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Eligibility requirements

The Removed Child Family Class includes the Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents of a Removed Child.

Caregiving Parents include the biological parents, adoptive parents and First Nations Stepparents of an eligible Removed Child Class Member who were

  • Living with, assumed and exercised parental responsibilities over the Child at the time of removal
  • From whom the Child was first removed

Caregiving Grandparents include the biological or adoptive grandparents of an eligible Removed Child Class Member who were

  • Living with, assumed and exercised parental responsibilities over the Child at the time of removal
  • From whom the Child was first removed

The reason for removal does not impact eligibility for a Removed Child. However, a Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent who committed Abuse that led to the Child’s removal is not eligible for compensation in relation to that Child. Abuse, under the terms of the Settlement Agreement, includes sexual Abuse (including sexual assault, sexual harassment, sexual exploitation, sex trafficking and child pornography) or serious physical Abuse causing bodily injury but does not include neglect or emotional maltreatment.

All other members of the Removed Child Family Class who are not Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents (for example, brothers, sisters, non-Caregiving Parents and non-Caregiving Grandparents) are not entitled to compensation in the Removed Child Family Class under the Settlement Agreement.

Eligibility may include

  • Caregiving Parents and Caregiving Grandparents of First Nations Children who were Crown Wards as long as eligibility requirements of both Classes are met
  • Caregiving Parents and Caregiving Grandparents of First Nations Children who were removed from their homes and later returned, as long as eligibility requirements of both Classes are met

Eligibility does not include

  • Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents of Métis or Inuit Children
  • Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents of Children whose removals took place in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. This is because Child and Family Services in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut are not funded through the First Nations Child and Family Services Program
  • Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents of First Nations Children who left home on their own, without the involvement of Child Welfare Authorities, and whose placement was not funded by Indigenous Services Canada
  • Caregiving Parents and Caregiving Grandparents of Children who were under court supervision and not removed from their homes
  • Siblings, cousins or godparents unless they adopted an eligible Removed Child Class Member through a verifiable provincial, territorial or custom adoption process. Siblings may benefit indirectly from the Cy-près fund, which provides culturally safe, trauma-informed supports to Class Members
  • Foster parents are not eligible as Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents of a Removed Child Class Member

Eligibility priority

When multiple Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents have submitted Claims for the same associated Removed Child, whomever the Child was removed from first will have priority to receive Base Compensation.

If the Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents from whom the Child was first removed cannot be confirmed, or if the Child was first removed from more than two Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents, eligibility priority will be:

  • Category A: Caregiving Parents who are not Stepparents; then
  • Category B: Caregiving Grandparents; then
  • Category C: First Nations Stepparents

A First Nations Stepparent may be eligible for compensation if they lived with the Removed Child’s biological Caregiving Parent and contributed to the support of the Child for at least three years before the Child was removed.

Eligibility of Deceased Caregiving Parents and Caregiving Grandparents

In some cases, it’s possible to submit or continue a Claim for someone who has passed away.

An eligible Deceased Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent is someone who passed away on or after April 1, 1991, and was a:

  1. Biological or adoptive parent; or
  2. Biological or adoptive grandparent; or
  3. First Nations Stepparent

Two types of Deceased Caregiving Parents or Caregiving Grandparents may be eligible for compensation:

Type A:

Those who had submitted, before the Claims Deadline, a complete Removed Child Family Class Claim Form prior to passing away. For these Claims, any compensation may go to the estate of the deceased person or to their highest priority living heirs, unless they qualify under Type B.

Type B: 

Those who had a Removed Child removed during the Class Period (between April 1, 1991, and March 31, 2022), placed off reserve with non-family and was still in care anytime between January 1, 2006, and March 31, 2022. For Type B, any approved compensation will be divided among the living children of the Caregiving Parent or living grandchildren of the Caregiving Grandparent. If there are no living children or living grandchildren, the Claim is not eligible for compensation.

Age of Majority

Anyone who is younger than the Age of Majority in the province or territory they currently live is considered a minor. Anyone who is older than the Age of Majority in the province or territory they currently live is considered an adult.

