This page includes information on:
Compensation payments
All Claimants
Claimant who is deceased
Eligible Deceased Removed Child Class Claimants that were placed off reserve and were in care between January 1, 2006, and March 31, 2022, will be eligible for $40,000 and may be eligible to receive additional payments.
Representatives[2] of Deceased Removed Children[1] who were not placed off reserve and did not remain in care between January 1, 2006, and March 31, 2022, will receive a letter from the Administrator with more information about timeframes for assessment and payment, if eligible. This is because it may not be known right away whether compensation will be available or the amount that these Claimants may receive. The Administrator will provide further details in these situations.
Different processing timelines apply depending on if there is a Grant of Authority[3] in place. Claims submitted by Representatives[2] with a Grant of Authority will take priority over Claims by Representatives without a Grant of Authority.
For Claims where there is no Grant of Authority, the Administrator must wait until after the Ultimate Claims Deadline (Claims Deadline plus the extension period) to process those Claims. This wait is required because the Administrator may receive more than one Claim by potential heirs[4] for the same Deceased Class Member, and the Administrator must wait until all potential Claims are submitted before making a decision on who may be eligible as the highest priority living heir.
Claimant who is eligible in multiple Classes
Some Class Members may belong to more than one Class. If you believe this is your situation, you will need to submit a separate Claim Form for each Class. If you are eligible in multiple Classes, you will receive the higher single amount for which you qualify. Compensation amounts will not be combined across Classes. For example:
- If you were eligible as a Removed Child Class Claimant and received a Base Compensation amount of $40,000; and
- If you were also later found to be eligible as a Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent and your total compensation under that Class was $126,000; then
- The $40,000 and $126,000 compensation amounts would not be combined. You would instead receive the remainder ($86,000) for a total compensation of $126,000.
If you are eligible in multiple Classes, you will receive compensation according to the Claims Period timeframe of each Class in which you submit a Claim and are approved for compensation. For example, this means you could receive compensation under the Removed Child Class sooner than under the Removed Child Family Class, if you are eligible for compensation under both Classes. Compensation will not be combined, which means that if eligible under multiple classes, the total amount you receive will be the highest single amount for which you qualify.
Assessment and compensation timelines
All Claimants
Claims by Removed Child Class Members who are over the Age of Majority will be processed as they are received. Once the Administrator has assessed your eligibility, they will send you an eligibility letter.
You have 60 days from the date of the Approval of Eligibility Letter to confirm whether you would like to receive your compensation by direct deposit or mailed cheque. The Administrator will issue your compensation according to your instructions. If your completed Compensation Payment Form is not received by the Administrator within 60 days of the date on the Approval of Eligibility Letter, a cheque will be mailed to you. If your mailing address changes, please call the Administrator immediately.
Claimant who is deceased
Where a Grant of Authority[3] is in place, the Administrator will assess Claims as they are received.
Where a Grant of Authority is not in place, the Administrator will assess Claims after the Ultimate Claims Deadline, which is after the Claimant’s three-year Claims Period and one-year extension period ends.
Representatives[2] of Deceased Removed Children[1] who were not placed off reserve and did not remain in care between January 1, 2006, and March 31, 2022, will receive a letter from the Administrator with more information about timeframes for assessment and payment, if eligible, as it may not be known right away whether compensation will be available. The Administrator will provide further details in these situations.
Claimants eligible in multiple Classes
Each Class has a unique Claims Process. The Administrator will assess Claims following the Claims Process and timeframes for each Class.
If you are eligible in multiple Classes, you will receive compensation according to the Claims Period timeframe of each Class in which you submit a Claim and are approved for compensation. For example, this means you could receive compensation under the Removed Child Class sooner than under the Removed Child Family Class, if you are eligible in both Classes. Compensation will not be combined, which means that if eligible under multiple classes, the total amount you receive will be the highest single amount for which you qualify.
Receiving compensation payments
All Claimants
Base Compensation comes to you as a payment either by direct deposit into a bank account in your name or by mailed cheque.
If you wish to receive compensation by direct deposit, you will need to have a bank account in your name. The Administrator is not permitted to issue payment to a bank account or issue a cheque in the name of anyone but the Claimant, the Deceased Claimant’s Estate or the approved heir[4] of a Deceased Claimant.
Claimant who is a Person Under Disability
Compensation for a Claimant who is a Person Under Disability[5] will be made payable in the name of the Claimant and sent to the attention of their Personal Representative[6]. You must have a bank account in the name of the Claimant for compensation to be issued, unless otherwise specified in the appointment order.
Claimant who is deceased
A direct deposit may be made to an account in the name of the estate of the eligible Deceased Claimant where a Grant of Authority[3] is in place. If no such account exists, a cheque will be issued with payee as “estate of Claimant.”
Additional payments and interest
If you are eligible for payments in addition to the Base Compensation, including interest, the Administrator will contact you separately at a later date. The Administrator will determine eligibility for additional payments based on the information submitted with your Claim Form. It’s important to keep your contact information up to date so the Administrator can contact you about additional payments. Call the Administrator at 1-833-852-0755 to update your mailing and contact information. To protect your privacy, updates to personal information will only be accepted over the phone, subject to verification screening to ensure the caller is the Claimant or their legally appointed representative.
Exceptional early payments
Eligible Removed Child Class Members who are under the Age of Majority and are suffering from a terminal or life-threatening condition may be eligible to receive Exceptional Early Payments of up to $40,000 in compensation.
The Administrator will require documentation along with a completed Application Form for Minor Removed Child Class Member with Terminal or Severe Degenerative Life-Threatening Condition to assess eligibility and circumstances, including information about the life-changing or end-of-life experience request.
If the Claimant is eligible for an Exceptional Early Payment to fund or reimburse the cost of a life-changing or end-of-life experience, the amount will be up to, but no more than, $40,000.
[1] A Removed Child is defined as a First Nations individual who, while under the Age of Majority, was removed from their home between April 1, 1991, and March 31, 2022, by Child Welfare Authorities. The removal from home must have happened while the Child or at least one of their Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents were Ordinarily Resident on Reserve or living in the Yukon. The placement was funded by Indigenous Services Canada.
[2] A Representative is someone designated by the courts to make decisions on behalf of the estate of a Class Member who is deceased where a Grant of Authority is in place, or where no Grant of Authority is in place, the highest priority living heir.
[3] A Grant of Authority is a document that names the Estate Executor or Estate Administrator and is evidence that the Representative has the legal authority to receive compensation on behalf of the estate of the Eligible Deceased Claimant. A Grant of Authority may include one of the following documents:
- Will (for example, Notarial Will for Quebec); or
- Grant of Probate issued by a provincial or territorial court order; or
- Grant of Administration letter issued by the Government of Canada, such as:
- Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC); or
- Indigenous Services Canada (ISC); or
- Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC)
[4] An heir may be a spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling or grandparent of a Deceased Class Member. Only certain heirs may be eligible to represent a Deceased Class Member and receive compensation on their behalf.
[5] A Person Under Disability is someone who lacks the mental capacity to manage or make reasonable decisions about their affairs.
[6] A Personal Representative is someone designated by the courts to make decisions on behalf of a Person Under Disability.
To be legally appointed as a Class Member’s Personal Representative means you should have:
- A signed Power of Attorney (POA) or Protection Mandate; or
- A provincial or territorial appointment order (including appointment of a Public Guardian and Trustee), or a federal appointment order for the administrator of property by Indigenous Services Canada (Administrator for Property).