Kinship Care Financial Support in Canada: A Province-by-Province Overview

Federal Benefits Apply Everywhere

Every province and territory in Canada shares the same federal baseline for kinship caregivers:

Canada Child Benefit (CCB): Up to $8,157/year per child under 6 and $6,883/year per child aged 6–17 (July 2026–June 2027). File CRA Form RC66 with evidence of primary care. Non-taxable, paid monthly.

CPP Children's Benefit: $307.81/month in 2026 if a parent has died or qualifies for CPP disability after sufficient CPP contributions. Apply through Service Canada.

Disability Tax Credit and Child Disability Benefit: Available nationally for children with qualifying impairments, adding a non-taxable monthly supplement to the CCB.

Where things diverge sharply is at the provincial level.

Alberta

Alberta pays formal kinship caregivers daily per diems from $26.00 to $39.66 depending on the child's age. The Supports for Permanency (SFP) program provides maintenance and supplementary supports for caregivers who obtain a Private Guardianship Order for a child who was in permanent government care. Since September 2025, an income test of $180,000 applies to SFP basic maintenance for new orders.

Alberta's Child and Youth Support Program (CYSP), which paid $105–$148/month to informal caregivers, was cancelled in September 2025 with no direct replacement. The Alberta Child and Family Benefit (up to $1,529/year for one child) is administered by the CRA.

Ontario

Ontario provides Temporary Care Assistance (TCA) — a standalone monthly payment for children placed with relatives outside the formal child welfare system. This is a child-only benefit that does not test the caregiver's income. Ontario also offers a Kin Service rate for formal kinship placements through Children's Aid Societies.

British Columbia

BC pays restricted foster care rates to approved kinship caregivers through the Ministry of Children and Family Development. The province also offers an Out-of-Care arrangement where the ministry provides a monthly payment without the child entering formal government care — a middle ground between informal and formal kinship that Alberta does not have.

The Common Pattern

Across all provinces, the financial architecture follows a similar logic: formal placements through child welfare agencies pay the most, informal arrangements rely primarily on federal benefits, and the gap between the two creates real financial hardship for grandparents and relatives who step up without government involvement.

The specific rates, programs, and eligibility rules are different in every province. For Alberta-specific guidance covering every care arrangement, benefit, and application process, see the Alberta kinship financial help guide.

See more Alberta guides →