Age of Majority depends on where you currently live. Age of Majority is:

  • 18 in Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan
  • 19 in British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut and the Yukon

Impact of the Age of Majority on submission and Claims processing timelines 

Submission timelines

If you were over the Age of Majority when the Claims Period opened on March 10, 2025, you have until March 10, 2028, at 11:59 p.m. PT to submit your Claim, regardless of the age of the associated Removed Child. If you need more time because of a personal situation or community-based situation that personally impacted you, you can request a one-year extension. This request for extension is subject to approval by the Administrator.

If you are a minor, you must be within two years of the date you reach the Age of Majority where you currently live to submit a Claim. Once you reach the Age of Majority, you will have three years to submit your Claim.

If you are a Representative for a Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent who passed away before March 10, 2025, you have three years from March 10, 2025, to submit a Claim.

If you are a Representative for a Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent who was an adult on March 10, 2025, and passed away after March 10, 2025, you have three years from March 10, 2025, to submit a Claim.

If you are a Representative for a Caregiving Parent or Caregiving Grandparent who passed away after March 10, 2025, while under the Age of Majority, you have three years from their date of death to submit a Claim.

Examples

IF:

  • You were 18 years old when the Claims Period opened on March 10, 2025; and
  • You live in Manitoba where Age of Majority is 18

THEN:

  • You may submit your Claim immediately; and
  • The last day you can submit your Claim is March 10, 2028

IF:

  • You were 17 years old on March 10, 2025; and
  • Your birthday is June 15; and
  • You live in British Columbia where Age of Majority is 19

THEN:

  • You may submit your Claim immediately; and
  • The last day you can submit your Claim is June 15, 2029

IF:

  • You were 15 years old on March 10, 2025; and
  • Your birthday is September 12; and
  • You live in Ontario where Age of Majority is 18

THEN:

  • You must wait until September 12, 2025, to submit a Claim; and
  • The last day you can submit your Claim is September 12, 2030

IF:

  • The deceased person you represent was 18 years old on March 10, 2025; and
  • Lived in Nova Scotia where Age of Majority is 19; and
  • Passed away on February 1, 2026, before their 19th birthday

THEN:

  • The last day you can submit the Claim is February 1, 2029

Claims processing timelines  

The Administrator will process your Claim according to the processing timelines for the Class and only after you have reached the Age of Majority. The Administrator will assess eligibility for Claims in the Removed Child Family Class after the Ultimate Claims Deadline, which is four years after your Claims Period opened and includes the three-year Claims Period and one year for extension requests.

Eligibility decisions and appeals

Claims for the Removed Child Family Class will be assessed after the Ultimate Claims Deadline, which is four years from when your Claims Period opens and includes the three-year Claims Period and one year for extension requests. Once the Administrator has assessed your eligibility, you will receive a letter from the Administrator.

Approval of eligibility 

If you are eligible to receive compensation, you will receive an Approval of Eligibility Letter, along with information about your compensation and next steps.

Denial of eligibility

If you do not meet the eligibility requirements of the Class, you will receive a Denial of Eligibility Letter, which will include information on how to appeal the decision (if an appeal is permitted).

Inconclusive eligibility

If the Administrator is unable to locate the associated Removed Child’s information in the Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) Database, you may receive an Inconclusive Eligibility Letter stating that a decision about your eligibility cannot be made based on available information.

The Administrator will continue to review the ISC Database while it is being updated to see if your information can be located. The continued review of the ISC Database will take place until Canada confirms that no further updates to the Database are to be made.

A process is under development for Claimants who receive an Inconclusive Eligibility Letter. This process will provide direction on next steps for Claimants who, by the time the ISC Database is finalized, are still awaiting an eligibility decision.

Learn about assessment and compensation timelines for the Removed Child Family Class →

Appeals

The Denial of Eligibility Letter will provide the steps to take if you wish to appeal the decision (where appeals are permitted under the Settlement). Individuals will have 60 days from the date they receive the decision letter to request an appeal by submitting a Request for Appeal Form.

Appeals will be reviewed by an independent Third-Party Assessor whose decision will be final.