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That said, though, how did the Alberta Affordability Plan affect you? What financial support payments were you eligible for, and what are the payment dates? Well, let’s go over the details.
Programs Within the Affordability Plan
Within the Alberta Affordability Program, there are quite a few different programs you could qualify for depending on your financial situation and how many people are in your family.
Fuel Tax Relief
Until December of 2023, Alberta lifted the fuel tax completely. This equaled a savings of 13 cents per litre on gas and diesel as well as 4 cents per litre on marked fuel. After the end of December, there was still a fuel savings, but those savings are based on the average price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil. However, fuel tax is still collected on certain fuels such as rail and aviation.
Rebates on Electricity
From June 2022 until July 2023, Alberta offered electricity rebates for those who had extremely high electric bills. The rebates totalled $500 but were given out on a monthly basis for eligible electricity bills. Each month also had different rebate amounts.
- July to December 2023 - $50 per month
- January and February 2023 - $75 per month
- March and April 2023 - $25 per month
Instead of being given as a cash rebate, those who were eligible received the amounts as an account credit.
Price Protection on Electricity
If you were registered for the regulated rate option on your electricity bill, you didn’t have to pay the high prices on your bill during the winter. Those costs had been deferred and were spread out over 21 months. The period you’d be paying those deferred costs back goes from April 2023 to December 2024.
Natural Gas Rebates
This rebate is credited directly to your account every month. The amount of rebate you’ll receive is based on your electric company. When the payment gets deposited into your account is based on your billing cycle. If you don’t use natural gas to heat your home, you can still be eligible for the rebate, but you need to apply.
Affordable Post Secondary Education
Another way that Alberta is helping people to save money is by making post-secondary education more affordable. The first way they’re doing this is by capping the cost of tuition. Starting in the 24/25 school year, there was a 2% cap on the increase of tuition for domestic students. This makes Alberta tuition costs comparable with others in the country.
Another way they reduced the cost of tuition was by lowering the interest rates on student loans. Rates for both variable and fixed interest are prime. Plus, the interest-free grace period on student loans has doubled from 6 months to 12 months. Thresholds for the Repayment Assistance Plan have also increased from $25,000 to $40,000.
Lastly, there is additional funding for low-income students. If you were in a program that started between August 2022 and July 31, 2023, you could get $475 per month as long as you applied 30 days before the program started.
Low-Income Benefits
With rising costs throughout the province, it only made sense that benefits increased to help cover these higher costs. Alberta recognized this and increased AISH, support payments for those with disabilities, by 6%. Income support benefits also went up by 6%, as did Alberta Senior Benefits and Alberta Child and Family Benefit Payments.
They also created a low-income transit pass program to help those who couldn’t afford a vehicle get where they need to go. Eligibility requirements were based on the community and if they offer the program. Alberta was also providing $20 million over 2 years towards food banks.
Affordability Payments
For those struggling with the new increased cost of living, there was an affordability program you could apply for between January 2023 and July 31, 2023. With this program, you could receive payments of up to $600 per month for 6 months, with all payments being made by December 2023. These regular monthly benefits were available to:
- Alberta seniors 65 and older
- Alberta families with children (benefits for each dependent child)
In order to be approved, you needed to fall within the income threshold. Eligible seniors must have an adjusted household income below $180,00. Families with household incomes below $180,000 are also eligible. This is based on your notice of assessment information with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Those who automatically received additional benefits were those on:
- AISH income support (Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped)
- Income Support Benefits
- PDD (Persons with Developmental Disabilities)
- CPP Disability (Canada Pension Plan Disability)
- Alberta Seniors Benefits
Foster and kinship caregivers were also automatically enrolled for affordability benefits. The payments were automatically deposited into your bank accounts using your current direct deposit banking information.
Help for Workers/Drivers
Alberta is helping workers earn more money by reducing tax deductions. Currently, 1.3 million Albertans don’t pay provincial income tax. Many more didn't have to throughout 2023. They’ve also negotiated with the Federal Government to reduce the high cost of childcare for working parents.
Licensed childcare providers could apply for funding and grants so their costs can be reduced to $10 per day by 2026. If you have an annual income of under $180,000, you can also apply to have your cost covered by a childcare subsidy. They’re even looking to create 42,5000 new spaces in child care by 2026. However, it was announced that this will be ending for some age groups on April 1, 2025. As of then the cost of childcare will be $15 per day for everyone.
Alberta was also looking to reduce the cost for drivers by pausing auto insurance cost increases until the end of 2023. However, if the rate increase was already approved before you renewed, there may have be an increase.
Applying
Applying for affordability payments (CORE benefits) or other Alberta payments could be done by completing the application process through their application portal on the online portal. That said, the application period for the affordability payments is over. Applications closed on July 31, 2023.
Alberta Affordability Payment Dates
If you’re receiving monthly Alberta affordability payments, they arrived around the same time every month. That said, when you received your monthly payments will depend on how your other benefits were received and when. The exact timing depends on the individual.
Recipients who were receiving benefits like AISH or other recipients of benefits that receive automatic payments should have started receiving their payments on January 31, 2023 and continued to receive the payments on these dates.
For those who applied for the benefits, if you’re eligible, you should have started receiving payments at the end of the month you apply. From there, you should have received the benefits at the end of every month until they’re completed.
One thing to remember about these benefits is that they aren’t taxable. You don’t need to claim them as income on your tax return.
