Retraite Québec administers the Family Allowance as part of Quebec’s family policy.
The Family Allowance measure consists of the Family Allowance payment, the supplement for the purchase of school supplies, the supplement for handicapped children and the supplement for handicapped children requiring exceptional care.
The Family Allowance is tax-free, income-tested financial assistance paid monthly to eligible families to help them support the needs of their children under the age of 18 who reside with them. The Family Allowance also applies in the case of shared custody. When a recipient does not receive the maximum Family Allowance paid by Retraite Québec for eligible minors, the Band Council will pay an adjustment equal to the difference between the monthly Family Allowance adjustments set by the Policy Framework and the actual Family Allowance calculated by Retraite Québec. This is called the “Family Allowance destitution clause.” It applies only in cases where there is at least one dependent minor eligible for the Family Allowance.
Note: When an adult client of the Income Security Program has a spouse eligible for the 66/72 benefit, these adjustments will be paid only for the dependent child or children of the parent who is not eligible for the 66/72 allowance, in accordance with the terms of the adjustment.
Calculation of the Family Allowance payment
The amount of the Family Allowance calculated by Retraite Québec will:
- Reduce the adjustment set by the Policy Framework to establish the “Family Allowance destitution clause”;
- Not reduce the family’s basic benefit or other amounts the family may be granted. Even if the income received as Family Allowance from Retraite Québec is greater than the Family Allowance adjustment amount, this difference will not reduce the total allowance from the Income Security Program granted to the family;
- Affect the current month’s “Family Allowance destitution clause” adjustment. This is an exception to the principle of the anteriority of the deficit.
The Family Allowance is deemed to have been received by the family (except in cases of shared custody) when it is paid to a Family Allowance recipient who is not a family member but who uses this amount to support the needs of a dependent child or children of the recipient family. For example, in the case of a recipient family of the Income Security Program with a dependent minor who lives with his or her grandmother, Retraite Québec will send the Family Allowance payment to the grandmother. The amount of the Family Allowance is considered to have been received by the recipient family of the Income Assistance Program. The family is deemed to receive, on a monthly basis, the annual amount of the Family Allowance divided by 12, regardless of the payment method used by Retraite Québec (quarterly or monthly).
Reduction of the Family Allowance
When a person’s Family Allowance is reduced to compensate for an overpayment, the Income Security Program may compensate the deficit up to an amount equivalent to the “destitution clause” adjustment.
This financial assistance is reimbursable once one of the following events occurs:
- Retraite Québec ceases to withhold payments; or
- The recipient ceases to be eligible for the Income Security Program.
The recipient has a choice between the benefit for which the Family Allowance income is considered in full and the adjustment amount set by the Policy Framework, which comes with the obligation of repaying the portion that corresponds to the amount paid.
Note: When the adult has a spouse who is eligible for the 66/72 benefit, only the situation of the dependent child or children of the parent not eligible for the 66/72 benefit will be considered in establishing the deficit created by this situation.
Arrears paid by Retraite Québec for the Family Allowance
As of September 1, 2016, arrears paid by Retraite Québec for the Family Allowance (the Family Allowance payment, the supplement for the purchase of school supplies, the supplement for handicapped children and the supplement for handicapped children requiring exceptional care) are excluded as a liquid asset for 12 months from the date of payment.