How does the NCB work?

How does the National Child Benefit (NCB) Work?

Description: A Venn diagram illustrates the application of the National Child Benefit (NCB).

On the left, the Government of Canada’s Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) system is illustrated with two circles: The CCTB Base Benefit and the NCB Supplement. On the right, the NCB initiative is illustrated with two circles: the NCB Supplement and the Provincial, Territorial and First Nations Component of the initiative. The NCB Supplement is a component of both the CCTB system and the NCB initiative.

The CCTB is targeted to low-and middle-income families with children. The first circle, on the left, shows the CCTB Base Benefit. In 2001-2002, the Government of Canada provided $5.2 billion through the base benefit of the CCTB to 3.2 million families with 5.8 million children, or 82 percent of Canadian families with children.

The second circle, in the middle of the diagram, shows the NCB Supplement. The NCB Supplement provides low-income families with additional child benefits on top of the CCTB base benefit. In 2001-2002, the Government of Canada provided $2.5 billion through the NCB Supplement, providing benefits to 1.5 million families with 2.7 million children, or 40 percent of all Canadian families with children.

The third circle, on the right, shows the Provincial, Territorial and First Nations Component of the NCB initiative. The circle overlaps with the NCB Supplement. The area of overlap is the provincial, territorial and First Nations reinvestments, which were $603 million in 2001-2002. The remainder of the circle represents additional investments by provinces, territories and First Nations, which were $89 million in 2001-2002.