Ontario Low-income individuals and families tax (LIFT) credit

The Ontario low-income individuals and families tax (LIFT) credit helps low-income workers of Ontario reduce their provincial tax payable. You can claim this amount if:

  • You were a resident of Canada at the beginning of 2023 (this means if you moved to Canada during 2023, you won't be able to claim the Ontario LIFT credit)
  • You were a resident of Ontario on December 31, 2023
  • You had employment income in 2023
  • Your income and your family income is below a certain threshold

If you had self-employment income, you won’t be able to claim the LIFT credit. You also can’t claim this credit if you were subject to the Ontario additional tax for minimum tax purposes or if you were confined to a prison or similar institution on December 31, 2022 and for the first 179 days of 2023 (up to June 28, 2019, inclusive).

With this tax credit, you can reduce your provincial income tax by up to $850 for an individual and $1,700 for a couple. The credit amount gets reduced by 10% if the individual’s income is more than $30,000, and family income is more than $60,000.

H&R Block’s 2023 tax software will automatically claim this tax credit for you based on the information you enter in your return (such as your province of residency, your employment income, and your family income for the year).