Registered Education Savings Plans:

About the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan

The Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan will contribute $500 to the Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) of every child born to Alberta residents in 2005 and beyond. The program is designed to give parents an incentive to start planning and saving for their child’s post-secondary education as early as possible.

To get the $500 grant for their baby, a parent must first register the birth and obtain a social insurance number for the child.

The next step is to open an RESP at a bank or with an RESP provider. The bank or RESP provider can then help guide parents through the application process for the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant.

Grants of $100 are available to children enrolled in school at ages 8, 11 and 14 beginning with children who turn these ages on or after January 1, 2005 and whose parents are residents of Alberta. A child will not have to receive previous grants in order to qualify for $100 grants. These grants require a minimum $100 invested in an RESP within one year prior to application.

Applying for the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan

Eligibility requirements for the initial Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant

The initial Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant of $500 is available to a child:

• born in 2005 or later; and
• whose parent or guardian is a resident of Alberta at the time of application and who is ordinarily present in Alberta; and
• who is named as a beneficiary of an RESP account.

The subsequent Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grants of $100 are available to a child:

• who is named as a beneficiary of an RESP account; and
• who turns age 8, 11, or 14 in 2005 or later; and
• whose parent or guardian is a resident of Alberta at the time of application or who is ordinarily present in Alberta; and
• who is attending school; and
• for whom a deposit of at least $100 has been made to an RESP within the year immediately preceding the making of the application.

Before a subscriber can apply for the grant on behalf of a child, the parent or guardian must:

• register the birth or adoption of their child;
• obtain a birth certificate; and
• obtain a social insurance number for the child.

During the application process for the initial grant of $500, the RESP promoter must be provided with:

• the name, birth date and gender of child;
• the name and address of the child's parent or guardian;
• evidence that the child is eligible (refer to eligibility requirements listed above);
• evidence that the parent or guardian is a resident of Alberta at time of application; and
• any other information required by the Minister of Alberta Advanced Education.

The application for the initial Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant must be completed within two years of the child's date of birth.

During each application process for the subsequent grants of $100, the RESP promoter must be provided with:

• the name, birth date and gender of child;
• the name and address of child's parent or guardian;
• evidence that the beneficiary is an eligible student;
• evidence that at least $100 has been deposited to a RESP on behalf of the child within one year of the particular application; and
• any other information required by the Minister of Alberta Advanced Education.

For the subsequent Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grants available to children at 8, 11 and 14 years of age, the application must be completed within two years of the applicable birthday.

During the application process for both the initial grant and the subsequent grants, proof must be shown to the RESP Promoter that the parent or guardian is a resident of Alberta.

Some examples of documentation that would demonstrate that the parent or guardian makes their residence and is ordinarily present in Alberta would be:

• a driver's licence;
• an Alberta photo identification card;
• an Alberta Health Insurance Card;
• Bank statements, utility bills, or rental agreements that state the individual's address.

RESP Promoters should note the type of documentation seen on the grant application form.

• The Alberta Government is working with the Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG) Program to administer the payment of grants.
• RESP promoters will request payment of the grants from the CESG Program.
• Once the CESG Program receives and processes the request, the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant will be deposited into the RESP.
• If two or more requests are received for the same instalment, the grant will be paid on the first request submitted to and processed by the CESG Program.

• The Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant is paid out as part of an Educational Assistance Payment (EAP) to the eligible beneficiary named on the RESP or to a sibling of that beneficiary.
• An EAP may only be paid to a beneficiary who is enrolled in a qualifying educational program at a designated post-secondary institution. The subscriber or the beneficiary may request an EAP.
• Should the grant not be withdrawn through an EAP, the funds must be repaid to the Government of Alberta.

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