Up to $2,000 for your child — without contributing a cent.
It isn’t a loan, a match, or a promotion. If your family qualifies, the Government of Canada deposits it into an education savings plan for your child whether or not you ever add money yourself. Thousands of eligible Canadian children have never received it — because nobody told their parents it existed.
$500 to start, then $100 a year — up to $2,000.
The Canada Learning Bond pays $500 for your child’s first year of eligibility and $100 for every further year of eligibility, up to the benefit year they turn 15, to a lifetime maximum of $2,000. No contribution from you is required at any point.
Eligibility depends on your family income and the number of children in your household, assessed year by year. That last detail matters more than people realise: a single year when income dipped — a parental leave, a layoff, a hard stretch — can qualify your child for that year, even if you wouldn’t qualify today.
Born 2004 or later
The bond began in 2004; children born before that date aren’t eligible.
Canadian resident with a SIN
Your child needs a Social Insurance Number to be named in a plan — free to apply for.
Named in an RESP
A plan has to exist for the money to land in. Opening one can cost nothing.
Taxes filed, CCB eligible
Eligibility is checked against the primary caregiver’s return each year — so file, every year, even with no income.
What might your child already be owed?
The bond is retroactive — it can be paid for past years, including years before any plan existed. This estimates what could be waiting, and tells you which deadline applies to you.
Runs entirely in your browser — we don’t store or see your numbers. It applies the published federal structure ($500 for the first year of eligibility, $100 for each subsequent year to the benefit year the beneficiary turns 15, lifetime maximum $2,000) to the number of qualifying years you enter. It cannot verify your income against the threshold for any year — those change each benefit year and vary with household size. Only Employment and Social Development Canada can confirm actual entitlement. Educational estimate only.
Four beliefs that cost Canadian children thousands.
“I have to put money in first.”
You don’t. Not a dollar, not ever. The bond arrives regardless of whether you contribute, and grows on its own once it’s there. This single misunderstanding is probably the biggest reason the money goes unclaimed.
“We don’t earn little enough.”
Eligibility is assessed every year against thresholds that rise with household size. Families who don’t qualify today often qualified during a maternity leave, a layoff, or a year of study — and each qualifying year is money owed.
“It’s too late, my child’s nearly grown.”
The bond is retroactive to birth. A parent can request it until the day before the child turns 18 — and a young adult who missed out can claim it themselves between 18 and the day before they turn 21.
“The government does it automatically now.”
Only for children born in 2024 or later, starting April 2028. If your child was born before 2024, nothing is automatic. Nobody will chase you. The claim has to come from you.
Why we help with this even though we earn nothing from it
There is no commission in a Canada Learning Bond. We help families claim it anyway, because a child’s $2,000 is worth more than any product we could sell that family this year — and because being the person who tells you about free money you’re owed is a better business than being the person who doesn’t.
If you can only do one thing after reading this page: file your taxes every year, even with no income. Eligibility is verified from your return — unfiled years can’t be assessed, and that’s how bond money quietly goes unpaid.
Canada Learning Bond questions
What is the Canada Learning Bond?
Who qualifies?
What is the income cut-off?
We never applied — is it too late?
I’m 18, 19 or 20 and nobody ever opened an RESP for me. Can I claim it myself?
Isn’t the government opening RESPs automatically now?
Does taking the bond commit me to contributing money?
Free help, whether or not you ever buy anything.
Bring your child’s age and SIN status and we’ll walk through it: whether the bond is likely owed, how many past years might count, which deadline applies, and exactly what to ask for. If a no-fee plan at your bank is the right home for it, we’ll tell you that too.
Harpreet Singh · Licensed advisor (LLQP, Ontario) · Proudly Canadian. This page is general information only — not financial, investment, insurance, or tax advice, and not a determination of eligibility. Canada Learning Bond amounts, eligibility conditions, income thresholds, residency and Social Insurance Number requirements, application deadlines, and automatic-enrolment rules are set by the Government of Canada, administered by Employment and Social Development Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency, and may change; details reflect published federal guidance current at the time of writing and should be confirmed at canada.ca. Income thresholds are set for each benefit year and vary with household size, and are deliberately not quoted here. Only Employment and Social Development Canada can confirm your child’s actual entitlement. The estimator is an educational illustration based on the figures you enter. Speak with a qualified advisor about your own situation.
Harpreet is a licensed insurance and education-savings advisor based in Ontario, Canada. He helps families understand RESPs in plain language, claim every government grant they qualify for, and protect the plan with the right coverage — with straight answers and no pressure. More about Harpreet →