Question Period Note: Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy

N.A.

• Access to safe and affordable housing remains critical to improving health and social outcomes for Indigenous communities.
• Budget 2023 announced $4 billion over seven years, starting in 2024-2025, for the implementation of the Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy.
• Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) distributed $39.1 million in 2024-2025 and $66.3 million in 2025–2026 to First Nations partners for urban, rural, and northern Indigenous housing projects.

Budget 2022 committed $300 million over five years, starting in 2022-2023, through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to co-develop and launch an Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy (the Strategy).
Subsequently, the National Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous Housing Coalition formed a For Indigenous, By Indigenous housing entity. The entity, National Indigenous Collaborative Housing Inc., was selected to deliver the $281.5 million to meet urgent and unmet needs, with an additional $5.6 million over two years to support operational needs. Projects were identified through an expression of need process and 74 projects were funded across the country, which built 3800 housing units.
Budget 2023 committed an additional $4 billion over seven years, starting in 2024-2025 to implement the Strategy. While the Strategy is being led by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, ISC and Crown Indigenous-Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) deliver $1.18 billion directly to distinctions-based partners.
ISC and CIRNAC have been working with First Nations, Inuit, Métis, and Modern Treaty and Self Governing Indigenous Government partners on their distinctions-based housing strategies to support their members living in urban, rural and northern areas.
ISC is distributing $533.3 million over seven years to First Nations south of the 60th parallel, across all provinces. Projects being supported to date include the development of affordable housing, the construction of student housing, and repairs to existing affordable housing units.
On April 24 2026, recognizing the urgency to get funding into communities to build more housing, Canada announced an updated approach to deliver funding through the Strategy. These updates unlock the remaining $2.8 billion announced in Budget 2023, to support better housing outcomes for Indigenous Peoples
o $1.7 billion will be delivered by Build Canada Homes to support Indigenous housing providers serving urban, rural and northern areas;
o $780 million top-up in new funding towards distinctions-based agreements with First Nations, Inuit and Métis partners through ISC and CIRNAC. With the $1.2 billion in existing funding agreements, this brings the total to $2 billion.
o $300 million be made available through Indigenous Services Canada to address urgent housing needs in urban, rural and northern communities, ensuring projects in the current pipeline can move forward as Build Canada Homes advances its partnerships with Indigenous housing providers.

If pressed on Spring Economic Update 2026
• Budget 2022 announced $300 million for an Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy, supplemented by an additional $4 billion in Budget 2023.
• To advance this work, the Spring Economic Update 2026 proposes to realign previous investments to better support Indigenous housing providers by reallocating $2.8 billion over five years, starting in 2026-27, to Build Canada Homes, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and Indigenous Services Canada. If pressed on Urgent and Unmet Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Needs
• Indigenous Peoples living in urban, rural, and northern areas face urgent housing needs.
• $281.5 million from Budget 2022 was provided to the National Indigenous Collaborative Housing Incorporated for immediate delivery to Indigenous partners, through a For Indigenous, By Indigenous approach. This funding supported 74 projects across the country, resulting in 3,800 housing units.
• As part of the Spring Economic Update 2026, up to $300 million will be made available through Indigenous Services Canada to address urgent housing needs in urban, rural and northern communities. If pressed on funding for distinctions-based partners
• With $533.3 million in funding over seven years from Budget 2023, ISC is supporting First Nations partners to deliver urban, rural and northern housing projects. This included $39.1 million In 2024-2025 and $66.3 million in 2025–26 to First Nations partners.
• The Spring Economic Update 2026 announced an additional $780 million in funding for distinctions-based partners.
• Of this amount, ISC will deliver an additional $355.3 million over 5 years in additional support to address First Nations housing needs in urban, rural and northern areas.