DISABILITY ALLIANCE BC

14 H E L P S H E E T
BC DISABILITY BENEFITS 2022

The Disability Tax Credit

This Help Sheet is funded by the Health Sciences Association of BC, the Law Foundation of BC and the Vancouver Foundation

When you’re working or making income, you might pay a portion of what you’re making
in taxes. The Disability Tax Credit (DTC) is an income tax credit that can help reduce the
income tax that you or someone who supports you owes.
The credit is non-refundable. This means the government will not pay you money for the
credit if you do not owe income taxes. However, even if you do not owe income taxes, you
may still be able to benefit from the DTC. The DTC gives you access to other supports, such
as the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP).
You must apply to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to qualify for the DTC. It’s important
to know that the DTC eligbility may not be permanent, even if your conditions are lifelong.
You may need to apply more than once over your lifetime.
This help sheet explains:
1. Potential benefits of the DTC
2. How to apply and qualify for the DTC
3. Ways to strengthen your application.

Potential Benefits
Disability Amount
The Disability Amount is the amount you can claim as a credit on your tax return. For the
2021 tax year, this amount is $8,662. Because the federal non-refundable tax rate is 15%,
the amount your taxes may be reduced with the 2021 Disability Amount is about $1,299.
The Disability Amount increases slightly every year. You might get additional money
depending on the province/territory in which you live because of how taxes are calculated
provincially.

Disability Alliance BC
Information in this Help Sheet is based on the legislation that was current at the time of writing.
The legislation and policy may be subject to change. Please check the date on this Help Sheet.

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If you do not owe income taxes, it is sometimes possible to transfer the Disability Amount to
your spouse or a family member who helps you with food, shelter or clothing on a regular
basis.

Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP)

The RDSP is a long-term savings plan for people who qualify for the DTC. If you open
an RDSP before the end of the year that you turn 49, you can qualify for up to $90,000 in
grants and bonds. See our Help Sheet 15 on the RDSP for more information.

Canada’s Workers Benefit (CWB) Disability Supplement

The CWB helps people with low income who get most of their money from employment. If
you qualify for the DTC and are working, you may also receive more support with the CWB
Disability Supplement. The maximum CWB Disability Supplement in BC for the 2021 tax
year is $713.

Child Disability Benefit (CDB)

Families with children under the age of 18 who qualify for the DTC may receive more
benefits through the CDB. From July 2021 to June 2022, you could get up to $2,915 per
year ($242.91 each month) for each child eligible for the DTC.

Canada Caregiver Credit (CCC)

The CCC is available to those who provide family members with physical or mental
impairments with food, shelter, and clothing. The tax credit is non-refundable. This means
the government will not pay you money for the credit if you do not owe income taxes. If
your family member is eligible for the DTC, you do not need a signed letter from your doctor
to receive the credit.

Medical Expenses and Disability Supports Deduction

Certain medical expenses, including some prescription therapies and a personalized
therapy plan, can only be claimed on your tax return if you have the DTC. You may also be
able to claim a Disability Supports Deduction for some medical expenses.

Home Buyers’ Amount

People eligible for the DTC do not have to be a first-time home buyer to qualify for the
Home Buyer’s Amount, which is a non-refundable credit that allows you to claim up to an
additional $5,000 for a qualifying home as of the 2021 tax year. Because the

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non-refundable tax rate is 15%, most people will actually see a tax reduction of around
$750.

View more benefits and credits you may be able to access if you’re found eligible for the
DTC here: https://tinyurl.com/kyctnwn4.

Ways to Qualify for the DTC

The DTC is a Canada-wide benefit and there is no age requirement. A person of any age,
including children and seniors, can qualify if they meet the requirements. However, there
are age requirements for some programs connected to the DTC, such as the Registered
Disability Savings Plan.
To qualify for the DTC, your disability must be prolonged and severe. This means your
disability is likely to continue for at least 12 months and:
1. You are markedly restricted in an activity of daily life. This means you are unable or
take a lot longer to perform at least one of the daily activities below (substantially all of
the time).
Even if you are not markedly restricted in one of these categories you can still qualify if
you:
2. Have cumulative significant restrictions in two or more of the daily restriction categories
listed below, such that you have a marked restriction overall, or,
3. Require life-sustaining therapy at least three times per week, for an average of 14 hours
per week (this will soon change to two x per week, likely in time for the next tax filing
season).
The different daily restriction categories that you may qualify under are:
• Speaking
• Hearing
• Vision (to claim vision as a marked restriction, you must be legally blind)
• Walking
• Eliminating (using the toilet)
• Feeding (eating or preparing food)
• Dressing
• Mental functions necessary for everyday life.

