Grant and contribution program
Grants to First Nations to settle specific claims negotiated by Canada and/or awarded by the Specific Claims Tribunal, and to Indigenous groups to settle special claims
Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs · Indigenous services and reconciliation
In fiscal year 2024–25, Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs paid out $8.3 billion under Grants to First Nations to settle specific claims negotiated by Canada and/or awarded by the Specific Claims Tribunal, and to Indigenous groups to settle special claims, up from $2.8 billion in 2023–24. That is $277 per tax filer.
Headline figures
Fiscal year 2024–25
$8.3B
Up $5.5B from $2.8B in 2023–24.
Per tax filer uses 29,965,100 tax filers (2023, the latest count published); per person uses a population of 41,162,593 (2024). An allocation of cost, not a tax bill.
Show these figures as a table
| Fiscal year | Spending |
|---|---|
| 2023–24 | $2.8B |
| 2024–25 | $8.3B |
Largest recipients
The largest named recipients of payments reported under this program in 2024–25. Location is the recipient's address, which is not always where the money is spent. Recipient payments can differ slightly from the program total above because the Public Accounts report them separately.
| Recipient | Location | Paid | Per tax filer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland House Cree Nation Band | Cumberland House, Saskatchewan | $639M | $21.33 |
| Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation | Prince Albert, Saskatchewan | $631M | $21.04 |
| Lac La Ronge Band | La Ronge, Saskatchewan | $602M | $20.07 |
| United Chiefs & Councils Of Mnidoo Mnising | M'Chigeeng, Ontario | $448M | $14.95 |
| James Smith Band | Melfort, Saskatchewan | $218M | $7.28 |
| Ahtahkakoop Band | Shell Lake, Saskatchewan | $214M | $7.13 |
| Beardy'S & Okemasis Band | Duck Lake, Saskatchewan | $200M | $6.67 |
| Odanak | Odanak, Quebec | $200M | $6.67 |
| Frog Lake Band | Frog Lake, Alberta | $188M | $6.27 |
| Flying Dust First Nation | Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan | $174M | $5.81 |
Source and basis
- Detailed information on Transfer Payments, as per the Public Accounts of Canada, retrieved 2026-11-03. Open Government Licence - Canada.
- Recipients: Detailed information on Transfer Payments, as per the Public Accounts of Canada.
- Net expenditures of this transfer payment program in the Public Accounts. It overlaps with program spending, so do not add the two.
← All indigenous services and reconciliation spendingHow the figures are calculated