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By rdnewsNOW Staff

Provincial Politics

Those eligible can now apply for affordability payments at a local registry office

Jan 18, 2023 | 3:21 PM

Starting today eligible Albertans can apply for their $600 affordability relief payment in person at their local registry office at no cost.

“Registry Agents are pleased to work in partnership with the Government of Alberta, to make it easy for Albertans to apply for their affordability payments by offering quick and easy in person application services,” said Rikki McBride, CEO of the Association of Alberta Registry Agents.

To apply in person at a local registry office, Albertans will need to bring the following:

• Valid identification-Government of Alberta identification (driver’s licence or ID card), or-Other identification (e.g. passport, secure First Nations status card, Métis Nation of Alberta card) and proof of residency (e.g. utility, gas or cable bill)
• Social Insurance Number
• Banking information (if requesting direct deposit)
• To apply for a spouse or partner, you will need their Social Insurance Number
• To apply for one or more dependents, you will need their name(s) and date(s)

Albertans without a driver’s licence or identification card can contact their local registry agent or visit alberta.ca/affordability website for more information on what documents Albertans can provide. Albertans who apply at a registry office do not need an alberta.ca verified account.

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To find a local registry office please visit aara.ca/agents.

Meantime, Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley was joined by University of Calgary students on Wednesday to highlight how many Albertans get nothing from the affordability portal.

The Opposition says more than two million Albertans do not qualify for the $100 affordability payments. The party says the online portal to apply for relief crashed within 90 minutes of opening and has been intermittently crashing and restarting since then.

“Danielle Smith and the UCP have spurred chaos in Alberta households with incompetent decisions like removing price caps on necessities like heat and light and car insurance, and then watching those costs skyrocket,” Notley said.

“For post-secondary students, the UCP has piled on even more costs and chaos by massively hiking up tuition costs and charging extra interest on student debt above the prime rate, which is already climbing steeply.”

The NDP says tuition across Alberta has risen by over 17 per cent over the last two years, with some programs increasing by 104 per cent.

Related: Applications for Alberta’s “affordability payments” open Jan. 18