience to customers and delays in transactions.
Border Crossings: The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) reported partial outages in its telephone reporting system, primarily affecting small aircraft passengers and boaters. Long delays were noted at major border crossings, including the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor tunnel.
Hospitals: Health care networks in British Columbia and other regions experienced disruptions, affecting their computer systems and networks.
CrowdStrike has acknowledged the issue, stating that it was not a security incident or cyberattack. Efforts are underway to restore normal operations, but the impacts are expected to linger for several days.
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