More than two months after the Ontario government began mailing out $200 rebate cheques, many residents say they’re still waiting for theirs to arrive in the mail.
The one-time payment announced last year was intended to ease financial pressures and provide relief for rising cost-of-living expenses for roughly 15 million people across the province at a total cost of about $3 billion, the provincial government said.
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The government promised that most cheques would land in mailboxes by late January or early February. To qualify for the rebate, individuals must have been at least 18 years old by the end of 2023, living in Ontario as of December 31, 2023 and have filed their 2023 Income Tax and Benefit Return by December 31, 2024. Those who were incarcerated and/or declared bankruptcy are not eligible.
According to the Ministry of Finance, more than 7.5 million cheques were dispatched by the end of January. By February 21, that number had climbed to 12.8 million — yet many Ontarians are reporting online that they’ve seen nothing in their mailbox.
Frustrated Ontarians are venting on social media about the missing payment.
“Still waiting and status never worked. When I phone in every week they say it should be here any day. Mine was processing in week two,” a user on Reddit said.
“I checked my status online three weeks ago, and it said it had been cashed despite my never having received it. I called in right away and was told it would be investigated. Called in again yesterday – still “under investigation” and they won’t commit to a date when the investigation might be over. Why are they sending out paper cheques like it’s 1995?” a user commented.
“I had to call and they put in a ministry of finance request. Heard nothing since,” another user said.
Beyond delays, others have reported receiving cheques made out to deceased relatives, outdated names, or addresses they haven’t lived at in years. Some residents even reported that their cheques bounced after depositing it, according to a CTV News report.
Colin Blachar, Deputy Director of Media, Issues, and Legislative Affairs at the Ministry of Finance, said that as of March 26, 2025, the province had issued nearly 99 per cent of all taxpayer rebate cheques to families across Ontario.
The ministry has provided resources for residents to track their rebate status and update mailing addresses. Residents can visit the official Ontario Taxpayer Rebate website to check the status of their rebate and ensure their information is correct. For further assistance, individuals can contact ServiceOntario at: 1-833-351-0409.
So far, there’s not a firm timeline for when every eligible resident will finally receive their rebate, or when unresolved cases will be fixed.
