Provincial grants

Two provinces pay extra. One has a deadline you can miss forever.

Q: Which provinces offer their own RESP grant?

British Columbia and Quebec currently offer provincial education savings incentives. British Columbia provides a one-time $1,200 grant requiring no contributions. Quebec provides a refundable tax credit of 10% of annual contributions up to $250 per year, to a lifetime maximum of $3,600. Other provinces do not currently offer a provincial education savings grant.

Q: When can I apply for the BC grant — and can I miss it?

Applications for the British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant may be made from the beneficiary's sixth birthday until the day before their ninth birthday. The grant cannot be claimed after that window closes.

Q: What is the Quebec incentive worth?

The Quebec Education Savings Incentive provides a refundable tax credit of 10% of annual contributions up to $250 per year, with an additional income-tested amount of up to $50 per year, deposited into the Registered Education Savings Plan. The lifetime maximum is $3,600 per beneficiary. The beneficiary must be under 18 and a Quebec resident at the end of the year.

Q: Do provincial grants replace the federal ones?

Provincial education savings incentives are additional to federal grants. The Canada Education Savings Grant and Canada Learning Bond remain available regardless of province of residence, and provincial amounts are paid in addition where the beneficiary qualifies.

Q: Does my RESP provider have to offer them?

Provincial education savings incentives are only paid into plans held with promoters who have agreed to administer them. Subscribers should confirm with their promoter whether the applicable provincial incentive is offered.

Q: We’re moving provinces — what happens?

Residency requirements for provincial education savings incentives are tested at defined points: British Columbia at the time of application and Quebec at the end of the taxation year. A change of province may create or remove eligibility depending on timing relative to those tests.

British Columbia gives $1,200 with no contribution required — but only between your child’s sixth and ninth birthdays, and it never comes back. Quebec adds 10% of everything you contribute. Everywhere else, the federal grants are the whole story.

Who gets what

British Columbia and Quebec — and nowhere else.

British Columbia pays a one-time $1,200 grant requiring no contributions, claimable only between the child’s sixth and ninth birthdays. Quebec pays 10% of annual contributions up to $250 a year, to a lifetime maximum of $3,600. No other province currently offers an education savings grant.

These stack on top of the federal grants, which are available everywhere in Canada. A British Columbia family claiming everything can collect federal grant, the Canada Learning Bond if eligible, and the provincial $1,200 into the same plan.

$1,200

British Columbia

One-time payment — no contribution required
Child born on or after 1 January 2006
Apply from the 6th birthday to the day before the 9th
Child and a parent or guardian must be BC residents when you apply
Valid Social Insurance Number, named in an RESP
Provider must participate — check before you rely on it
Not retroactive. Miss the window and it is gone

$3,600

Quebec

10% of your annual contributions, up to $250 a year
Lower-income families may receive up to $50 more a year
Lifetime maximum $3,600 per child
Refundable tax credit from Revenu Québec, paid into the plan
Child under 18 and a Quebec resident at year end
Contribute $2,500 a year and you capture the full $250

If you’re in Ontario or anywhere else

There is currently no provincial education savings grant in your province — we would rather say that plainly than imply otherwise. The federal grants are available to you in full, and for most families they are the larger number anyway: up to $7,200 of Canada Education Savings Grant and, where eligible, up to $2,000 of Canada Learning Bond.

Free eligibility check

Are you inside the window?

The British Columbia grant has a hard three-year deadline. This tells you where you stand today.

British Columbia Quebec

Your child’s age 5 years

Contributing each year $2,500

Quebec pays 10% of this, capped at $250 a year.

Provincial amount available

Runs entirely in your browser — we don’t store or see your numbers. It applies the published provincial rules: British Columbia’s one-time $1,200 claimable from the sixth birthday until the day before the ninth for children born on or after 1 January 2006, and Quebec’s 10% of annual contributions to $250 a year and $3,600 lifetime. It cannot verify residency, Social Insurance Number status, whether your provider participates, or the income-tested Quebec increase. Confirm eligibility with your promoter and the relevant government before relying on any figure.

