Championing Canada’s Veterans
- Our Government has the utmost respect for the brave men and women who have served in the Canadian Armed Forces.
- It is because of their dedication and commitment that Canadian families continue to live in peace and security.
- Economic Action Plan 2015 recognizes the importance of veterans and introduces several new measures on their behalf, including:
- Providing Additional Financial Security for Injured Veterans over the age of 65 through a new Retirement Income Security Benefit.
- Compensating Disabled Veterans for the Loss of Career Opportunities caused by their disabilities through expanded access to the Permanent Impairment Allowance.
- Modifying the Earnings Loss Benefit to ensure part-time Reserve Force veterans have access to the benefit calculated in the same manner as regular and full-time Reserve Force veterans.
- Creating a New Annual Tax-Free Family Caregiver Relief Benefit recognizing the vital contributions of informal caregivers to the health and well-being of veterans.
- Improving the Ratio of Veterans to Case Managers in order to increase the level of individualized care provided to our Canadian veterans who require regular support.
- These measures build on our record of support thus far, which includes:
- Supporting 17 existing and 9 soon-to-open front-line mental health clinics across Canada.
- Working with the Military Family Resource Centers to support medically releasing Veterans and their families.
- Hiring new staff to help transfer medical files more quickly and efficiently from National Defence to Veterans Affairs.
- Almost tripling the total benefit available under the Funeral and Burial program and expanding it to provide funerals for the most destitute Veterans.
- Creating new monthly financial benefits totaling thousands of dollars each year for seriously injured Veterans.
- Eliminating over 2 million transactions including forms, emails, and letters between Veterans Affairs and Canadian Veterans just since January, 2013.
- Investing $282 million to expand the Veterans Independence Program to over 30,000 Veterans’ widows.
- Increasing Access to Veterans Services, by enabling veterans and their families to engage the Department of Veterans Affairs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- Honouring Canada’s Veterans, by giving former Canadian Armed Forces personnel priority in federal public service employment opportunities.
- Investing $2 billion to enhance the New Veterans Charter programs in support of seriously injured Veterans.
- Providing $19 million in 2007-08 and $20 million thereafter to enhance services for veterans and to establish the Veterans’ Ombudsman.
Beginning in March 2015, the Government has announced a series of complementary improvements to the spectrum of benefits and supports available to veterans and their families. As a result of these actions:
- Moderately to severely disabled veterans—those who need it most—will be provided with continued assistance in the form of a new monthly Retirement Income Security Benefit beginning at age 65.
- More disabled veterans will receive lifetime support under the Permanent Impairment Allowance.
- Part-time Reserve Force veterans will receive the same level of income support under the Earnings Loss Benefit as Regular and full-time Reserve Force veterans.
- Family members taking care of seriously disabled veterans will have their contribution recognized through the new tax-free Family Caregiver Relief Benefit.
- Eligible veterans and Canadian Armed Forces members will receive a $70,000
tax-free benefit to recognize and compensate for the most severe and traumatic injuries or diseases. - Veterans suffering from severe and complex disabilities will have greater access to Veterans Affairs Canada’s case managers, who will have more time to provide dedicated one-on-one support.
- Veterans will receive faster decisions on their Disability Benefit applications.
