Overview
- Canada allocated more than $1.17 billion to Alberta for 2026–27 under extended early learning and child care agreements.
- Parent fees will stay at $15 a day beyond March 31, 2026, with the province describing the year as a stabilizing period for talks.
- The extension opens 5,000 additional for-profit spaces to affordability funding and removes the family day-home cap while the overall 68,700-space ceiling remains.
- Minister Demetrios Nicolaides says reaching the $10-a-day goal under current terms would require about $4 billion more from Ottawa, with Alberta’s share to be detailed in Budget 2026.
- Federal officials stress the workforce benefits of lower fees, and the extension continues infrastructure funding for underserved communities through 2026–27.