Fee Waiver for Reclaimed Indigenous Names

Summary#

The Fees in Respect of Fingerprinting and Criminal Record Verification (Reclaimed Names) Remission Order: SI/2022-47 waives certain RCMP fingerprinting and criminal-record-check fees for people reclaiming names that were changed under the residential school system. The order came into force on registration (October 12, 2022) and the fee waiver applies for five years from that date.

What it does#

• Grants remission (a waiver) of fees under the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Fingerprinting for Visa, Licensing or Security Clearance Purposes Fee Regulations when all these are true:
  • the request is for an Indigenous person who, because of the residential school system, had an imposed name change in Canada or is a descendant of such a person;
  • they are seeking to change their name from the imposed name to a reclaimed name; and
  • they submit a written request during the period starting when the order comes into force and ending on the fifth anniversary of that day, and the request names both the imposed name and the reclaimed name.
• Grants remission of fees under the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Criminal Record Verification for Civil Purposes Fee Regulations under the same conditions listed above.
• The waiver covers the RCMP portion of the fee (the standard RCMP charge is $25 for fingerprint-based checks); other local or private fees (for example, charges by a police service or private fingerprinting company) may still apply.
• Applicants must make a written request (a form will be available through RCMP and participating fingerprinting locations). Authorized fingerprinting officials will verify eligibility before waiving the fee.

Who's affected#

• Primarily Indigenous people who are residential school survivors, and their descendants, who want to reclaim a name that was imposed on them through the residential school system.
• People in provinces or territories where a legal name change can require a fingerprint-based criminal record check. (Some provinces require fingerprint checks routinely; others require them only if a name-based search finds a possible match.)
• It is not clear from the order whether every local police or private fingerprinting provider will automatically waive their separate service charges; the order only remits the fees collected under the RCMP fee regulations.

Why it matters#

• It removes a small but concrete cost barrier when survivors and descendants try to restore ancestral or reclaimed names. The RCMP fee portion waived is $25 per fingerprint check.
• The government estimates about 100 applications per year, which it projects equals a remission of up to $12,500 over five years (about $2,500 per year).
• This action responds to Call to Action 17 from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission by reducing administrative costs linked to reclaiming names. It does not change other parts of the name-change process or other fees charged by provinces, territories, police services, or private providers.