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FSD 34 - Education Allowances

Scope

Introduction

This directive provides financial assistance to employees serving abroad to ensure that their dependent children obtain elementary and secondary education which approximates Canadian standards and which enables the child to re-enter the Canadian school system with as little disruption as possible.

An education allowance is provided to employees assigned outside Canada who incur costs necessary to obtain education for dependent children, which would ordinarily be provided/obtained without charge in the public school system in Ontario or equivalent in other provinces. An education allowance will permit a student to complete a year of Junior Kindergarten, a year of Kindergarten, eight years of elementary education (six years of elementary in Quebec), and four years of secondary education (five years of secondary plus two years of general pre-university CEGEP I and II in Quebec) up to and including the school year of the 21st birthday.

Postsecondary shelter assistance may be provided up to and including the school year of the 23rd birthday for a student in full-time attendance at a postsecondary educational institution in Canada.

The maximum amounts for the various education allowance provisions are outlined in Appendix A of this Directive.

Definitions

Note: These definitions only apply to this directive.

Compatible education (enseignement compatible) means an education system which provides an educational curriculum and services compatible with those normally provided without charge in schools in Ontario from junior kindergarten to secondary school graduation, taking into consideration:

  1. the desirability of continuation in the child's educational stream, and
  2. the educational history and other personal factors pertinent to the child's education.

Education allowance (indemnité scolaire) is an allowance for admissible education expenses, provided on an annual basis to employees outside Canada with dependent students/children to obtain compatible schooling that will enable the dependant to continue in the chosen educational stream and will facilitate re-entry into the next higher grade level at a provincial public school system upon return to Canada.

Education expenses (frais de scolarité)

Admissible education expenses (frais de scolarité admissibles) means actual expenses which are necessary to accomplish the purpose of this directive, in respect of a dependent child/student. These include:

  1. fees, expenses and charges for courses, instruction, services or programs normally provided free as part of the regular educational program in Ontario or equivalent in other provinces when it is a compulsory condition of re-enrolment to public education in that province, but not provided free of charge at the school attended by the child, such as:
    1. tuition fees;
    2. fees for subjects normally on the school curriculum;
    3. non-refundable application fees, including fees at more than one school where the employee has applied to several to ensure the dependent child's/student's registration/acceptance in a school, as appropriate to the circumstances, notwithstanding this may exceed the established ceiling;
    4. non-refundable registration fees at the school that the dependant child/student will attend;
    5. entrance fees;
    6. charges, including license fees, for prescribed textbooks;
    7. school/craft supplies as determined by the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee on the basis of practice followed by:
      • Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
      • Ottawa Catholic School Board
      • Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est
      • Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario;
    8. examination fees, including compulsory fees associated with International Baccalaureate (IB) fees and Advanced Placement (AP) fees which exceed the employee share as established by the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee and specified in Appendix A of this directive and Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT) fees where these are required for application by a Canadian postsecondary institution;
    9. library fees;
    10. laboratory charges; and
    11. computer user fees;
  2. expenses when paid as a compulsory condition of enrolment, such as:
    1. school building fund fee or similar specialized disbursement for this purpose, subject to the provisions of the Financial Administration Act;
    2. non-resident fee;
    3. athletic fee;
    4. identification cards and associated pictures;
    5. school foundation fee;
    6. medical examination and service fees;
    7. fees related to the security of the students and/or school;
    8. fees for mandatory courses, instruction, services, and/or programs which are part of the regular curriculum of the school attended by the child/student;
    9. mandatory field trips where conditions outlined in subsection 34.1.4 are met;
    10. compulsory mid-day meal service reduced by an amount determined by the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, which shall be deemed the parent's responsibility;
    11. accident liability insurance to protect the educational institution; and
    12. the cost of pre-testing for first entry to a lycée outside Canada;
  3. local transportation expenses provided by or for the school, such as school bus service, normally for one return school trip each school day between the child's/student's place of residence and place of education;
  4. fees, expenses and charges for:
    1. supplementary courses or programs, or where a structured course or program is not available, private tutoring, undertaken after notification of posting at the old place of duty prior to relocation or at the new place of duty following relocation. Such courses must be recommended by a competent educational authority in order to meet a requirement for a compulsory course and/or to enable the student to meet the appropriate grade level at the school at the new place of duty. Such expenses will only be authorized where the academic deficiency is attributable to foreign service and is not due to the fault or choice of the student and/or employee;
    2. courses and/or private tutoring in subjects not provided by the school attended by the child/student but required on return to Canada by a Canadian provincial education system for secondary graduation;
    3. private tutoring in subjects, except in junior and senior kindergarten, as specified in subsection 34.2.4; and
    4. private tutoring in English or in French, whichever language is not the language of instruction of the school, to provide up to 50 hours of instruction in a school year for a child being educated at the post;
  5. Roman Catholic education comparable to that provided by the Ontario Ministry of Education; where Roman Catholic education is not available, expenses for Roman Catholic religious instruction may be claimed;
  6. actual and reasonable expenses for board and lodging, laundering and mending during terms of scheduled instruction where elementary education has been authorized away from the post because schools at the post are not compatible, or for secondary education or equivalent away from the post;
  7. actual and reasonable commercial storage expenses for a dependent student's personal effects between consecutive school years as specified in section 34.6;
  8. university and college application fees and academic course evaluation fees which are in excess of those paid by students residing in Ontario, where such costs are incurred while attending the final year of secondary schooling within 12 months of graduation from a secondary level educational institution.

