News Benefits & Pensions
Canadian military rolls out new housing benefit for struggling troops

The Canadian Armed Forces is rolling out a new housing benefit that a senior commander says will help troops struggling to find affordable accommodations while saving the military money.

The Canadian Forces Housing Differential will supplement members’ incomes when they have to live and work in areas of the country with high rental costs.

That includes Canadian Forces Base Comox on Vancouver Island, where some members were recently told they could contact Habitat for Humanity if they were having trouble finding a place to live.

The benefit is set to come into effect in July and will replace an existing cost-of-living allowance that provided extra money to military members living in expensive communities.

Brig.-Gen. Virginia Tattersall, the military’s director general of compensation and benefits, says the new housing benefit will be tied to salary to help those who need it most.

While thousands of military members are expected to qualify for the housing benefit, thousands of others are expected to lose the previous cost-of-living allowance, which together will save the military about $30 million per year.