Check what we qualify for → The federal $2,000 bond

Common questions

Provincial grant questions

Which provinces offer their own RESP grant?

British Columbia and Quebec. British Columbia pays a one-time $1,200 grant with no contribution required. Quebec pays a refundable tax credit worth 10% of your annual contributions, up to $250 a year, with a lifetime maximum of $3,600. Other provinces, including Ontario, currently have no provincial education savings grant — families there rely on the federal grants, which are available everywhere.

What is the BC grant and who qualifies?

$1,200, once, and you don’t have to contribute anything to get it. The child must be born on or after 1 January 2006, hold a valid Social Insurance Number, and be named as the beneficiary of an RESP with a participating provider. At the time of application, both the child and a parent or guardian must be residents of British Columbia. The maximum is $1,200 per child no matter how many plans exist.

When can I apply for the BC grant — and can I miss it?

Yes, and it’s permanent. You can apply from your child’s sixth birthday until the day before their ninth. That’s roughly a three-year window, and once it closes the $1,200 is gone — there is no retroactive claim the way there is with the Canada Learning Bond. If you have a child in British Columbia aged between six and eight right now, this is the most time-sensitive item on this website.

What is the Quebec incentive worth?

10% of what you contribute each year, up to $250 — paid straight into the plan. Lower-income families can receive an additional amount of up to $50 a year on top. It is a refundable tax credit administered by Revenu Québec and deposited into the RESP, with a lifetime maximum of $3,600 per child. The child must be under 18 and a Quebec resident at the end of the year.

Do provincial grants replace the federal ones?

No — they stack on top. The federal Canada Education Savings Grant and, where eligible, the Canada Learning Bond are available across Canada regardless of province. Provincial amounts are additional. A British Columbia family claiming everything available can therefore collect federal grant, the Canada Learning Bond if eligible, and the $1,200 provincial grant into the same plan.

Does my RESP provider have to offer them?

Not all do — check before assuming. Provincial incentives are only paid into plans held with providers who have agreed to administer them. If your provider doesn’t offer the grant you qualify for, you may need to open a plan with one who does. Ask the question directly and get the answer before the application window matters.

We’re moving provinces — what happens?

Residency is tested at specific points, so timing matters. The British Columbia grant tests residency at the time of application; the Quebec incentive tests residency at the end of the year. Moving into or out of either province can create or remove eligibility, and the effect depends on exactly when the move happens relative to those tests. If a move is on the horizon and there’s a grant at stake, get the sequencing checked rather than assumed.

Let’s talk

Don’t leave a provincial grant on the table.

A free call: which federal and provincial amounts your family qualifies for, whether your current provider actually administers them, and — if you’re in British Columbia with a child aged six to eight — how quickly you need to move.

Book a free call →

Harpreet Singh · Licensed advisor (LLQP, Ontario) · Proudly Canadian. This page is general information only — not financial, investment, insurance, or tax advice, and not a determination of eligibility. The British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant is administered by Employment and Social Development Canada under an agreement with the Government of British Columbia; the Québec Education Savings Incentive is administered by Revenu Québec. Amounts, eligibility conditions, residency and Social Insurance Number requirements, application windows, and participating promoters are set by the relevant governments and may change; confirm current details at canada.ca, gov.bc.ca, and Revenu Québec. Provincial incentives are only paid into plans with promoters who administer them, and certain incentives require all beneficiaries of a family plan to be siblings. Speak with a qualified advisor about your own situation.

Written and reviewed by

Harpreet Singh

Licensed Advisor · LLQP, Ontario

Harpreet is a licensed insurance and education-savings advisor based in Ontario, Canada. He helps families understand RESPs in plain language, claim every government grant they qualify for, and protect the plan with the right coverage — with straight answers and no pressure. More about Harpreet →

Reviewed July 2026 Figures per Canada.ca / CRA LinkedIn Book a free call