Launch of the new Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime

A more inclusive and flexible benefit for parents in need

September 28, 2018        Ottawa, Ontario        Employment and Social Development Canada

The death or disappearance of a child is devastating. It can leave parents unable to work and in need of support. To ensure victims’ families get the help they need, the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, announced the new Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime on May 25, 2018.

The Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime replaces the former Parents of Murdered or Missing Children  grant and provides enhanced support to parents facing tragic circumstances. The new benefit is more inclusive and flexible to allow more parents to get the support they need. As of September 30, 2018, the following improvements take effect:

• the age limit of the young victim changes to under 25 (from under 18);
• the weekly benefit payment increases to $450 (from $350);
• the period in which recipients can receive the benefit extends to two years (from one year);
• recipients are now allowed to work up to 50 percent of their regular work week, up to a maximum of 20 hours weekly; and
• the requirement that parents attest that their child was not a willing party to the crime is eliminated for children under 14 years of age.

The benefit provides income support to eligible parents who have suffered a loss of income because they took time away from work to cope with the death or disappearance of their child or children, as a result of a probable Criminal Code offence. Eligible parents will have two years following the date of the incident to receive payments of $450 per week, paid bi-weekly for a maximum of 35 weeks.

These improvements are in addition to the ongoing improvements to service delivery and outreach efforts to increase awareness of the benefit among families who are affected by such tragic circumstances. The Government also intends to amend the Canada Labour Code to ensure that employees in the federally regulated private sector have job protected leave while receiving the benefit.

Incidents that occurred prior to September 30, 2018, will still be assessed under the eligibility criteria of the Parents of Murdered or Missing Children grant, but payments will increase to $450 as of September 30. Recipients will also be allowed to work up to 50 percent of the regular work week after September 30, 2018, up to a maximum of 20 hours a week.