B.C. moving to abolish child care wait fees

A break for B.C. parents with kids looking for child care is coming.

Starting next April, most childcare providers across the province will no longer be able to charge people to place their name on a waitlist.

As it currently stands, parents may be asked to fork-out hundreds of dollars just to be put on a single list — money that is often non-refundable and doesn’t guarantee your child will have a spot.

The province posted the changes online and began informing providers on Wednesday.

The change only applies to daycare providers who receive provincial Child Care Operating Funding, not those who are entirely private.

Until now, providers have been able to set the wait-fee rate as they wish. Only $10-a-day child care places have been prevented from charging those on their wait lists.

“Certainly supporting and lifting up providers is an important part of this work,” said Minister Grace Lore.

“More than 95 per cent of providers are participating in the fee-reduction initiative. We have really good participation across the sector, and I think those providers are working with us because it’s helping us deliver savings to families.”

Families and child care advocates have been pressing for this change as they are forced to put their names on a number of lists, due to the squeeze in places, which can be a cost that many can’t afford.

Surrey parent Jarrod Zhang tells CityNews this is a “good move” from the province. He adds that people should be allowed to go on a waitlist without paying a non-refundable fee.

“For parents who don’t have a lot of money, they can now be on more waitlists so they’ll increase their chances of getting in a spot,” he said.

Zhang also says he felt pressured into paying fees while looking for a place for his child but did not want to pay unless the spot was guaranteed.

Although he’s happy with the province’s decision, he says he hopes this doesn’t affect daycares negatively.

“I understand that for some daycares, they have to have this fee to lease their venue and I just hope they find a better way to make that money without charging non refundable waitlist fees.”

Lore says the province knows there are many families who are still looking for child care across the country.

“We know that many families were and are putting their names on multiple wait lists. So when there are wait-list fees, that can have an impact on families of hundreds and even thousands of dollars. So this change is really important to ensuring access to affordable, quality child care for families,” she explained.

-With files from Michael Williams