Canadians Believe Money Muddies the Water in Relationships; 73% Say Many Couples Stay Together for Financial Reasons & 80% Say Life is More Affordable as a Couple

• Basic Personal Amount (BPA) and Spousal Tax Credit: This is a tax credit that enables every Canadian to earn up to $16,129 tax-free in 2025. If you’re married or in a common-law relationship, if one partner earns less than the BPA amount the other partner can use the difference to lower their income tax amount by claiming the Spousal Tax Credit.
• Transferring Tax Credits: Married or common-law couples can transfer certain tax credits from one spouse to another if they don’t utilize the full credit, such as caregiver amounts, pension income amounts, age amount, and disability and tuition amounts.
• Spousal RRSP contribution: Contributions to Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) allow for income splitting, enabling a higher earner to contribute to an RRSP for a lower-income spouse who hasn’t maxed out their contribution in that tax year.
• Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (formerly the GST/HST Credit): A quarterly credit payment based on household income for couples or sole income for single Canadians to help offset the cost of sales tax. Payments are up to $679 for single adults, and up to $1,358 for a family of four, but can only be received with a current tax return.  
• Canada
  Workers Benefit (CWB): A refundable tax credit for modest-income individuals and families based on adjusted family net income, for up to $1,633 for single Canadians and $2,813 for families, and supplement of up to $843 for people with a disability. Amounts vary in Alberta, Nunavut, and Quebec.
• Canada Child Benefit: This is a tax-free monthly payment from the federal government – only available to those caught up on their tax returns – to assist with the costs of raising a child based on household income, the number of children in the home, and if they qualify for the Child Disability Benefit. For the July 2025 – June 2026 time period, the maximum annual benefits are $7,997 per child under 6, and $6,748 per child aged 6–17. Where there is shared custody the amount is split between parents.
• Canada Care Expenses based on spouse with lowest income: Childcare deductions are generally based on the income of the lower-earning spouse or income of a single parent. Eligible childcare expenses like daycare, day camps, nursery schools, and nannies reduce taxable income, with maximum deductions of $8,000 per child under age 7, $5,000 per child aged 7-16, and $11,000 for eligible children with disabilities for 2025 tax filing.
• Canadian Dental Care Plan: Coverage is calculated based on household income, so a partner or spouse’s income may affect eligibility as it operates on a sliding scale based on adjusted net income of less than $90,000.
• Amount for a Person Living Alone: In Quebec, individuals may qualify for a tax credit if they lived alone for the entire year, if they lived only with people under 18, or lived only with full-time students. The tax credit can be up to $2,128. 

For more information, contact: H&R Block c/o Ketchum: [email protected]