Alberta government announces affordability support for post-secondary students

In February 2023, the Government of Alberta announced a number of important affordability supports for post-secondary students as part of its 2023 budget.

The supports are meant to help students better face the increase cost of living, rising interest rate and increased tuition costs, which are all impacting their ability to make it through school and get a job.

Some of the highlights include:

• Make student loan repayments more affordable with lower interest rates
• Increasing the thresholds for the Repayment Assistance Plan from $25,000 to $40,000 so more students can benefit from the program. This takes effect as of July 1, 2023
• Doubling the student loan interest-free grace period from 6 months to 12 months to give students more time to find employment without having to worry about student loan payments. This will be I mplemented on July 1, 2023 and will benefit any borrowers who completed studies on or after December 1, 2022.
• Immediately providing an additional one-time grant funding through the Alberta Student Grant for full-time students by $225 per month in 2022-23 to more than 10,000 low income students, boosting eligible students’ funding to a total of $75 per month

How to get your funding assistance:

• Alberta Student Grant eligible students who have already applied and received the base $250/month for the Alberta Student Grant before February 7, 2023, will automatically be reassessed, and approved for the increased one-time amount of $225 per month, in addition to the $250 a month they have already received, for the total benefit of $475 per month.
• Once their assessment is complete, the students will be notified via their Alberta Student Aid personal inbox with an award letter. Students do not have to reapply or submit a Request for Review to receive this extra funding.

Please note Students who applied for and received Alberta Student Grant funding in 2021-22 will not be eligible for additional funding as this is a one time top up exclusively for the 2022-23 loan year only.

For more information, visit the Government of Alberta website or contact the Alberta Student Aid Service Centre:

Phone: 1-855-606-2096 | Option 1
Toll-free anywhere in North America