Inadmissible education expenses (frais de scolarité inadmissibles) include:

  1. school pictures;
  2. sports equipment;
  3. school magazines;
  4. refundable deposits including those for textbooks, sports equipment or similar items;
  5. school uniforms;
  6. pocket money;
  7. donations, grants or similar specialized disbursements (except for compulsory school building fund fees) unless authorized by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee;
  8. expenses for private lessons, such as music and dance; and
  9. purchase or rental of computer equipment.

Postsecondary education (études postsecondaires) means an education obtained from universities, community colleges and other related institutions in Canada.

School year (for an education allowance) (année scolaire (pour une indemnité scolaire)) is the actual academic year, which is normally September 1 to August 31 in the northern hemisphere and January 1 to December 31 in the southern hemisphere.

Special education (éducation spéciale) refers to programs provided by the Ontario Ministry of Education and/or the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services.

Directive

34. 1 Application

34.1.1 The deputy head, in accordance with this directive, shall authorize the payment of an education allowance to an employee to provide a dependent child/student with an education up to and including the school year of the 21st birthday, which corresponds to:

  1. junior kindergarten/kindergarten school optional programs, as offered by the Ontario Ministry of Education, for students aged 3 years 8 months/ 4 years 8 months as of September 1 of the school year, or as of January 1 of the school year in the southern hemisphere;
  2. elementary school programs equivalent to Ontario grades 1 to 8, or to Quebec grades 1 to 6, as applicable; and
  3. secondary school programs equivalent to Ontario grades 9 to 12, or to Quebec Secondary I to Secondary V and general pre-university CEGEP  and II, as applicable.

34.1.2 To ensure equivalencies of education between Quebec and Ontario, the provisions of paragraphs 34.1.1(b) and (c) shall be reviewed annually on September 1, and adjusted as necessary, by the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee.

34.1.3 The deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, may authorize the payment of admissible education expenses directly to an educational institution on behalf of an employee or group of employees. The employee is obliged to inform the deputy head in writing, immediately on receipt of a bill from a school and/or when a child terminates schooling during the academic year for which an education allowance has been paid. Any advanced funding which may be refunded by the school under such circumstances must be made payable to the Receiver General for Canada. In the event that the school, in error, makes a refund directly to the employee, this must immediately be refunded to the Receiver General.

34.1.4 The deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, may authorize an allowance for field trips where:

  1. the field trip is a compulsory component of the regular school curriculum and not a compulsory component of optional or enhanced programming;
  2. a non-fee paying option is not available; and
  3. failure to participate would significantly impact the child’s grade or result in failure of the grade as confirmed in a letter from the school principal.