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Applying for the DTC

You apply for the DTC by filling out a form from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) called
the Disability Tax Credit Certificate (form T2201). Copies of this application are available
online or can be requested from the CRA. The form is 16 pages long and has two parts.
Part A (pages 1 to 2)
Part A must be completed and signed by you or your legal representative.
Part B (pages 3 to 16)
Part B is a medical report that must be completed and signed by your doctor, nurse
practitioner or another qualified health professional. Other health professionals can only fill
out the form for you if your disability is within their area of practice. Please note: Medical
practitioners now have the option to fill out their section of the form online.
Health professionals who can complete this form include:
• Doctor
• Nurse Practitioner
• Optometrist (vision)
• Speech Language Pathologist (speaking)
• Audiologist (hearing)
• Occupational Therapist (walking, feeding, dressing)
• Physiotherapist (walking)
• Psychologist (mental functions necessary for everyday life)

You do not need to qualify under every daily restriction category (listed on the previous
page). Only have your medical practitioner fill out information for the categories that apply
to you; the rest of the categories can be left blank. If you are found eligible, the CRA will
determine if you’re markedly or cumulatively restricted.

After your medical practioner fills out Section B, they will sign it and return the application
form to you. You can then submit your application online through MyAccount or by mail.
Before You See Your Doctor
It’s a good idea to prepare for your appointment with your medical practitioner. If you need
help preparing for your conversation with your doctor, you can consult our online DTC tool:
https://disabilityalliancebc.org/dtc-app/.

You should be able to answer the following questions:

• Which DTC daily restriction categories do you think apply to you? (Eg: walking,
dressing, mental functions necessary for everyday life)

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• Which symptoms do you have and how do they affect these activities? (E.g. pain,
numbness or dizziness may affect walking; poor dexterity; stiffness or loss of motor
control may affect dressing).
• How often do your symptoms occur? To qualify, the CRA requires that you are restricted
in one or more activities all or substantially all of the time. Remember that “restricted”
could either mean you cannot perform the activity or that it takes you significantly longer
to do it.
There is a checklist at the end of this Help Sheet that may help you. You can bring it with
you to your doctor to make your conversation about the DTC easier.

Fees
The CRA does not charge a fee to apply for the DTC. However, your doctor may charge a
fee to fill out the form. If you cannot afford a fee, some doctors may be willing to reduce or
waive it, if you explain your circumstances.
Some companies will charge a fee to help you apply for the DTC. Typically, they will claw-
back a percentage of any money you recover. This could mean you pay hundreds or
thousands of dollars for this service. If you need help to apply for the DTC, we encourage
you to look for a non-profit organization, like DABC, that will not charge you to help with
your application.

Where to Send Your Application

Send your completed application to your nearest tax centre. If you live in BC, your
completed DTC application can be mailed to the CRA’s Winnipeg Tax Centre:

Post Office Box 14001, Station Main

Winnipeg MB R3C 3M2
You can also submit your application online through your MyAccount.

We strongly encourage you to make a copy of your completed application and keep it in a
safe place in case you need to refer back to it later. This may be particularly helpful if you
ever need to re-apply for the DTC.

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After You Submit Your Application

The CRA will send you a Notice of Determination after you submit your application, which
will tell you if you have been found eligible for the DTC. If you have not received your
Notice within a month of submitting your application, contact your medical practitioner to
see if they have received a follow-up questionnaire.
Follow-up Questionnaire
After you send in your DTC application, the CRA may send you or your medical practitioner
follow-up questions, if they need more information. If you or your medical practitioner are not
confident responding to these questions, you may want to get an opinion from an advocate
or someone knowledgeable about the DTC. As mentioned above, if you have not received
a decision from the CRA within a month of submitting your application, it is a good idea to
check with your medical practitioner to ensure that they have completed and submitted the
questionnaire.

If You Are Approved

You can be approved to claim the DTC for the current year, a past year and/or a future year.
After you have been approved, you can claim the Disability Amount on your tax return for
the years that you have been approved. Remember that you may need to re-apply for the
DTC in the future. Keep a copy of your old applications, so you can refer to them if you
need to send in a new application. The number of years you’ve been approved for will be
noted in your Notice of Determination letter.

If You Are Denied

You have three main options if your application is denied.
1. Request for Second Review
Ask for a Request for Second Review. This means you are asking the CRA to review your
application, as well as any new supporting information you give them. There is no specific
deadline to request a second review. However, we recommend you act as quickly as
possible, since the CRA may refuse your request if you take too long.
You can make this request by sending a short letter to the CRA (in BC, the Winnipeg
Tax Centre) explaining why you think their decision was wrong. You must provide some
additional supporting medical documentation from your medical practitioner that you have
not already sent. This can include updated medical reports or a letter from your medical
practitioner. We recommend you contact an advocate to get advice on a Request for
Second Review.

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2. Notice of Objection
If you think you should have been eligible with the application you sent in and have no
medical reports to add that can support your case, you can submit a formal objection
within 90 days of the Notice of Determination letter. There are two options to appeal:
1. Send an objection through your MyAccount, through a representative, or to the Chief of
Appeals
2. If you are denied again and disagree with the decision, you can file an appeal to Tax
Court.
We recommend you consult an experienced advocate, accountant or lawyer for assistance
with this process.
3. Reapply
The CRA can consider a new application, if the circumstances of your disability change or
you have new evidence they did not consider in a previous application.

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DTC Application Checklist

If you need help figuring out which daily restriction categories may apply to you, you
can consult our online DTC tool: https://disabilityalliancebc.org/dtc-app/.

