How do I get GST/HST benefits as an international student in Canada?

Did you know that international students can apply for benefit and credit payments, like the GST/HST credit as soon as they arrive in Canada?

You are eligible for this credit if you are a resident of Canada for income tax purposes at the beginning of the month in which the CRA makes a payment (see When your GST/HST credit is paid). In the month before the CRA makes a quarterly payment, you must be at least 19 years old. Students are also eligible for this type of benefit.

GST and HST: The goods and services tax (GST) is a tax that everyone has to pay on most goods and services sold or provided in Canada. In New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Prince Edward Island, the GST has been blended with the provincial sales tax and is called the harmonized sales tax (HST).

The territories of Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut have no territorial sales taxes, so only the GST is collected.