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Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) Payment Dates in 2024

Written by Jessica Steer
Reviewed by Janessa Ellis
In Canada, there are different government pension benefits that you can qualify for based on  your previous year’s income.
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    While most Canadians are eligible for and receive CPP (Canada Pension Plan) or QPP (Quebec Pension Plan) and OAS (Old Age Security), some who are considered to be low-income can also receive financial assistance in the form of a monthly benefit known as the GIS (Guaranteed Income Supplement). 

    While the GIS is a great benefit for low-income seniors, you need to meet the GIS eligibility requirements before you can start receiving benefits. Once you do start receiving it, there are certain dates that you can expect these payments to hit your account if you’ve signed up for direct deposit. If you aren’t, then you could be waiting a little longer for your cheque to arrive. 

    2024 GIS Deposit Dates

    Just like other pensionable benefits, GIS payments are made monthly. While these payments are generally within the same time period, the payment dates do vary every year. Here are the payment dates for 2024.

    MonthPayment Date
    JanuaryJanuary 29
    FebruaryFebruary 27
    MarchMarch 26
    AprilApril 26
    MayMay 29
    JuneJune 26
    JulyJuly 29
    AugustAugust 28
    SeptemberSeptember 25
    OctoberOctober 29
    NovemberNovember 27
    DecemberDecember 20

    If you receive your monthly payments via cheque, they will be sent out around this date and can take up to 10 business days to show up in your account. 

    How GIS Works

    GIS is an income supplement for seniors who are already receiving OAS. Whether or not you qualify for this benefit is based on your annual household income and whether you meet the eligibility criteria. However, there are always exceptions to this. 

    1. You must be a Canadian citizen or legal resident
    2. You must be receiving OAS
    3. You can only live outside of Canada for up to six months per year
    4. You must be over 65 years old
    5. You must receive an OAS pension

    As with anything, there are some exceptions to consider. As long as you meet the above criteria, you can receive GIS as an immigrant who isn’t sponsored. However, sponsored immigrants who’ve lived in Canada less than 10 years since their 18th birthday can only be approved based on different specific criteria. 

    How to Apply for GIS

    When it comes to GIS, there’s no application process. As long as you receive an Old Age Security pension and are eligible, you will be automatically enrolled. Once you’re enrolled, you will receive a letter from the Government of Canada. Once you start receiving payments, you’ll receive your first GIS payments either on the same month you start receiving OAS payments or the date that’s given in the letter you receive from Service Canada. 

    However, even though most are automatically enrolled, there are certain circumstances that you may need to apply. You may have to contact the CRA on your own, or they may send you a letter asking you to apply. Either way, if you need to apply for the GIS benefit, you can do so online or by using a paper application that will ask for personal information, including your social insurance number. 

    If you choose to do so online, you can apply through Service Canada using your My Service Canada Account. You can also use this service to check on your account and update your bank details. You also always have the option to contact Service Canada directly regarding your GIC application. 

    Income Threshold for GIS Payments

    A big part of receiving the monthly GIS payments is whether or not you are within the required income threshold. These income amounts vary based on whether you’re single, widowed or married/in a common-law relationship. If you’re married or have a common-law partner, the income requirements are also based on whether or not you have a spouse receiving OAS or GIS. 

    Marital StatusIncome Thresholds
    Single, Widowed, or DivorcedUnder $21,624
    Spouse or Common-Law PartnerUnder 28,560 if they receive full OAS pension (combined annual income)
    Spouse or Common-Law PartnerUnder $51,840 if they don’t receive OAS (combined annual income)
    Spouse or Common-Law PartnerUnder $39,984 if they receive GIS (combined income)

    GIS Payment Amounts

    Just like other benefits you can receive from the federal government, how much GIS you can receive varies, but there’s a maximum GIS amount that anyone can receive. Let’s take a look at these amounts. 

    Marital StatusGIS Maximum Monthly Payment Amounts
    Single, Widowed or DivorcedUp to $1,072.93 monthly 
    Spouse/Common-law partner who receives full OASUp to $645.84 monthly
    Spouse/Common-law partner who receives GISUp to $645.84 monthly
    Spouse/Common-law partner who doesn’t receive OASUp to $1,072.93 monthly 

    It’s important to keep in mind that these amounts are current for the January to March payments. They could change as of April 2024. 

    GIS Payment Amount Increases

    GIS payment amounts vary quite often. This is because the maximum amounts are reviewed quarterly in January, April, July and October. The Canadian government does this so monthly payments can reflect increases in the Cost of Living that the Consumer Price Index measures. However, if the Cost of Living is seen to have decreased based on the Consumer Price Index, your payments will stay the same. 

    Other Benefits Associated with GIS

    Like with CPP, GIS also has survivor benefits that are known as the Allowance of the Survivor. In order to qualify for this, you need to apply and meet the requirements. These requirements are:

    • You must live in Canada
    • You must be between the ages of 60 and 64
    • Your income must be lower than the maximum threshold
    • Your spouse or common-law partner has died, and you haven’t remarried or become common-law

    GIS and Your Annual Tax Return

    Due to the fact that income received from the Guaranteed Income Supplement is considered to be income, you do have to claim all amounts received on your annual income tax and benefit return. That said, GIS payments are considered to be non-taxable monthly payments, so they aren’t added to your taxable income. Claiming it, though, will determine if there are any other government benefits that you could qualify for. 

    Claiming GIS payments on your tax return is actually pretty simple. You’ll receive your T4 from OAS, which will include the amounts that you received from GIS. If you do your taxes yourself, you can enter this information, or you can give the T4 to the tax professional who will be handling your tax return. 

    Overview

    In Canada, you can start receiving your government pension income at the age of 60, but you do not have until the age of 70 to apply. Once you start receiving these benefits, they’ll contribute to your annual income. That said, government pensionable benefits are sometimes the only income that seniors receive, which means they make less income than those who have other forms of income during retirement, such as private pensions. To those people, the government offers GIS.

    In order to claim GIS benefits, in most cases, you’ll be automatically enrolled once you start receiving OAS benefits. The amounts you receive are then adjusted quarterly if the government deems that the cost of living has increased. You’ll then continue to receive these payments on a monthly basis until your net income exceeds the threshold. 

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