Canada Learning Bond (RESP)
Canada Learning Bond Virtual Sign-up
Get up to $2,000 for your child's education from the Government of Canada.
Get the Canada Learning Bond (CLB) and start saving for your child's education today. No deposit of your own money is ever needed to qualify for the CLB.
What is the Canada Learning Bond?
The Canada Learning Bond is money from the Government of Canada for your child’s education after high school. This money is deposited into a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) and no deposit of your own money is ever required to get the CLB.
Is my child eligible?
Your child is eligible if they were born in 2004 or later and your family income is under $49,000 per year.
What do I need?
A Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP), a Social Insurance Number (SIN), and birth verification for you and your child.
You can watch our short videos on getting a SIN and getting a Birth Certificate below.
How do I sign up?
Open a RESP with a bank, credit union or RESP provider of your choice and ask for a no fee, no deposit RESP and the CLB. You can also go to SmartSaver.org to get information about RESPs, the CLB, and to start the application online. If you don’t have reliable internet or an email address, you can contact ACORN Canada toll-free at 1-866-991-0025 and complete your SmartSaver application over the phone.
You can watch our short video about SmartSaver below.
Then what happens?
You can watch a short video about the Canada Learning Bond video below.
It will take a couple months to process, but once the CLB application is approved, the government will deposit $500 into the RESP and then $100 every year your child is eligible, up to $2,000 or until your child turns 15 years old.
The CLB is retroactive, so once the application is approved, your child will automatically get money for any years they were eligible, even for years before the RESP was opened. Previous year eligibility is determined by tax filing (see the link below for more information about supports to file income taxes).
There is no cost to apply for the CLB and every eligible child will receive at least $500 into to their RESP.
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Video: Getting the Canada Learning Bond for your child |
Video: Getting a Birth Certificate for the Canada Learning Bond |
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Video: Getting a Social Insurance Number for the Canada Learning Bond |
Video: SmartSaver.org |
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Get information about free tax filing for low income residents in Durham.
Frequently Asked Questions - Safe Access During COVID-19
| Q: Can I get an RESP and/or the identification I need during COVID-19? |
| A: Yes. Many financial institutions and RESP providers are offering options for families to open RESPs virtually. For more information about this, you can contact the financial institution or RESP provider you want to work with directly, or use the SmartSaver.org portal. There are also ways to access both a SIN and a Birth Certificate virtually so you can safely get the ID you need. The videos above offer additional information and you can reach out to us directly with questions or to get additional support to safely start saving for your child’s education today. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Identification
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Q: Do I need both a birth certificate and a Social Insurance Number (SIN) for parent and child(ren) to get a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP)? |
| A: You need birth verification and a SIN for both parent and child(ren) to get a RESP. If you or your child do not have a SIN, a birth certificate is considered a primary source identification document and can be used to get the SIN when the application is made to Service Canada.
If you have a SIN and a document that verifies your and/or your child’s birthdate, that will likely be acceptable to the RESP provider, but you can always double check with the provider before your appointment (virtual or in person) to complete your RESP paperwork. There are videos on this page that outline the process and supports available for getting both a SIN and a Birth Certificate if you would like more information. If you have any questions, please reach out to us. |
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Q: How do I get the ID I need for my child to get the Canada Learning Bond (CLB)? |
| A: There are videos on this page that outline the various ways that you can get the ID you need for the CLB. Take a look at those and, if you have questions, contact us and we can help. |
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Q: My child was born in another province; how do I get a birth certificate? |
| A: You will need to contact the Vital Statistics Department of the province where your child was born and request a birth certificate.
If your child was born in Canada but not in Ontario, you must contact the Vital Statistics Office in the province or territory where your child was born.
If you have any questions or need some additional support, please reach out to us at the contact information on this page. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) Information
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Q: Can my child have more than one RESP in their name? |
| A: There is no limit to the number of RESPs that a child can have opened in their name. Anyone can open a RESP for a child: parent, grandparent, other family, friends, etc.
