REAL Rules
REAL Rules are official manuals and guidelines for student loan aid programs in Canada. More will be added as soon as Debt 101 can obtain them. The goal is to offer complete details for programs in every region of Canada.
Some of the rules below relate to articles in Financial Aid: Student Loan Advice. When available, these articles sometimes examine how rules are interpreted.
Some of the rules also relate to aid applications found in Application Forms. These application forms often contain further details.
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Programs Change
Here are just a few examples of the ever-changing natures of student loan aid programs across Canada:
Canada Student Loans ended Interest Relief and Debt Reduction (DRR) after July 31, 2009. Debt 101 has submitted requests to access and clarify new program rules and applications for their replacement program: Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP).
Interest Relief and Debt Reduction (Loan Remission) for provincial student loans may or may not be affected by the federal change to RAP. BC, for example, abruptly ended many programs in 2009, including Debt Reduction for BC Student Loans, even though BC was not ready to replace it with RAP.
After 3 years of falling further and further behind other provinces BC suddenly announced that RAP would be available July 1, 2012. This came 3 years later than planned, with a media announcement barely a week before the program started.
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Canada
Canada Student Loans Program (CSLP) - Acts and Regulations
Canada Student Loans Program (CSLP) Manual (233 pages)
Canada Student Loans Program: Bankruptcy Before May 2004
Canada Student Loans Program: Bankruptcy After May 2004
Canada Permanent Disabilities Program Guide – see BC (below)
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BC
BC-Canada Permanent Disabilities Program Guide
(Note: page 46-47 was for BC's Permanent Disability Program (PDP), which ended July 31, 2009)
StudentAid BC Policy Manual 2009-2010
(Note: page 178 was for BC's Permanent Disability Program (PDP), which ended July 31, 2009)
Note: References to RAP in the StudentAid BC Policy Manual above were theoretical at the time. Officials said that BC Student Loans might not adopt RAP until 2011 or later. Late June, 2012, they announced RAP for BC's portion of integrated loans would start July 1, 2012.
In the meantime, some of the BC aid programs mentioned in this BC manual have been cut, such as Debt Reduction.
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Alberta
Alta-How to File Loan Over-Award Appeals (3 pages)
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Ontario
OSAP - Debt Reduction (DRR) Instructions/Guidelines (summary)
OSAP - Debt Reduction (DRR) Guidelines for Lenders (detailed)
