The
Department of Veterans AffairsDepartment of Veterans Affairs may refer to:*Department of Veterans' Affairs*United States Department of Veterans Affairs*Veterans Affairs Canada*Ministry of Patriots' and Veterans' Affairs...
(
DVA), also referred to as
Veterans Affairs Canada (
VAC), is the
departmentA ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government public administration, sometimes led by a minister, but usually a senior public servant, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory,...
within the government of
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with responsibility for pensions/benefits and services for
warWar is a reciprocated, armed conflict, between two or more non-congruous entities, aimed at reorganising a subjectively designed, geo-politically desired result...
veteranA war veteran is a person who has or is serving in the armed forces, or a person who has had long service or experience in an occupation or office....
s, retired personnel of the
Canadian ForcesThe Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
and
Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal, provincial and municipal policing body...
, their families, as well as some civilians.
A war veteran's eligibility for certain benefits may depend on his/her "overseas" status, defined by Veterans' Affairs as having served at least two miles offshore from Canada.
The
Department of Veterans AffairsDepartment of Veterans Affairs may refer to:*Department of Veterans' Affairs*United States Department of Veterans Affairs*Veterans Affairs Canada*Ministry of Patriots' and Veterans' Affairs...
(
DVA), also referred to as
Veterans Affairs Canada (
VAC), is the
departmentA ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government public administration, sometimes led by a minister, but usually a senior public servant, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory,...
within the government of
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with responsibility for pensions/benefits and services for
warWar is a reciprocated, armed conflict, between two or more non-congruous entities, aimed at reorganising a subjectively designed, geo-politically desired result...
veteranA war veteran is a person who has or is serving in the armed forces, or a person who has had long service or experience in an occupation or office....
s, retired personnel of the
Canadian ForcesThe Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
and
Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal, provincial and municipal policing body...
, their families, as well as some civilians.
A war veteran's eligibility for certain benefits may depend on his/her "overseas" status, defined by Veterans' Affairs as having served at least two miles offshore from Canada. In the Second World War (1939-45) Canada did not yet include
NewfoundlandThe Dominion of Newfoundland was a British dominion from 1907 to 1949. The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...
, which became a Canadian province only in 1949. Thus WW2 veterans who served in Newfoundland are considered by Veterans Affairs to be "overseas veterans".
An important division of Veterans Affairs is called "Canada Remembers". This is responsible for all war commemoration activities, such as
Remembrance DayRemembrance Day – also known as Poppy Day, Armistice Day or Veterans Day – is a day to commemorate the sacrifices of members of the armed forces and of civilians in times of war, specifically since the First World War. It is observed on 11 November to recall the end of World War I on...
, and coordinates and funds various "pilgrimages" for Canadian war veterans to foreign battlefields and international ceremonies (e.g. the 50th anniversary of the
Liberation of the NetherlandsIn the Netherlands, Liberation Day is celebrated each year on 5 May, to mark the end of the occupation by Nazi Germany during World War II....
in early 1995, the 60th anniversary of D Day on June 6, 2004, etc.)
The year 2005 was declared
Year of the Veteran in Canada, to teach, remember, thank, honour and celebrate. The image of a
poppyA poppy is any of a number of colorful flowers, typically withone per stem, belonging to the poppy family. They include a number of attractive wildflower species with colorful flowers found growing singularly or in large groups; many species are also grown in gardens...
overlapping a gold
maple leafThe maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree, and is the most widely recognized national symbol of Canada.At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the settlements of New France had attained a population of about 18,000...
became a special symbol during the campaign, on posters, pamphlets, bookmarks and documents. In 2007, the
Veterans' Bill of RightsThe Veterans' Bill of Rights is a bill of rights in Canada for veterans of the Canadian Forces and Royal Canadian Mounted Police. It was enacted by the federal government in 2007...
stated that Veterans Affairs Canada must show veterans respect.
The Minister of Veterans Affairs is
The HonourableThe prefix The Honourable or The Honorable is a style used before the names of certain classes of persons.-Australia:...
Greg ThompsonGregory Francis Thompson, PC, MP is a Canadian politician currently in his sixth term as MP....
.
Current Veterans Affairs Structure
- Minister of Veteran’s Affairs
The Minister of Veterans Affairs is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet whose position was created in 1944. The Department of Veterans Affairs Canada was split from the Department of Pensions and National Health and was given the responsibility of administering benefits and pensions...
- Deputy Minister
- Associate Deputy Minister Veterans Affairs Canada
- Assistant Deputy Minister, Veterans Services Branch
- Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Services Branch
- Assistant Deputy Minister, Public Programs and Communications Branch
- Director General, Policy Planning and Liaison
- Director General, Co-ordination and Secretariat
On November 9, 2008, the Honourable Greg Thompson, Minister of Veterans Affairs, attended a Service of Remembrance at the Canada Memorial in Green Park, London, England. Canada recently assumed responsibility for the Memorial, which pays tribute to the nearly one million Canadian men and women who served in the United Kingdom during the First and Second World Wars.
External links