AFN urges First Nations to file child welfare claims

The Assembly of First Nations is urging eligible people to submit claims under the First Nations Child and Family Services and Jordan’s Principle settlement, saying more than $1.2 billion has been paid out but many people have not yet applied.

The AFN said in an Oct. 18 bulletin that the claims process is open. Its earlier statement, issued Aug. 17 and republished by Windspeaker, said more than 30,000 First Nations children removed from their homes have received compensation.

“Many eligible people have not yet submitted a Claim,” National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said in that statement. “No amount of compensation can undo that harm.”

Only two of the settlement’s nine classes are accepting claims: the Removed Child Class and the Removed Child Family Class. The claims period opened March 10, 2025, according to the settlement website. The other seven classes will open at a later date, and each claims process must be approved by the Federal Court.

Claimants who were adults when the period opened must file by March 10, 2028. People who became adults after March 10, 2025, have three years from the date they reach the age of majority. The settlement site said payments to the Removed Child Family Class will begin after March 10, 2029.

The AFN said the settlement covers First Nations individuals removed from their homes as children between April 1, 1991, and March 31, 2022, who lived on reserve, or who were placed in Indigenous Services Canada-funded care in Yukon. Caregiving parents and caregiving grandparents may also be eligible. In its bulletin, the AFN said payments could range from $20,000 to $40,000 per individual, and some people may receive additional compensation.

The settlement, which the AFN said totals more than $23.34 billion, was reached on April 19, 2023. It followed 2019 Canadian Human Rights Tribunal compensation orders stemming from a February 2007 complaint by the AFN and the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society. The AFN said the money addresses discriminatory underfunding of the First Nations Child and Family Services Program and a narrow interpretation of Jordan’s Principle.

“Behind every Claim is an experience that reflects Canada’s discrimination against First Nations children and families,” Woodhouse Nepinak said in the statement posted by the claims site.

Claims can be filed online at fnchildclaims.ca or by calling 1-833-852-0755. The administrator, Deloitte, requires valid government-issued identification and a mailing address. Claims Helpers offer trauma-informed support online, by phone and in person where available, and mental wellness support is available around the clock through Hope for Wellness.

The AFN also warned about fraud. It said claimants do not have to pay anyone to file a claim or receive payment, and that the administrator is not contacting class members. Anyone approached by someone claiming a connection to the settlement should report it to the administrator at 1-833-852-0755.

The AFN said long-term reform of the First Nations Child and Family Services Program is a separate process that has no bearing on the compensation claims. It continues to urge Canada to negotiate a new long-term reform agreement with the National Children’s Chiefs Commission. The AFN materials reviewed did not set out the federal government’s current position on the claims process.

The dispute over child welfare funding has also played out in court and at the bargaining table. Canada News Media has reported on Ottawa’s third court bid against a First Nations tribunal ruling and on the Saskatoon Tribal Council’s $269-million child welfare deal. The AFN’s national chief also recently spoke out on the Alberta exit vote.

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Sources: Assembly of First Nations bulletin; First Nations Child and Family Services settlement site; Windspeaker.