People who suffered psychological, verbal, physical or sexual abuse while admitted to one of 33 Federal Indian Hospitals run by the Government of Canada between 1936 and 1981 may qualify to claim $10,000 to $200,000 CAD from the Federal Indian Hospitals class action settlement. Claims close July 27, 2028, and medical or hospital records are not required.
Current Status
Claims are open. The claims period began January 27, 2026, and the deadline is July 27, 2028; the official sources reviewed do not state a time of day. The Federal Court approved the settlement on June 24, 2025, and approved the claims protocols on December 23, 2025. Claims are assessed individually by the Claims Administrator, Deloitte, and no schedule for issuing payments had been published as of October 3, 2026.Free settlement alerts
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What Changed Recently?
The claims period opened on January 27, 2026, after the Federal Court’s December 23, 2025 order approved the Claims Protocol, Estates Protocol and related implementation documents and appointed Castlemain to run the free Claimant Support Program. Since then, the official settlement website has announced free online webinars on the claims process and, in August 2026, one-on-one Claimant Support Sessions with Claims Helpers. A court-appointed engagement lead, Dr. Mike DeGagne, began meeting with class members and families in spring 2026 to shape the Foundation the settlement funds.The settlement resolves Hardy v. Canada (Attorney General), Federal Court file T-143-18, in which former patients sought compensation from the Government of Canada for abuse they said they experienced while admitted to Federal Indian Hospitals. The settlement agreement states that it is not an admission of liability by Canada.
Who Qualifies?
Individual compensation is available to Primary Class Members: people who were admitted to one of the 33 Federal Indian Hospitals listed in Schedule D of the settlement agreement while the Government of Canada operated it, and who experienced psychological, verbal, physical or sexual abuse while admitted. Each hospital has its own covered period, beginning no earlier than January 1, 1936 and ending no later than December 31, 1981, or earlier if the hospital closed or its management was transferred away from Canada. Some hospitals were known locally by other names; the official site’s hospitals list and eligibility tool help match them.An estate representative or heir can file for a Primary Class Member who died on or after January 25, 2016, and a personal representative can file for a claimant who cannot manage their own affairs. Family Class Members — spouses, children, grandchildren, siblings and other close relatives — are not eligible for individual payments.
The settlement does not cover medical malpractice, harms connected to medical treatment or interventions, or any hospital that is not on Schedule D.
How Much Can You Get?
Compensation follows a five-level grid in the settlement agreement, and each eligible Primary Class Member receives a single payment reflecting the most serious harm they experienced:- Level 1 — $10,000 CAD: harms without lasting physical injury, such as sexualized comments, humiliating or degrading treatment, threats, disproportionate punishment, or confinement unrelated to medical care.
- Level 2 — $50,000 CAD: sexual touching or exposure without a medical purpose, or a physical assault causing injury that was not permanent.
- Levels 3 and 4 — $100,000 and $150,000 CAD: progressively more serious sexual or physical abuse, as defined in the compensation grid.
- Level 5 — $200,000 CAD: the most severe repeated sexual abuse, or physical assault causing permanent loss of mobility or a brain injury.
Claims are assessed against the exact wording of the grid in the settlement agreement; the official compensation page sets out each level in full. Beyond individual payments, the settlement funds a Foundation with a $150 million CAD Healing Fund and a $235.5 million CAD Research and Commemoration Fund, and adds $150 million CAD to existing Indigenous Services Canada programs that support class members’ health and wellness.
What Proof or Notice ID Is Required?
No notice ID or claim code is involved, and records of the hospital stay are not required. The claim form does require a clear copy of government-issued identification — photo ID is preferred — and the official site lists accepted documents, from a driver’s licence or passport to a Certificate of Indian Status, an Inuit land claim beneficiary card or a birth certificate. Claimants whose ID shows a different name from the one used as a patient can list their other names.The form also asks for the hospital, approximate admission dates, the level of harm, and a written account in the claimant’s own words. Any hospital or medical records a claimant does have can be included, as copies only. Estate claims require additional documents, and an heir without documents proving the relationship can submit a sworn declaration signed by a guarantor such as a notary, lawyer, physician, police officer or Chief.
What Is the Deadline?
Claims must be submitted by July 27, 2028, which the settlement sets at 30 months after its implementation date. The sources reviewed give no time zone or time of day. In extraordinary circumstances, a claimant who misses the deadline can ask the Claims Administrator for an extension; that request must be made within 180 days after the deadline and include a completed claim and the reason it was late.How Do You Take Action?
Claims are filed through the official Federal Indian Hospitals Settlement website, where the Claims Portal guides claimants section by section. The claim form and guides can also be downloaded, or a paper copy requested, and returned by the other methods listed on the site with copies, never originals, of supporting documents.Free help is available. Claims Helpers, who are independent of both Canada and Deloitte, assist with the form and with finding accepted identification; Class Counsel answer legal questions about the settlement; and the Hope for Wellness Help Line offers mental health and wellness support at any hour. Contact options for each are on the settlement’s contact page.
What Happens Next?
The Claims Administrator reviews each claim, may ask for missing information, and sends a written decision on eligibility and compensation level. The settlement agreement makes the Claims Administrator’s decision final. No date for payments had been announced as of October 3, 2026. Separately, the Foundation engagement process is ongoing, and the Foundation’s design and leadership will be informed by that work.Sources and Verification
- Federal Indian Hospitals Settlement — official website
- Eligibility and Hospitals Included
- Compensation levels
- Step-by-step guide for claimants and accepted identification
- Settlement background
- Legal Documents — Settlement Agreement, Settlement Approval Decision, the December 23, 2025 Federal Court order and the claims protocols
Questions
Is this the same as the Indian Boarding Homes settlement?
It is a separate case. The Federal Indian Hospitals settlement resolves Hardy v. Canada (Federal Court file T-143-18) and covers abuse at 33 hospitals the federal government operated between 1936 and 1981. The Indian Boarding Homes settlement covers Indigenous students placed in private homes to attend school between 1951 and 1992, and it has its own claims process and deadline.
Are medical errors or treatment injuries covered?
The settlement does not compensate medical malpractice or harms connected to medical treatment and interventions. It covers psychological, verbal, physical and sexual abuse that happened while the person was admitted to a listed hospital during the period Canada operated it.
Can family members receive individual compensation?
Family Class Members, such as spouses, children, grandchildren and siblings of a former patient, are not eligible for individual payments. They are meant to benefit from the Foundation the settlement creates and from added funding to Indigenous Services Canada programs. A family member can file only as the estate representative or heir of a former patient who died on or after January 25, 2016.
Does a claimant have to describe the abuse in an interview?
There are no oral interviews. The claim form asks for a written account, and the official site says claimants choose what to share and how much to write. Free, trauma-informed Claims Helpers can assist with the form, and Indigenous Services Canada provides cultural and emotional support services for people affected by the settlement.
Who pays a lawyer hired to help with a claim?
A claimant is not required to hire a lawyer, and Class Counsel answer legal questions about the settlement at no cost. If a claimant does hire a lawyer and receives compensation, the settlement allows that lawyer to ask the Government of Canada to pay the legal fees under the court-approved Individual Legal Fees Protocol.
