2- Disabled persons

The Benefits Finder offered by the federal government allows users to identify the federal and provincial benefits that a person with a disability may be eligible for.

Terms and certification

Special provisions apply for disabled persons. A person is generally considered disabled if he/she has a serious and prolonged mental or physical impairment that has lasted, or is expected to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months.⁹

A disability is serious if a taxpayer’s ability to perform his/her everyday activities is significantly limited. For this purpose, recognized everyday are the ability to walk, feed oneself, talk, hear, eliminate or see. They also include the mental functions necessary for everyday life, that is attention, concentration, memory, judgement, perception of reality, problem-solving, goal-setting, regulation of behaviour and emotions, verbal and non-verbal comprehension and adaptive functioning.

Individuals who, due to an illness, must spend a long period of time at least twice a week on therapeutic care prescribed by a doctor which is needed to support a vital function (dialysis, for example) are also recognized as having limited normal, everyday activities. In this context, a long period means 14 hours or more per week dedicated to treatment which includes travel, medical appointments and the required recovery period following treatment.¹⁰

For both federal and Quebec purposes, individuals who have been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes meet the eligibility criteria under life-sustaining therapy.

Certification

The first time a taxpayer claims a disability deduction or credit, he/she must obtain a certificate from a doctor or a nurse practitioner or from an optometrist, an audiologist, an occupational therapist, a physiotherapist, a speech therapist or a psychologist for disabilities related to their areas of competence.

Disability Tax Credit

Persons suffering from a disability may benefit from a non-refundable tax credit. At the federal level,¹¹ a supplement is added for children under 18 years of age. The supplement is reduced by the amount by which child care and attendant expenses claimed as a deduction or a medical expense credit for the child exceed the prescribed maximum.

Details about the amounts applicable are included in your province’s Individuals Taxation tables.

Transfer of Credit – Federal

The disability tax credit and the supplement may be transferred to the spouse or another person who has claimed either the tax credit for an eligible dependant or Canada caregiver credit for the handicapped individual. In the latter case, the handicapped person must be the taxpayer’s child, grandchild, mother, father, grandparent, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew or one of his/her spouse’s.

Tax Credit for Disabled Dependants – New Brunswick

An individual who supports a child or a member of his/her or his/her spouse’s family¹² who is 18 years of age or older and who suffers from a serious or prolonged mental or physical disability is entitled to a non-refundable tax credit for dependant disabled persons (the Individuals Taxation table for the province for the applicable amount). The taxpayer may also claim the credit for an eligible dependant¹³ but not the amount for caregivers in respect of the same individual.

Disability Supports Deduction

The disability supports deduction includes attendant care expenses as well as other disability supports expenses incurred by disabled persons for education and employment purposes, or for carrying on a business unless such expenses were reimbursed (except if the refund is taxable) or were claimed for purposes of the medical expense credit.¹⁴

Child Care Expenses

See Section II.

Non-taxable Benefits

When a taxpayer is entitled to claim the disability tax credit, he/she may not have to include in his/her income certain benefits received from his/her employer (see Section V).

⁹ There is a series of questions on the CRA’s Internet site for determining eligibility for the mental or physical disability credit amount at: Who is eligible?.

¹⁰ At the federal level, the time required for another person to assist the individual in performing and supervising the therapeutic care may also be included where the individual is incapable of doing so on their own due to their disability. See Guide RC4064 for further details regarding these eligibility requirements.

¹¹ Including Ontario and New Brunswick. Quebec does not allow a supplement.

¹² Parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, niece or nephew.

¹³ It is not possible to claim the credit for a disabled dependant if someone else claims an eligible dependant amount in respect of the same individual.

¹⁴ For further details, consult the list of eligible expenses published by the CRA.