BC Financial Help for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Three Separate Agencies, Three Separate Payment Streams

If you are a grandparent raising a grandchild in British Columbia, money is available — but it comes from three different offices that do not talk to each other. The Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) handles provincial kinship maintenance. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) sends the Canada Child Benefit and BC Family Benefit. And the Ministry of Social Development runs income assistance for legacy cases. Knowing which desk handles what saves weeks of wasted phone calls.

The amounts are real. MCFD's Extended Family Program pays $1,549.20 per month for a child aged 0–11 and $1,726.33 for a youth aged 12–19. At the July 2025 to June 2026 CRA benefit rates, the Canada Child Benefit adds up to $7,997 per year for a child under 6 or $6,748 for a child aged 6–17. The BC Family Benefit tops that up by as much as $1,750 per year for the first child — plus a $500 annual supplement if you are a single caregiver. These EFP, CCB, and BC Family Benefit payments are tax-exempt or tax-free and do not reduce your OAS, GIS, or CPP retirement pension.

Which Payments You Can Claim Depends on Your Care Arrangement

This is where most grandparents get stuck. British Columbia has several distinct pathways, and each one opens — or closes — different money:

Informal care (no ministry involvement): You and the child's parent agreed the child would live with you, but no agency is involved. You can claim the Canada Child Benefit and BC Family Benefit through the CRA if you meet its primary-care, residency, tax-status, and tax-filing requirements. You cannot access MCFD monthly maintenance.

Extended Family Program (EFP): A voluntary agreement under Section 8 of the Child, Family and Community Service Act. The parent keeps legal guardianship; you handle daily care. MCFD pays $1,549.20–$1,726.33 per month in tax-exempt maintenance, and you still claim the CCB and BC Family Benefit on top.

FLA guardianship order: You went to Provincial or Supreme Court under the Family Law Act and became the child's legal guardian. MCFD pays nothing under this route — but you claim the full CCB and BC Family Benefit through the CRA.

Temporary or permanent custody order under the CFCSA: A court transferred custody to you under child protection legislation. MCFD pays the same monthly maintenance as EFP, and you can claim CRA benefits.

How to Start Claiming

For MCFD payments (EFP or court-ordered out-of-care maintenance), contact your local MCFD office or Delegated Indigenous Agency. Every adult in the household needs a criminal record check and a prior contact check. A social worker will complete a Safe Home Assessment and, if everything clears, you sign a tri-party agreement with the parent and the Director of Child Welfare. Payments begin after the agreement is executed.

For the Canada Child Benefit and BC Family Benefit, submit CRA Form RC66 — either online through CRA My Account or on paper. Attach proof that you are the child's primary caregiver: a letter from the school confirming you are the contact, a doctor's letter noting you bring the child to appointments, or daycare receipts in your name. The CRA processes applications in 8–11 weeks. Retroactive payments are limited to 11 months before the date the CRA receives your form.

One Thing That Catches Many Grandparents Off Guard

The old Child in the Home of a Relative (CIHR) program — which some community members still mention — closed to new applicants on March 31, 2010. If someone tells you to apply for CIHR, they are working from outdated information. The Extended Family Program is the current provincial pathway for kinship maintenance.

Getting Help Sorting It Out

The Parent Support Services Society of BC runs a Kinship Care Help Line at 1-855-474-9777 (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 10 AM–2 PM). They provide free peer support and can walk you through the steps.

For a structured approach that maps every payment across all three agencies and provides evidence checklists, application trackers, and escalation templates, the BC Kinship Financial Help guide organises the entire process in one place.

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