A deposit from the CRA can be a tax refund or a benefit payment, and the code the payment carries can help tell which. This page matches deposit codes to payments; it is part of the Dealing with the CRA directory.
Common reasons CRA deposits money
| Deposit type | Code the payment carries (banks may expand it) | Typical frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax refund | RIT/RIF | When a return is assessed or reassessed |
| Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (formerly the GST/HST credit; the standard's name is Canada Essentials Benefit) | CEB/CEB | Quarterly |
| Canada Child Benefit | CCB/ACE | Monthly |
| Provincial benefits the CRA pays for a province, such as the Ontario Trillium Benefit and the Alberta Child and Family Benefit | Not stated: the standard groups provincial and local government payments under codes 600-620, with PRO/PRO the general one, and doesn't say which code a program carries | Monthly for the Ontario Trillium Benefit; in August, November, February and May for the Alberta Child and Family Benefit |
| Canada Workers Benefit advance payments | CWB/ACT | Advance payments during the year |
“CANADA PRO” and other codes
“CANADA PRO” carries the code Payments Canada’s Standard 007 gives a provincial or local government payment, “PRO” (code 600); the code doesn’t name the program, and banks may expand the wording, as what PRO means explains. A “CANADA RIT” deposit has its own guide to the CANADA RIT deposit.
The Canada Carbon Rebate has ended
The Canada Carbon Rebate, formerly the Climate Action Incentive Payment (CAIP), stopped when the Government of Canada stopped the federal fuel charge, and its last quarterly payment went out in April 2025. A carbon rebate entry after that can be the rebate for a 2021 to 2024 return assessed late. More on the rebate is on the ended benefits page.
When each benefit is paid
The CRA publishes the payment dates of the benefits and credits it administers, and your CRA account shows your next payment. A deposit that lands on one of those dates may be that benefit; the dates of the CRA and Service Canada payments are in the government payment calendar.
How to confirm the source of a CRA deposit
- Sign in to your CRA account (or call the benefits line at 1-800-387-1193; hours are on the CRA contact information page)
- View your benefit payments: the account lists Canada Child Benefit and related provincial and territorial program payments, and Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit and related provincial program payments, each with the account balance and statement of account
- Find the deposit by its date and amount
- If it may be a refund, check the latest notice of assessment in your account, which shows the refund amount
Where each of these sits in the account is shown in the CRA My Account guide. Deposits go to the bank account on file through CRA direct deposit; if a payment went to an old account or a cheque went to an old address, see how to change your address with the CRA.
How missed benefit payments arrive after a late return
If you filed a prior-year return late, the CRA works out what you’re entitled to once the return is assessed. Missed Canada Child Benefit amounts are paid on the next scheduled payment date, and a retroactive Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (formerly the GST/HST credit) amount comes as a separate lump sum or with the next quarterly payment. A single large deposit might actually be:
- missed quarterly payments of the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit
- missed monthly CCB payments
These retroactive amounts are not errors: they are the legitimate benefits you were entitled to but could not receive until your return was assessed.
What to do if you received money you were not expecting
| Situation | Action |
|---|---|
| Recognized benefit, expected amount | Nothing further |
| Recognized benefit, unusually large | Your CRA account shows the status of your benefits |
| Unrecognized deposit | Your CRA account lists your benefit payments |
| Suspected benefit overpayment | The CRA’s benefit debt line is 1-888-863-8662 |
| Missing an expected payment | Your CRA account shows the status of your benefits |
If it was an overpayment: for the Canada Child Benefit, the CRA sends a notice with a remittance voucher that tells you the amount owing; repaying is covered in benefits and your tax return, and the ways to pay the CRA cover the options. A deposit that was smaller than expected may have been reduced because the CRA kept part of it to pay a debt, which is explained in why the CRA took money from your account.
Related pages
- CCB payment dates: the monthly child benefit schedule
- Ontario Trillium Benefit: a provincial benefit the CRA pays for Ontario
- Why you might not be getting the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit: when an expected deposit doesn’t come
- Uncashed CRA cheques: payments that went out by cheque and were never cashed
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 23, 2026 and October 13, 2026. How we check facts.
- Canada Revenue Agency: Payment timing
- Canada Revenue Agency: Contact the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Balance owing – Benefits overpayment
- Canada Revenue Agency: Notices of assessment (NOA or NOR) (CRA)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Payment dates for CRA administered benefits and credits
- Canada Revenue Agency: Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Canada child benefit (CCB)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Ontario programs administered by the CRA (Ontario trillium benefit, Ontario child benefit and others)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Alberta child and family benefit (CRA-administered provincial program)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Advanced Canada Workers Benefit, line 41500 (CRA)
- payments.ca: Standard 007: Standards for the Use of Transaction Codes and Return Reason Codes in AFT Files (Canadian Payments Association)