Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is proposing that temporary residents could potentially be required to pay about $1,900 per person for access to publicly funded health care, as the province prepares for a referendum on immigration and access to provincial services. Smith discussed the potential fee Tuesday during a fireside conversation with Calgary Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Deborah Yedlin. She said the $1,900 figure was based on health-care premiums charged to certain temporary residents in the United Kingdom. The proposed amount is not currently a fee in Alberta. Albertans are scheduled to vote on Oct. 19 on a referendum question asking whether the province should charge certain non-permanent residents a “reasonable fee or premium” for access to health care and education. Any legislation implementing such a measure would have to be developed after the referendum. Under Alberta’s current system, eligible temporary residents, including people who come to the province to work or study and meet residency requirements, can qualify for coverage under the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan. Provincial and federal information currently states that eligible temporary residents can receive AHCIP coverage under specified conditions. Smith said she sees a distinction between permanent residents and people who are in Alberta temporarily. She argued that permanent residents are expected to become long-term members of the province and contribute as taxpayers, while temporary residents could be asked to cover more of the cost of services they use. The proposal could have implications for employers that rely on temporary foreign workers. During Tuesday’s discussion, Yedlin raised concerns about whether an additional $1,900 cost would make it more difficult or expensive for Alberta businesses to recruit and retain workers.
Yedlin later told reporters that the cost would ultimately have to be absorbed either by workers or employers. She noted that lower-paid workers, particularly those in sectors such as hospitality, could have greater difficulty absorbing an additional annual expense. The proposed fee is part of a broader set of immigration-related questions that Albertans will face in the Oct. 19 referendum. The questions also address provincial control over immigration, access to provincially funded programs, waiting periods for some services and fees for health care and education for non-permanent residents. It remains unclear exactly which temporary residents would be subject to a future fee if the proposal proceeds. Finance Minister Jason Nixon said consultations would be required before determining how the policy would apply, including whether people who are already living in Alberta under temporary status would be affected.
The government has begun examining how such legislation could potentially be implemented, but Nixon indicated that any new system would likely not take effect until after the 2027 provincial election. Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi criticized the proposed fee, arguing that temporary workers already pay taxes in Alberta and that the proposal could place an additional financial burden on workers and businesses. His comments represent an opposing political position on the proposal. The debate comes as Alberta continues to examine the effects of rapid population growth, temporary immigration and demand for health-care and education services. The province estimates that temporary residents account for significant public-service costs, while critics have questioned the government’s methodology for calculating those costs and the tax revenue attributed to temporary residents. For now, the $1,900 figure remains a proposal rather than an established charge. The outcome of the October referendum, followed by any subsequent legislation and consultations, would determine whether Alberta moves toward a fee system and what form it could ultimately take.