34.1.5 Before authorizing an education allowance, the deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, shall consider whether a foreign educational facility is compatible for a child. In forming an opinion on the compatibility of a school for a particular child, the deputy head shall take into account the advice of the senior officer at the mission, the relevant experience of other departments represented at the mission, and the opinion of the employee as to the compatibility of schools at the post, based on the educational history and other personal factors pertinent to the child's education. In particular, the deputy head shall be guided by the objective of providing access for the child of an employee to:

  1. instruction in the appropriate official language, i.e., English or French, consistent with section 23 of the Minority Language Educational Rights prescribed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms;
  2. schooling in a safe, healthy and secure environment;
  3. a curriculum which is reasonably compatible with the Ontario Ministry of Education curriculum;
  4. a milieu free of problems arising from racial segregation or hostility to foreigners;
  5. schooling free from compulsory, incompatible religious instruction;
  6. Roman Catholic education, comparable to that provided by the Ontario Ministry of Education, which right is confirmed in the Constitution of Canada;
  7. schooling where there is no lack of confidence in the school staff, or in the prevailing climate of morality among the school's student population;
  8. schooling which will enable continuation in the child's educational stream.

34.1.6 Entitlements under this directive are available any time after the date on which an employee is officially notified in writing of an impending posting and continue to be available until the end of the last academic year that commenced while the employee was stationed abroad, subject to the provisions of section 34.8 and to limitations specified in subsection 34.10.1.

34.1.7 Subsection 34.1.6 shall apply to a Head of Mission designate any time after the date of official direction to proceed with posting arrangements.

34.1.8 Notwithstanding any of the other provisions of this directive, an education allowance or related expenses on behalf of a dependent child/student who resides with the employee's spouse or common-law partner who has chosen not to accompany the employee on posting shall not be authorized without the approval of the President of the Treasury Board as requested by the deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee.

34.2 Elementary and Secondary Education at the Post

34.2.1 Where a dependent child is being educated at the elementary or secondary level at a compatible educational facility at the employee's post, an education allowance for admissible education expenses shall be authorized in accordance with this section.

34.2.2 The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, shall establish post ceilings to reflect the cost of admissible education expenses at representative schools for each post where non-fee paying schools are not compatible. The representative schools shall be taken from the roster of compatible schools, as recommended by the mission to the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee. Once schools have been approved as representative for a post, the deputy head may approve an allowance for admissible education expenses at any school on the post roster of compatible schools, up to the post ceiling established for the representative schools.

34.2.3 The deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, shall establish a supplementary allowance, in addition to the post ceiling, for private tutoring and Roman Catholic instruction, on an individual basis.

34.2.4 The deputy head may, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, establish an education allowance, on an individual basis, for private tutoring in subjects, except in junior and senior kindergarten, where, as a result of a relocation, the following conditions are met:

  1. the educational level of the child/student is below that of the class, form or grade which is attended as a result of a change in school, curriculum and/or culture; and
  2. the tutoring is recommended by a competent educational authority to ensure compatibility of education.

34.2.5 Private tutoring in subjects shall not be authorized where the academic deficiency is not attributable to a relocation, recognizing that parents would be responsible for private tutoring for their child/student in Canada where an academic deficiency exists.

34.2.6 The deputy head may establish an education allowance, on an individual basis, where the representative school is not compatible for a particular child, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, for those posts where a post ceiling is not adequate for a particular child or has not been established because the representative school is a non-fee paying school.

34.2.7 Where an employee chooses to home school a child at post, the employee must inform the deputy head on an annual basis. An education allowance will not be approved for home schooling. Where the employee has opted to home school a child and then chooses to register the child at a school at a post during the same or subsequent academic year or in Canada upon return and where the educational level of the child is below that of the class, form or grade, an allowance for private tutoring will not be provided.

34.3 Elementary Education in Canada

34.3.1 Subject to subsections 34.1.8, 34.4.2, 34.4.4, 34.4.5, 34.4.6 and 34.4.7 the deputy head may authorize an education allowance for elementary education in Canada where compatible education at the post is not available for a particular child, or living conditions at the post are unhealthy for that child. The education allowance shall include the following:

  1. non-resident school fees for attendance at a public school, and board and lodgings costs, as determined in accordance with subsection 34.4.5; or
  2. admissible education expenses for attendance at a residential school where suitable board and lodging cannot be arranged for attendance at a public school, as determined in accordance with subsection 34.4.2.