When applying for the DTC under a physical category of disability, consider the
following for EACH of the daily restriction categories that apply to you (Speaking,
Hearing, Vision, Walking, Eliminating (using the toilet), Feeding, Dressing). We will
include examples for qualifying under the Mental Functions category on page 9.

Daily Restrictions (Physical)

Year you were restricted

(not based on diagnosis)

Year you were diagnosed

(if available)

Severity (pick one) Mild Mild to Moderate Moderate Severe

Moderate to severe

Frequency (pick one) Rarely Occasionally Often Usually Always

Use of devices
(e.g. leg brace, shoe horn,
hearing aids)

Use of therapy
(e.g. massage, physiotherapist)

Do you use medication to Yes No

help with your restriction?

If yes to the above, how Effective Moderately Mildy Ineffective Unsure

effective is your medication? Effective Effective

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Compared to an average
person of the same age
without restrictions, it takes
_______ x as long to complete
this activity of daily living.
(e.g. 2 times, 3 times, 4 times)
How is your daily living
affected by your restriction?
(e.g. if your restriction is
dressing, do you sit to dress?
Do you avoid getting dressed?
How often do you get dressed?
Are there certain types of
clothing that are difficult or
painful to put on? -- pants,
shoes, shirts etc).

Daily Restrictions (Mental Functions):

Mental function categories:
Adaptive functioning (adapt-
ing to change, going out in the
community, daily tasks –
feeding, dressing, sleeping,
hygiene), Attention,
Concentration, Goal-setting,
Judgement, Memory,
Perception of reality,
Problem-solving, Regulation of
behaviour and emotions and
Verbal and non-verbal
comprehension.

List all that apply.

Severity (pick one for each No limitations Some limitations Very limited
category ) capacity

Year you were restricted

(not based on diagnosis)

Year you were diagnosed

(if available)

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Use of medication, devices,

therapy and/or aids:
(e.g. devices and aids: GPS,
safety devices, memory aids
such as alarms, calendars,
notes, lists, medication
organization pack)
How effective is your Effective Moderately Mildly Ineffective Unsure
medication? Effective Effective

How is your daily living

affected by your
restriction(s)? Compare your-
self to a person of the same
age without your restrictions
(list restrictions for each cat-
egory).

(e.g. do you have difficulty

keeping up with basic personal
hygiene? Do you need
assistance to make simple deci-
sions? Do you have trouble con-
centrating on conversation?)
If you are a Legal Adult above the age of 18:
Are you able to live Yes No
independently, without the
assistance of others?

If no to the above, list all the

supports you need (eg:
assisted living or long-term
facility, community-based
health services,
hospitalization, support from
family members).

If you are the guardian of a child under the age of 18:

Do they need: Adult Yes No
supervision at home beyond
an age-appropriate level or
additional support from
educational staff at school?

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Alternative to Qualify: Life-sustaining Therapy

Do you need therapy to support a vital function, even if this therapy has Yes No
eased the symptoms?
Do you need this therapy at least two times per week? Yes No
Does this therapy average at least 14 hours per week? Yes No

Therapy time cannot include time spent on dietary or exercise regime if it has not been
prescribed by your health practitioner, travel time to medical appointments or shopping
for medication.
If you indicated “Yes” to all of the above questions, tell your medical practitioner you
want to apply under the “Life-sustaining Therapy” category. If you require therapy at
home (eg: insulin therapy) we suggest that you log how many hours or minutes it takes
you to complete activities relating to life sustaining therapy every day, and provide your
medical practitioner with that information. People with Type 1 Diabetes will automatically
qualify for the DTC for the years 2021 onwards.

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Get Help Through Access RDSP

Access RDSP is a partnership of Disability Alliance BC, BC Aboriginal Network on
Disability Society and Plan Institute. Here’s how we can help.
Disability Alliance BC
You can contact a DABC advocate for free one-on-one support with the DTC application
process.
Local 604-872-1278 | Toll Free 1-800-663-1278 | [email protected]
Plan Institute
You can contact Plan for free one-on-one support with opening an RDSP and deciding
whether an RDSP is right for you.
Disability Planning Hotline 1-844-311-7526 | Watch an RDSP tutorial at www.rdsp.com
BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society
If you are looking for Indigenous-specific navigation and support, contact BCANDS for free
one-on-one support with the DTC and the RDSP.
Local (250) 381-7303 | Toll Free 1-888-815 -5511 (TTY Accessible)
[email protected]

This Help Sheet was prepared by Advocacy Access, a program of Disability Alliance BC.
Thank you to the Health Sciences Association of British Columbia, the Law Foundation of British
Columbia and the Vancouver Foundation for funding this BC Disability Benefits Help Sheet.

1450-605 Robson St., Vancouver, BC V6B 5J3 • tel: 604-872-1278 • fax 604-875-9227
toll free 1-800-663-1278 • www.disabilityalliancebc.org

The full Help Sheet series and all DABC publications are available free at:
https://disabilityalliancebc.org/publications.

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