Temporary expanded eligibility for the Canada-Alberta Job Grant

What is it?

The Canada-Alberta Job Grant is a training program where an employer applies on behalf of their present or future employee(s) for eligible training costs. Employers decide who gets training and what type of training may be needed for their employees. Funding is provided by the Government of Canada through the Workforce Development Agreement.

Temporary program changes

The following program changes expand eligibility to help businesses access the training they need. These temporary changes are effective from February 18, 2021 until February 28, 2022.

1. Eligible trainee now includes employed family members of eligible employers.
2. Business owners (incorporated, unincorporated/sole-proprietor and partnerships) with 4 or fewer employees, including all owners, are now eligible to train themselves.
3. Training is no longer required to be incremental.

Operational program changes:

The following permanent operational changes will make the application process more efficient. These permanent changes are effective as of February 18, 2021

1. Training can start once the application is received by the CAJG.
2. Employers may pay for training at any time; however, the training cannot start until all trainee(s) have signed the application and the application is received by the CAJG.
3. Course information is no longer required to be listed on the training provider’s website.
4. Customized training is eligible.
5. Revised list of eligible and ineligible training cost. Please see the Applicant Guide for the full list.

COVID-19 response: Approved grants extension

Deadlines for current approved grants are extended by 3 months. Training can start within 9 months of grant approval and must be completed within 15 months of the training start date.

• If a course is postponed, contact Canada-Alberta Job Grant (CAJG) to update your file when you get a new course date from the training provider.
• If a course is cancelled, contact CAJG to withdraw. If you plan to re-apply for a course at a later date, get a refund from the provider or institution, not a credit.
• If a course changed format from in-person to online, include this in the Training Completion Form. You don’t need to notify CAJG now.

Grant applications and training completion forms may take longer to process.

Funding

Eligible employers are required to contribute a minimum of one-third of the total training costs for existing employees. Government contributes two-thirds of the cost to a maximum of $10,000 per trainee per fiscal year. If hiring and training an unemployed Albertan, up to 100% of training costs could be covered, up to $15,000 per trainee. Individual employers will have a cap of $300,000 for the amount of grant funding they can receive per fiscal year. This ensures that funding is available for as many Alberta employers as possible. 

The CAJG is available for direct training costs only, including:

• tuition fees or instructional fees charged by the training provider
• mandatory student fees
• examination fees
• textbooks or software
• other required materials directly relevant to the training course and distinct from materials required to run the employer's business.
• eligible travel cost for participant and trainers (outside of Edmonton and Calgary) when training is over 100km one way within Alberta for small and medium-sized organizations (see Appendix A of the Applicant Guide for details
  

Employee wages cannot be reimbursed through the grant and Income Support is not available for workers who are in grant-funded training.

The CAJG is available to:

• private sector employers, including sole proprietors and partnerships
• non-profit sector employers
• First Nations and Metis Settlements
• the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (if in a community with a population of 100,000 or less)
• Alberta Treasury Branches (if in a community with a population of 100,000 or less)

To be eligible, Alberta employers must have current or potential employees who need training to fill current or future positions.

Eligible trainees

CAJG trainees must be one of the following:

• Canadian citizens
  • Permanent residents
  • Protected people under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada) who are entitled to work in Canada
  • Business owners (incorporated, unincorporated/sole-proprietor and partnerships) with 4 or fewer employees are now eligible to train themselves
  • Employed family members
  

All eligible trainees must live in Alberta

Ineligible trainees

• The following individuals are not eligible as Canada-Alberta Job Grant trainees:
• Company owners (includes shareholders of a corporation and any member of the employer's board or council) of businesses with more than 4 employees.
• Family members who are not current employees.
• Temporary Foreign Workers, or anyone temporarily working in Canada
  

Refer to the Canada-Alberta Job Grant Applicant Guide for complete eligibility criteria.

Training providers

• Employers are responsible for finding appropriate training providers and programs.
• Training providers must be third-party trainers separate and distinct from the employer.
• The employer may not act as the training provider and the training provider may not employ the individual it is training.
• Training must be a main business activity of the training provider.

Training requirements

• total 21 instructional hours or longer per trainee per application
• start within 6 months after receiving Canada-Alberta Job Grant approval
• be completed within 52 weeks of the training course(s) start date
• result in some credential (record of completion, certification, grade, etc.)

Training may be delivered on a full or part-time basis, and may be any combination of online, on-site or in a classroom setting. Apprenticeship Technical Training programs and self-study models like instructional books or DVDs are not supported by the Canada-Alberta Job Grant. Trainees receiving Employment Insurance (EI) Employers must declare on the Canada-Alberta Job Grant Application if their trainee is receiving Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. A trainee receiving EI benefits must notify their EI case worker of the training as soon as possible, to ensure they continue to receive their benefits.

How to apply

Canada-Alberta Job Grant applications must be submitted through the online portal.

Step 1: Read the Applicant Guide

• Canada-Alberta Job Grant Applicant Guide
• Access Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal to complete the application.
• Canada-Alberta Job Grant Application Checklist for Employed Trainees
• Canada-Alberta Job Grant Application Checklist for Unemployed Trainees

Step 2: Complete the correct application for your trainee(s)

You only need to submit one application for all trainees taking the same training at the same time.

Check the Applicant Guide every time you apply to make sure you are up to date on the program requirements. If the application or supporting documents are incomplete your application will be rejected. It is recommended that applications be submitted at least 30 days in advance of the start date of the training. Applications are not considered “received” by the CAJG until ALL trainees have submitted their consent via email. Use the following application checklist documents to ensure that all requirements are completed:

Receiving payment after applying online

Step 1: Read the Training Completion checklist

• CAJG Training Completion Form Checklist
• Access Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal to complete the Training Completion.

Step 2: Fill out the Training Completion

Check the applicant guide every time you apply to make sure you are up to date on the program requirements. Employers may choose to receive two payment instalments by contacting the Canada-Alberta Job Grant team and requesting an interim reimbursement. This request can be made by contacting us. If the employed trainee paid for the training costs, documentation must be included to show the employer has reimbursed the trainee for the full training amount paid to the training provider and any approved travel costs incurred by the trainee. Unemployed trainees are not permitted to fund their own training costs. The Training Completion form must be submitted within 30 days of finishing training.

Providing payment information

The Government of Alberta's preferred method of payment is Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). It is a faster and more secure way to ensure your company is reimbursed without error. If you wish to receive payment by way of an EFT, you must upload the Request for EFT – Direct Deposit form along with a void cheque into Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal when submitting your Training Completion form.

Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal

Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal allows access where internet service is available to enable employers to:

Apply for the Canada-Alberta Job Grant (CAJG) Program

• Submit Application and Training Completion forms
• View application status
• Upload documents to application
• Update company information

You must have a MyAlberta Digital ID for Business account

• MyAlberta Digital ID for Business is used for logging into Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal. If you already have an account, please use that same username and password to access Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal
• First time users will need to create an account. You will be given this option when you try to access the portal. Use the Creating a MyAlberta Digital ID for Business guide.
• Invite back up users to the account to ensure access to it and the Grants portal are not lost

To access Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal

You must have a MyAlberta Digital ID for Business account

• MyAlberta Digital ID for Business is used for logging into Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal. If you already have an account, please use that same username and password to access Labour’s Workforce Grants Portal
• First time users will need to create an account. You will be given this option when you try to access the portal. Use the Creating a MyAlberta Digital ID for Business guide.
• Invite backup users to the account to ensure access to it and the Grants portal are not lost.

Questions?

For more information, please contact your local Avail office or complete the contact form below.