NEWS RELEASE COMMUNIQUÉ

 

 

For Immediate Release 2009HSERV0015-000214 August 12, 2009

Ministry of Health Services Canada Revenue Agency

 

BENEFIT PROCESS SIMPLIFIED FOR PARENTS OF B.C. NEWBORNS

 

VICTORIA – A new federal-provincial automated benefit service will give British Columbia parents the convenient option of applying for all child benefit programs when they register the birth of their newborn.

 

The new service started on June 15, 2009, and is the result of a partnership between the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and British Columbia’s Vital Statistics Agency.

 

“Thousands of Canadians deal with the CRA every day and we are always looking for new ways to make things easier for them,” said Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Minister of National Revenue and Minister of State (Agriculture and Agri-Food). “This new initiative will provide better service to British Columbians in a more streamlined and cost-effective manner.”

 

All new parents are required to register the birth of a child; a registration of live birth form is provided to all new mothers by their health care provider when a baby is born. Now new mothers who provide consent on the birth registration form will have their child’s birth information automatically released to CRA through a secure communication network. The CRA will then process the application and determine the child’s eligibility for benefits. All applications will be processed within 80 days of receipt by CRA.

 

“The arrival of a baby is an exciting but often overwhelming time for new parents,” said Minister of Healthy Living and Sport Ida Chong. “Our partnership with the Canada Revenue Agency demonstrates our commitment to providing new, improved services for British Columbia’s families, and new parents who choose to use this service will have one less thing to think about at this busy time in their lives.”

 

            The automated benefit application service gives the parents of newborns easier access to federal programs such as the Universal Child Care Benefit, the Canada Child Tax Benefit, and the goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax credit as well as any related provincial/territorial programs such as the British Columbia Family Bonus.

 

British Columbia is one of the first jurisdictions in Canada to offer the automated benefit service. The automated benefit service complements British Columbia’s existing birth application process, which allows parents of newborns to use a single application form to apply for both the birth certificate and the Social Insurance Number for their children.

 

For more information on registering the birth of a newborn and the Canada Child Benefits process, please visit www.vs.gov.bc.ca.

 

For more information and for enquiries about your Canada Child Tax Benefits, visit the CRA website at www.cra.gc.ca/benefits or call 1-800-387-1193.

 

 

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Media contact:

Noël Carisse Media Relations Canada Revenue Agency 613 952-9184     Michelle Stewart Communications Director Ministry of Health Services 250 952-1887 (media line)

Natalie Boileau Acting Director of Communications Office of the Minister of National    Revenue 613 995-2960

 

For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province’s news feeds using RSS, visit the Province’s website at www.gov.bc.ca.