34.3.2 On assignment to a post outside Canada, the deputy head may authorize an education allowance for elementary education in Canada for a dependent student, notwithstanding that compatible education at the post is available for a particular child or living conditions at the post are not unhealthy for that child, in accordance with subsection 34.3.1, where:

  1. the student attends an elementary educational institution in Canada, in order to complete the last year of elementary schooling; and
  2. the maximum amount of the allowance shall not exceed the lesser of the post education ceiling or the residential school ceiling in Canada.

34.3.3 Where an employee incurs expenses for provincial health insurance premiums on behalf of a dependant(s) resident in Canada, the provisions of FSD 40 – Provincial Health Insurance Premiums – Dependants in Canada may apply.

34.4 Secondary Education in Canada

34.4.1 Subject to subsection 34.1.8, where an employee chooses to have a dependent student receive secondary education in Canada, the deputy head may authorize an education allowance for this purpose. The education allowance shall include the following:

  1. non-resident school fees for attendance at a public school, and board and lodgings costs, as determined in accordance with this section; or
  2. admissible education expenses for attendance at a residential school, when suitable board and lodging cannot be arranged for attendance at a public school, as determined in accordance with this section; and
  3. board and lodging expenses for weekends, where a dependent student attends a five-day residential school and seven-day boarding facilities are not available.

34.4.2 The maximum education allowance payable under paragraphs 34.3.1(b) and 34.4.1(b) shall be determined annually by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, to reflect the actual aggregate costs for admissible education expenses at Ashbury College, Ottawa.

34.4.3 In the event that Ashbury College ceases to provide co-educational residential facilities, the methodology for the determination of the maximum education allowance payable under this directive for residential schooling in Canada shall be determined by the NJC FSD Committee.

34.4.4 The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, shall establish an allowance for commercial storage expenses for a dependent student's personal effects between consecutive school years. At the discretion of the deputy head, and following the specific request of an employee, this allowance may include costs for packing and/or local transportation (pick-up and delivery) of the student's personal effects where it can be demonstrated that:

  1. no other option is available or practicable;
  2. it is a requirement of the commercial storage facility, where other storage facilities or arrangements are not available or practicable; or
  3. the proposed arrangement is cost-effective, having regard to other possible arrangements for the storage of the student's effects.

34.4.5 The maximum allowance payable under paragraphs 34.3.1(a) and 34.4.1(a) shall be determined annually by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, to reflect 75% of the difference in cost between a boarding student and a day student at Ashbury College, less any surcharges.

34.4.6 The maximum allowance payable under paragraph 34.4.1(c) shall be determined annually by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, and shall not exceed the maximum allowance payable under subsection 34.4.5.

34.4.7 Where a dependent student who has been enrolled in the French National curriculum system attends a Lycée in Canada, the career foreign service employee may claim an allowance for actual admissible education expenses, including tuition in lieu of a non-resident school fee, up to the amount established for public education in Canada.

34.4.8 On the basis of comparability, an allowance for actual admissible education expenses may be claimed on behalf of a dependent student receiving technical or vocational training at the secondary school level in Canada, up to the amount established for public education in Canada.

34.4.9 Where an employee incurs expenses for provincial health insurance premiums on behalf of a dependant(s) resident in Canada, the provisions of FSD 40 – Provincial Health Insurance Premiums – Dependants Resident in Canada may apply.

34.5 Secondary Education Away from Post but Not in Canada

34.5.1 The deputy head may authorize an education allowance for a dependent child/student at the Canadian curriculum secondary school which is nearest to the employee's post, and which is inspected by the Ontario Ministry of Education, for employees posted outside North and South America. The allowance authorized under this section shall not exceed the education ceiling for secondary residential schooling in Canada, in accordance with section 34.4.

34.5.2 Where education facilities at post are not compatible/available and a dependent student is being educated within the country of assignment but not at the employee's place of duty, or outside the country of assignment but not in Canada, which does not offer residential facilities, the details shall be reported to the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee to determine the amount of education allowance payable. This assistance may be extended to dependent students at the elementary level.

