Family Allowance
Family Allowance is paid by Retraite Québec to assist families. The program consists of:
Financial assistance for all families
Family Allowance provides financial assistance to all
eligible families who have a dependent child under age 18 who lives with them.
In the case of a birth in Québec, you do not need to file an application for Family Allowance. When the birth of your child is declared to the
Directeur de l'état civil 
, you will automatically receive Family Allowance. You will receive your first Family Allowance payment within a maximum of
45 days after we have received your child's declaration of birth from the Directeur de l'état civil.
When to file an application
In certain other situations, you must file an
Application for Family Allowance if:
- you adopt a child;
- you are an immigrant or become a resident of Québec;
- your child arrives in or returns to Québec;
- you live in Québec, but your child was born outside Québec;
- you have custody of a child;
- you have shared custody of a child;
- you retain custody of a child following a separation or the death of your spouse and you are not already receiving Family Allowance payments in your name;
- Retraite Québec requires an application for Family Allowance payments to be filed.
We determine the amount of Family Allowance payments based on family income and conjugal status, on 31 December of the previous year, which are indicated on the income tax return sent to Revenu Québec. The income tax return must be filed every year, by 30 April at the latest, even if there is no income to declare. This is to avoid any late Family Allowance payments. If an income tax return is filed
late, Family Allowance payments can be made retroactively to the beneficiary
only for a
maximum period of three years.
Therefore, the amount of Family Allowance payments varies from one family to another. It is calculated based on:
- the number of children under age 18 who live with the family;
- the number of children in shared or sole custody;
- the conjugal status (single or with a spouse);
- the family income, calculated based on one of the following situations:
- the total income of both parents who form a couple;
- the total income of two spouses who form a blended family;
- the parent's personal income in the case of a single-parent family.
Payment methods
Family Allowance is
paid to only one person per family. If the child is in shared custody, each parent receives his or her part of Family Allowance. We consider that a child is in shared custody when the child lives alternately with each parent between 40% and 60% of the time per month. The
Steps to take in the event of a separation section on our website specifies how to inform us of a change in custody.
Family Allowance is paid four times a year, that is, in January, April, July and October, on the scheduled
payment dates. To receive monthly payments, you must file a
Change in Frequency of Family Allowance Payments.
It is recommended to sign up for
direct deposit to receive your payments.
Retroactive payment
Family Allowance payments can be received retroactively if all the defined requirements are met. Therefore, you will receive amounts equal to the payments you would have received for a maximum period of 11 months as of the date on which we received your application.
Change in the family situation
Following a change in conjugal status, the amount of Family Allowance is recalculated. To avoid receiving overpayments and having to repay them, certain steps must be taken. To find out how to inform us of a change in conjugal status, consult our
Steps to take in the event of a separation or
Steps to take during a union section on our website.
Child placed or institutionalized by an institution in the health and social services sector
Placement or institutionalization of a child by an institution in the health and social services sector may have an impact on the Family Allowance payment received. For more information, consult our
Child placed or institutionalized by an establishment in the health and social services sector web page.
Financial assistance for the purchase of school supplies
The Supplement for the Purchase of School Supplies is an annual financial assistance of $124 per child for the
2025-2026 school year. It is for beneficiaries of Family Allowance who have a child aged 4 to 16 on 30 September, regardless of their family income.
Two financial assistance programs for handicapped children
The purpose of the Supplement for Handicapped Children Requiring Exceptional Care is to provide financial assistance to families who assume extraordinary responsibilities regarding the care and safety of a child. The child must have multiple serious disabilities and/or have a state of health that requires complex medical care. A child may be eligible for the Supplement if his or her condition meets the
eligibility requirements for a period expected to last at least one year.
The amount of the Supplement for Handicapped Children Requiring Exceptional Care is the same for each eligible child, regardless of the child's condition or family income. In
2025 , the amount of the Supplement for Handicapped Children Requiring Exceptional Care is $1191 per month for Tier 1 and $792 per month for Tier 2, for each eligible child. The eligibility requirements are stricter for Tier 1 than for Tier 2. That is why a higher amount is granted for Tier 1 than for Tier 2.
My Account
The new amounts of the payments can be seen each year in mid-June on the annual notice uploaded to
My Account. The notice concerns the amounts that beneficiaries will receive for a period of 12 months, from July to June. It is important to verify the accuracy of the information about the family situation, because the amounts paid vary depending on the number of dependent children and the number of children in shared custody.
The amounts of the financial assistance programs are also adjusted to the cost of living each year in January. They are not taxable. Therefore, we do not send income tax slips for those tax credits.
In My Account, you can choose the 100% digital option to not miss out on anything thanks to notifications. Therefore, you will be informed as soon as your annual notice is available in your digital file.
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