Did you get married or enter a common-law arrangement with your partner? Congratulations! While you may want to spend your time discussing furniture arrangements, future holiday destinations, and retirement strategies, there's one less glamorous but equally important topic to cover: taxes. Very romantic indeed.
Getting married or moving in together can change your tax situation. Some changes take effect the month after you tell the CRA, like your eligibility for the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB) — the renamed GST/HST credit - and others show up when you file your return. This guide walks through what counts as common-law, whether you file together, which credits and benefits change, and how to tell the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) about your new status. One thing that doesn't change: you're each still required to file your own tax return.
What counts as common-law in Canada?
You don't have to sign anything or hold a ceremony to be common-law in the eyes of the CRA. Under the Income Tax Act, you're considered common-law once you've lived with your partner in a conjugal relationship for at least 12 continuous months.
You're also common-law right away, before that 12-month mark, if you and your partner share a child — either as birth or adoptive parents, or where one of you has custody and control of the other's child and that child depends on you for support.
A short break doesn't reset the clock: the CRA still counts the 12 months as continuous if you were apart for less than 90 days because of a breakdown in the relationship. Many people are surprised to learn they're already common-law for tax purposes, even if it doesn't feel that way yet.
Do you file taxes together when you're married or common-law?
No. Unlike some other countries, Canada doesn't let couples file a joint tax return. Whether you're married or common-law, you each file your own return.
What changes is that your returns are now connected. On your return you'll report your spouse or common-law partner's name, their social insurance number, and their net income, even if that income is zero. The CRA uses your combined family income to work out the credits and benefits you're each entitled to.
Because your returns affect each other, it's usually easier to prepare them together so credits and deductions land with the partner who benefits most, even though you still send in two separate returns.
What happens when your marital status changes
Here are some things to be aware of when your relationship status changes:
Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB), formerly the GST/HST credit: Your entitlement to the CGEB changes since it is based on "adjusted family net income." If your partner earns income, your adjusted family net income usually increases when you become married or common-law, so you might find that you no longer receive it. If you are still eligible, only one of you will receive it, even if you were both receiving it before.
Canada Child Benefit (CCB) and Canada Workers Benefit (CWB): Your entitlement to the CCB and CWB changes since these are also based on your adjusted family net income.
Provide information about your spouse or common-law partner: When you're completing your tax return, you'll need to provide information about your spouse or common-law partner, including his or her net income, for certain credits to calculate properly.
Spouse or common-law partner amount: If you or your partner's net income (line 23600) is less than $16,452 (2026 amount), the other person will get a tax credit called the spouse or common-law partner amount. If your spouse has an impairment, this amount is increased.
Spouse or common-law partner amount thresholds: The other spouse's net income must be less than the claiming spouse's basic personal amount. If the claiming spouse's income is greater than $181,440, this amount can go as low as $14,829 for 2026 (see Federal Worksheet). The claiming spouse must also be supporting the transferring spouse.
Sharing credits: You can split or share certain credits. For example, if you both have medical expenses, one of you can claim them all to increase your combined refund.
Home Buyers' Plan and home buyers' amount: Whether your partner owns or has previously owned a home can impact your eligibility for the Home Buyers' Plan and home buyers' amount.
Lifelong Learning Plan: You can withdraw funds under the Lifelong Learning Plan from your Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) for your partner to go back to school.
Child care expenses: If you are both supporting your children, the lower-income partner usually claims child care expenses. However, there are some conditions in which the higher-income party claims expenses.
Spousal RRSP: The higher-income person can contribute to a spousal RRSP, effectively splitting income if you and your partner are in different tax brackets.
How to tell the CRA your marital status changed
You must let the CRA know when your marital status changes, by the end of the month after the month it changed. You can do it in your CRA account, by phone, or by filing form RC65.
You also need to report your marital status accurately when you file your return, even if you don't really feel like you're living common-law. The CRA recalculates your benefits based on your new status, so telling them promptly helps you avoid being asked to repay amounts later.