34.6 Postsecondary Shelter Assistance

34.6.1 Subject to subsection 34.1.8, the deputy head may authorize an allowance for actual costs incurred by an employee on behalf of a dependent student who has graduated from secondary school in Canada or has obtained equivalent educational status abroad for:

  1. shelter for the full academic year which includes time for registration at the beginning of the term and for packing at the end of the term where the dependent student is in full-time attendance at a postsecondary educational institution which has been approved by the deputy head in the headquarters city or the employee’s last place of duty in Canada prior to the assignment abroad; or
  2. shelter for the balance of the academic year where an employee is relocated from a post abroad during the course of the academic year and a dependent student, who resided with the employee and who is in full-time attendance at a postsecondary institution at the employee's post, chooses to remain at the old place of duty to complete the academic year; and
  3. actual and reasonable commercial storage expenses, as determined by the deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, for a dependent student's personal effects between consecutive school years.

34.6.2 For the purposes of paragraphs 34.6.1(a) and (b), reimbursement shall be limited to the annual maximum established by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, on September 1st of each year, to reflect the cost of single occupancy on-campus residence at the University of Ottawa. In claiming shelter assistance, an employee shall provide evidence of actual costs and of full-time attendance until the end of the academic year. For periods of less than a complete academic year, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs shall establish a daily rate on the basis of the annual maximum.

34.6.3 Where a student is receiving vocational or technical training which is not normally provided free of charge to residents, the provisions for postsecondary education shall apply.

34.6.4 The provisions of this section do not apply to a student at the postsecondary level in Canada where the employee's spouse or common-law partner has chosen not to accompany the employee on posting or the postsecondary student is living with the other parent in Canada.

34.6.5 The provisions of this section do not apply where the dependent student resides in the employee’s principal residence or a property owned by the employee and/or spouse or common-law partner.

34.6.6 Transitional provisions shall apply for employees who were in receipt of shelter assistance in Canada under the provisions of the 2009 Foreign Service Directives on March 1st, 2019. Employees shall continue to receive the assistance provided under subsection 34.6.1 of the 2009 directives for shelter while the dependent student is in full time attendance at a postsecondary educational institution in Canada, regardless of whether the location is the employee’s headquarters city or last place of duty in Canada, for the 2019-2020 academic year and until the end of the employee’s assignment, excluding any extensions.

34.7 Refundable Deposit/Accountable Advance

34.7.1 Where it is a condition of enrolment of a dependent child/student of an employee who is posted outside Canada that a refundable deposit be paid to an elementary or secondary level educational institution, the deputy head may authorize an accountable advance for admissible education expenses, equal to the amount of the deposit, which shall be accounted for within ten days from the date on which it is due to be refunded by the school.

34.8 Relocation During an Academic Year

34.8.1 Where an employee is relocated during an academic year from one post to another post or from a post to a place of duty in Canada, and:

  1. the dependent child/student remains at the old place of duty, the deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, shall authorize an allowance for actual admissible education expenses, including board and lodging expenses, for the balance of the school year;
  2. the dependent child/student has been educated at a location approved by the deputy head away from the employee's post, an allowance for actual admissible education expenses which had been approved shall continue for the balance of the school year; or
  3. where expenses are incurred at another educational institution, an allowance for actual admissible education expenses shall be authorized for the balance of the school year in accordance with the appropriate section of this directive.

34.9 Special Education Allowance

34.9.1 The deputy head, on the recommendation of the appropriate foreign service interdepartmental coordinating committee, may authorize a special education allowance, on an individual basis, for a dependent child/student with proven special education needs, based on programs normally provided without charge by the Ontario Ministry of Education and/or the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services.

34.9.2 The allowance will be established based on costs incurred as specified in subsection 34.9.1 and may include expenses such as hourly fees charged by a teaching aide/assistant normally provided in a classroom, a support program or board and lodging.

34.9.3 It is the responsibility of the employee to provide documentation in support of the special education allowance, such as, but not limited to, an assessment and recommendation of appropriate professionals.

34.10 Deputy Head Discretion

34.10.1 Subject to paragraph 34.6.1(b), the assistance authorized pursuant to section 34.6 may, at the discretion of the deputy head, be paid until the end of the last academic year during which the dependent student attained the age of 23 years, except that reimbursement may only be authorized under paragraph 34.6.1(a) provided the employee remains abroad during this period.

34.10.2 Section 34.8 may also be applied at the discretion of the deputy head in exceptional circumstances, where

  1. a dependent child is evacuated under FSD 64 – Emergency Evacuation and Loss; or
  2. the school being attended by a dependent child/student becomes incompatible.
Index