Eligible Non-participation in Canadian Social Welfare Programs

Abstract

To be effective in meeting their policy or political goals, social programs must reach the intended target groups. Many social programs, however, have low take-up rates. We examine three illustrative federal programs targeted to lower income Canadians and note that efforts by government agencies to serve all they intend to serve vary considerably. In this paper we discuss the sources of eligible non-participation and present estimates of its extent. We point out that the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) plays a critical role in all three Canadian social welfare programs. We find that the legislative framework governing the CRA may be at odds with the mandate given to the Minister of National Revenue to improve access to federal benefits. While automatic enrolment emerges as the preferred approach to improving take-up of benefits, we also consider alternate approaches, including information campaigns, the use of technology, and a role for third party intermediaries.