Tuition Waivers for Former Youth in Care: Which Provinces and Institutions Offer Them
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Aug 19, 2026 • Money & Budgeting, Canadian Universities & Colleges, Canadian Student Aid & Scholarships
A handful of Canadian provinces and many individual colleges and universities waive or reduce tuition for former youth in care, but there is no single national program, so check your own province and each school separately.
🏠 British Columbia runs a provincial tuition waiver through the Ministry of Children and Family Development
Ontario has no province-wide waiver. Individual colleges and universities set their own policy
Indigenous children are removed into government care at far higher rates than non-Indigenous children, so this funding route reaches a large number of Indigenous students
💵 Ask your province's child welfare ministry and the financial aid office at each school you are considering, since neither list is complete anywhere
Why this matters for Indigenous students
Indigenous children are overrepresented in government care across Canada, a gap Statistics Canada and provincial child welfare reporting confirm every cycle. That overrepresentation means tuition waivers for former youth in care reach a disproportionate share of Indigenous students, even though the waivers themselves are not written as Indigenous-specific programs. If you spent time in government care as a child, whether or not you hold Indian status, check this funding route alongside status-based programs like PSSSP.
Education and child welfare are both provincial
There is no federal tuition waiver for former youth in care. Both child welfare and post-secondary education sit under provincial jurisdiction, so support depends entirely on which province had you in care and which province or institution you plan to study in. A program that exists in one province may not exist at all in another, and the terminology differs too: Ontario uses Crown ward and extended society care, other provinces use different legal labels for the same general situation.
British Columbia
British Columbia runs a provincial tuition waiver program for former youth in government care, administered through the Ministry of Children and Family Development in partnership with participating public post-secondary institutions. Coverage, age limits and the list of participating schools are reviewed periodically, so confirm current details directly with your MCFD regional office or a social worker before you build it into your budget.
Ontario
Ontario does not run one province-wide tuition waiver for former youth in care. Individual colleges and universities set their own policy through their financial aid office, often as part of a broader bursary for students with a Crown ward or extended society care background. Coverage varies widely between schools, from a full tuition waiver to a partial bursary, so ask the financial aid office at each Ontario school you are applying to whether it has one and what documentation it requires.
Other provinces
Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces each set their own child welfare aftercare supports, and coverage for tuition specifically varies by province and sometimes by region within a province. Start with your province's ministry responsible for children in care, since aftercare workers usually know which schools in that province currently offer a waiver or bursary, even when it is not listed as a stand-alone province-wide program.
How to find out what applies to you
Contact the ministry or agency that had you in care and ask specifically about post-secondary tuition support for former youth in care
Contact the financial aid office, not general admissions, at each school you are considering
Ask what counts as proof of your care history, since requirements differ by province and by school
Apply early. Waivers tied to a specific intake often have earlier deadlines than the general admission deadline
If you also hold Indian status, apply for PSSSP funding through your band in parallel, since the two supports are not mutually exclusive
Keep a copy of any letter or file number confirming your time in care. Financial aid offices ask for this documentation every time you apply, and requesting it again from a former caseworker takes longer than keeping the original.
If no waiver applies to you
Not every former youth in care qualifies for a waiver, since coverage depends on which province had you in care, your age, and the specific institution. If nothing applies to your situation, apply for regular provincial student aid as an independent student. Provincial aid programs generally treat former youth in care as independent applicants rather than assessing you against parental income, which usually raises how much aid you qualify for compared to a typical dependent student. Confirm this status with your provincial student aid office when you apply, since it changes your assessed need.
Ask about general entrance bursaries too. Many schools run a first-generation or access-focused bursary that does not require a formal care history, only proof of financial need, and these can stack with a partial tuition waiver if your school offers one.
Questions worth asking every financial aid office
Does this school waive or reduce tuition for former youth in care, and is that a written policy or a case-by-case decision
Does the waiver cover mandatory fees on top of tuition, or tuition only
Is there an age cutoff, and does it apply at the time you start or the time you apply
Does the waiver renew automatically each year, or do you need to reapply and resend documentation
Get any commitment in writing once you have an answer. Financial aid staff change, and a waiver confirmed by email is easier to enforce a year later than a verbal answer from an advising appointment you cannot fully recall.