How child assistance is paid
The Régie pays child assistance on the 1st working day of each quarter (four times a year):
- in July for July, August and September
- in October for October, November and December
- in January for January, February and March
- in April for April, May and June.
Payments can be received monthly but an Application must be filed. In this case, payments are made on the first working day of each month. You can sign up for direct deposit. It is a reliable, safe and environmentally-friendly way to receive child assistance payments.
To whom are child assistance payments made?
Child assistance payments are made to only one person in a family. Spouses can agree to ask for a change of beneficiary in the family. Certain rules are used to determine which spouse will receive the payments:
- for the first application, if the information is provided automatically by the Registrar of Civil Status, child assistance payments are made to the mother.
- for the first application, if made directly by a person, child assistance is paid the person who applied.
- for subsequent applications, child assistance is paid to the beneficiary who is already designated in the existing file.
Shared custody
Child assistance payments are made to both parents at the same time, without interruption, according to the frequency of payments chosen by each parent (quarterly or monthly). The Régie considers that a child is in shared custody when the child lives with each parent between 40% and 60% of the time each month.
A blended family
- If both spouses are eligible, child assistance is paid to the spouse with the greatest number of children.
- If both spouses are eligible and they both have the same number of children, child assistance is paid to the spouse with the youngest child. However, if the new couple has a child, the payments will be made to the mother of that child.
- If only one of the spouses is eligible, that spouse will receive the child assistance payments.
Owing an amount to the Régie
A change in family status may have an effect on the amounts to which you are entitled. If you receive overpayments, you will have to repay the Régie. The criteria used for repaying debts are the following:
- 50% of the payment if the family's annual income is less than or equal to 35 000 $. The Régie could deduct more than 50% of the payment is the amounts owing are insufficient to repay the debt. In certain cases, the Régie could deduct more than 50% of the payment even though the family's annual income is less than or equal to 35 000 $.
- 100% of the payment if the family's annual income is greater than 35 000 $.
Payment dates