However, only the primary caregiver (typically the person receiving the Canada Child Benefit) for the child can apply for the Canada Learning Bond (CLB). Income eligibility for the CLB is determined by the family income of the child’s primary caregiver, no matter who may have opened the RESP. The CLB will only be deposited into one RESP per child. |
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Q: My child already has a RESP but I got a letter from the Government, what does that mean? |
| A: If your child already has a RESP opened in their name but you received the CLB letter from the federal government, this suggests that the CLB has not been added to that RESP for any children named in the letter. Contact your RESP provider and request the CLB be added to the RESP. This may require the primary caregiver signing an additional form but doesn’t require opening a new RESP. On the off-chance that the RESP provider you are working with doesn’t offer the CLB (there are a few RESP providers who don’t), you can open another RESP for your child with a RESP provider who does offer the CLB – for example the bank or financial institution or another RESP provider of your choice – you can ask about the CLB before opening. SmartSaver.org is another source of good information about the CLB and RESP providers who offer it, and there is a video with more information about SmartSaver.org on this page. |
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Q: I think that we have a RESP but I’m not sure who we opened it with, how can I find out? |
| A: Questions about the status of RESPs can be directed to the Federal Gov RESP/Canada Education Savings Program toll free number 1 888-276-3624. |
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Q: What if my child isn’t sure what they want to do when they are done high school? Will we lose this money? What if they don’t go to post-secondary at all? |
| A: RESPs can stay open for 36 years, which is lots of time for kids to decide on their educational future. If the RESP is closed, all funds deposited by the Government will be returned to the Government. Any personal contributions are returned to the plan owner with interest. These are good conversations to have with the RESP provider you choose when you open your RESP. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Canada Learning Bond (CLB)
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Q: My son is 13, since the CLB only pays until he turns 15, is it even worth it for me to apply? |
| A: If you apply now and your child qualifies for the CLB, they will have potential eligibility for up to the full $2,000 of the bond. That is because the CLB is automatically retroactive. This means that once eligibility has been determined, $500 is deposited into the RESP, and then your child will qualify for $100 more per year for every year between when they were born and when they turn 15 (if your family income qualified in those years). This includes any years before the RESP was opened. The maximum amount any child can receive from the CLB is $2,000, but even children who apply when they are 13 or 14 can potentially get the full $2,000 based on their family income over the years between their birth and age 15. Family income levels are determined by tax filing data. |
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Q: I have three children and only received two letters from the Government, and the dollar values are different on each letter. Why is that? |
| A: Only children born 2004 and later can get the CLB, so if one of your children was born prior to that year, that may be why no letter was received for them. But if you didn’t get a letter for a child who should qualify, just go ahead and open the RESP and apply for the CLB for all your children. The government will do the matching in the background and any eligible child will get the CLB deposited into the RESP.
In terms of the amount each child is eligible for, that may be different if one is older than the other. Once a child qualifies for the CLB, the first deposit is $500. The CLB is automatically retroactive; this means that once eligible, your child will qualify for $100 more per year for every year between when they were born and when they turn 15 (if your family income qualified in those years). This includes any years before the RESP was opened. The maximum amount any child can received from the CLB is $2,000. Family income is determined using tax filing data. |
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Q: How long will it take for the money to get into my RESP? |
| A: Once an application is made, it can take up to three months to get the bond deposited. |
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Q: I applied for the CLB before, but I don’t think that I got it. How can I find out? |
| A: Questions about eligibility for previous applications can be directed to the Federal Gov RESP/Canada Education Savings Program toll free number 1 888-276-3624. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Status in Canada
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Q: I have a temporary Social Insurance Number, can I open a RESP and get the CLB for my children? |
| A: Yes, as long as both parent and child(ren) have a social insurance number (SIN). This includes temp SIN numbers that begin with "9". If a parent's temporary SIN is not renewed, the parent can withdraw their own contributions from the RESP, but any Government deposits will be returned to the Government. To be eligible to receive the Canada Learning Bond, a family’s income must qualify (under $48,000). If you would like more information about how to get a SIN, please see the video and other information on this page. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Child Custody
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Q: I have custody of my grandchild, I get Temporary Care Allowance and the CCB. Can I open a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) and get the Canada Learning Bond (CLB) for my grandchild? |
| A: You do not need to have custody of a child to open a RESP for them, anyone can open a RESP for a child.
For the CLB, if you have custody of a child, getting the CLB should not be a problem if the child was born in 2004 or later and, as the primary care giver, your family income is under $48,000 per year. You and the child will need a Social Insurance Number (SIN). If the child doesn’t have one, or you don’t know what it is, you will to need to provide Service Canada with court documents indicating you have custody of the child and the child’s birth certificate to request either a new SIN or a reconfirmation of an existing SIN – both processes are the same. If a birth certificate or replacement is required to get the SIN, the application process is similar and will require court documents indicating you have custody. Please refer to the information on this page about accessing both SIN and Birth Certificates for families in your circumstances and, if you have any other questions, please reach out to us at the contact information this page. |
Frequently Asked Questions - SmartSaver.org
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Q: How much does it cost to use the online application at SmartSAVER.org? |
| A: There is no cost to use any of SmartSAVER’s tools, including the online Registered Education Savings Plan starter and Canada Learning Bond application on SmartSAVER.org. |
Frequently Asked Questions - Tax Filing
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Q: What does tax filing have to do with the CLB? |
| A: Tax filing information is used by the Government to determine if your family income is eligible for the CLB. A child is eligible for the CLB if they were born in 2004 or later AND their family income is less than $49,020 (the 2021 income threshold for families with up to three children - the threshold is higher for families with four or more children). If you haven’t filed taxes, there is no way for the Government to determine your child’s financial eligibility. Get information about free tax filing for low income residents in Durham at durham.ca/fileyourtaxes. |
If you have any additional questions about the Canada Learning Bond, and how to access or qualify, or to schedule an appointment to complete the online birth certificate application with one of our staff, please reach out to us at the contact information below.
We are happy to help you access the Canada Learning Bond and start saving for your child’s education today.
Contact us for more information:
Email: Livingwithlowincome@durham.ca
Call toll-free: 1-888-341-8612
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