Letters to Provinces and Territories: Nova Scotia 2024

The Honourable John Lohr, M.L.A.
Minister of Finance and Treasury Board
Government of Nova Scotia
Provincial Building, 7^th Floor
1723 Hollis Street
P.O. Box 187
Halifax, Nova Scotia  B3J 2N3

Dear Minister,

I am pleased to provide you with Nova Scotia’s transfer payment amounts for 2025-26 in accordance with the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act (the Act) and relevant regulations.

Total major transfers to Nova Scotia for 2025-26 will round to $5.3 billion, an increase of $241 million from 2024-25.

The first estimates of your province’s Canada Health Transfer and Canada Social Transfer payments for 2025-26 are $1.4 billion and $449 million respectively. In accordance with the legislated formula under the Act and its regulations, your province qualifies for an Equalization payment of $3.5 billion for 2025-26.

Under the Working Together to Improve Health Care for Canadians Plan, the federal government guaranteed five per cent growth to the CHT from 2023-24 to 2027-28 to be paid through top ups as required. This year, the top up is worth a total of $713 million.

To access their share of the funding, provinces and territories were asked to take steps to improve the collection and management of health data. I am pleased that the Minister of Health has confirmed that all jurisdictions have met this condition. Nova Scotia’s share of the 2025-26 CHT top-up is $18 million.

Enclosed for your information is a table presenting the 2025-26 major transfer amounts for each province and territory. The table will be provided to your officials and posted on the Department of Finance’s website.

Yours sincerely,

The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, P.C. K.C., M.P.
Minister of Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs