ELIGIBLE B.C. families who have registered for the Temporary Education Support Payment (TESP) program can expect to receive their cheques in the mail shortly, the government announced on Wednesday.
Since October 20, about 165,000 cheques have been processed and mailed out to eligible families. This represents more than half of the total number of cheques expected to be sent out. Nearly 230,000 families have submitted registration forms representing close to 295,000 students. So far, an estimated 97% of families eligible for the program have registered.
The majority of TESP payments should be sent out by the end of October and received by families in the next two weeks.
Additional time will be required to confirm with school districts the enrolment of students attending kindergarten and those who are new to BC public schools. Mail-outs for those students are expected to commence in late November.
The TESP program is intended to help parents of students 12 years old and under with the added cost of learning and supervision as a result of the labour disruption.
The temporary education support payment of $40 a day applies to the first 13 school days of September from September 2 until September 18 — until teachers ratified the collective agreement.
Parents have until January 31, 2015, to register. No new registrations will be accepted after this date.
Finance Minister Michael de Jong said: “We recognize that the labour disruption at the beginning of the school year imposed costs on families. Our intention with the temporary education support payment was to provide a modest degree of support for parents who incurred most of those costs. As promised, families can expect to receive payment over the coming days.”
Quick Facts:
* Registration can be completed online at: bcparentinfo.ca
*Parents and primary caregivers are eligible to apply. Primary caregivers can include step-parents, legal guardians, foster parents, host parents for international students, caregivers with temporary custody arrangements, and family members who normally care for the student, such as grandparents.
* Parents and primary caregivers will need to provide the name, address, date of birth, school district number and school for each eligible student.
* For those without access to a computer, registration by paper form is also available by calling 1-877-387-3332 or 250-387-3332.
* The payment is not taxable and will not affect provincial and federal tax credits and benefits such as the new B.C. Early Childhood Tax Benefit, B.C. Low Income Climate Action Tax Credit, Sales Tax Credit or the federal Canada Child Tax Benefit or GST credit.
