Housing attainment

• Helping Veterans transition into safe and appropriate housing, such as:
  • Transitional housing
  • Supportive housing (place-based and scattered-site)
  • Market rent housing (independent units and shared accommodations)
  • Indigenous-led housing options that reflect Indigenous values, beliefs and practices
• Determining needs and preferences for housing and supports for Veterans.
• Securing housing for Veterans by working with private and public local real estate, landlord associations, and home communities (e.g., First Nation band, Inuit community, and Métis settlement).
• Helping Veterans apply for housing and support services (e.g., working to get participants on waitlists).
• Providing more intensive housing search support (e.g., accompaniment to viewings).
• Providing landlord-tenant services for Veterans that have moved into housing. This includes, for example, mediation and problem-solving when a Veteran is first housed (e.g., within the first three months).
• Re-housing (if required).

Housing set-up

• Activities which cover costs associated with setting up a housing unit, including:
  • maintenance (e.g., painting)
  • moving costs
  • basic furniture and appliances at move-in
  • basic supplies at move-in (e.g., cookware, cleaning supplies)
  • basic groceries at move-in

Support Services 

• Essential services related to the provision of emergency shelter beds, food and shelter (e.g., shower and laundry facilities, food banks, soup kitchens, community kitchens and drop-in centres).
• Supplies to support Veterans experiencing unsheltered homelessness, such as tarps, tents, sleeping bags and other basic goods.
• Longer-term food programs that are part of another eligible activity (e.g., activities that assist with community reintegration).
• Culturally appropriate services and supports for Indigenous Veterans (e.g., cultural ceremonies, traditional supports, and activities with the goal of increasing cultural connections and an individual’s sense of belonging in a community).
• Basic personal items, such as clothing, footwear, blankets and personal hygiene supplies.
• Supports for Veterans with service animals (e.g., food costs, veterinary services).
• Storage for belongings (for up to 3 months).
• Repair or replacement of eyeglasses (if not otherwise covered through medical services).
• Disability-related supports (e.g., assistive devices not otherwise covered through medical services).
• Cost to issue or replace personal identification, including a Veteran’s Service Card.
• Access to technology (e.g., community voicemail, safe apps, computers, etc.) in a community setting (e.g., in a resource or drop-in centre).
• Local transportation costs (e.g., bus, public transit tickets, taxi, rideshare) to support housing searches, job searches or other integration activities (e.g., appointments or reconnecting to family).
• Transportation to home community, with mileage eligibility to be determined by Recipient or Sub-Agreement holder.
• Access to oral care programs, if not covered by the federal government (e.g., Non-Insured Health Benefits Program for First Nations or Inuit), or a provincial or territorial government program.

Let us help connect you:

• Access to income assistance: services to connect Veterans to existing income benefits and financial assistance (e.g., provincial/territorial social assistance, child benefits, disability benefits, Veterans allowance, Old Age Security, or Employment Insurance).
• Employment assistance: pre- and post-employment services (e.g., job search assistance, interview preparation) that assist Veterans in finding and maintaining employment, and building self-sufficiency.
• Essential skills assistance: services to support essential skills development (e.g., budgeting, cooking, reading, document use, numeracy, writing, oral communication, computer use and continuous learning), and/or life skills (e.g., sessions on healthy relationships, parenting skills development, effective and positive communication, budgeting, cooking and healthy eating).
  • This includes connecting Veterans to education and training programs and providing services to support successful participation in these programs (e.g., bus passes, clothing or equipment, food and non-alcoholic beverages, childcare costs, internet access for the duration of the program).

Health and medical services

• Connect Veterans to clinical, health and treatment services through case management, including through an Intensive Case Management team.
• Hiring of healthcare professionals (e.g., nurses, mental health practitioners) to provide services directly to Veterans.
• Refer to harm reduction activities that seek to reduce risk and connect Veterans with key health and social services.
• Supports to access traditional or culturally relevant healing services, for example:
  • healing circles
  • sweat lodge ceremonies
  • access to traditional medicines and foods that are not offered through provincial programming

Financial assistance

Providing one-time or short-term financial assistance for housing related costs including, but not limited to:

• Funding to help cover housing costs in the short term (up to a maximum of six months) while people wait for longer-term rental assistance including the VHP rent supplement, Canada Housing Benefit or benefits from provincial, territorial, or municipal programs or Veteran Affairs Canada benefits
• Paying the cost of a maximum of one month of rent for a market rental unit to hold it for a Veteran exiting homelessness
• Rental deposits eligible under applicable provincial or territorial legislation (e.g., last month’s rent or security deposits, where permitted)
• utility bills (e.g., electricity, water, gas, internet)
• deposits to set up utilities
• tenant insurance
• rental and utility arrears
• Providing a VHP Rent Supplement to eligible Veterans that meet the criteria described in the directives, to help bridge the gap between what the household can afford to pay (including a Veteran’s municipal, provincial and federal benefits) and actual rental costs.