The Benefits provider 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 they have a serious and prolonged mental or physical impairment that has lasted, or is expected to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months8
A disability is serious if a taxpayer’s ability to perform their 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.9
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, they 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,10 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 their spouse’s.
Canada Disability Benefit11
Payments under the Canada Disability Benefit began in July 2025. These monthly payments are provided to low-income individuals with disabilities who are between 18 and 64 years old and are eligible for the Disability tax credit. Individuals must submit their applications to Service Canada.12
The maximum benefit is $200 per month. This amount is reduced based on the family income that exceeds an annual threshold, without considering revenue from an RDSP (see point 6 of this section). However, the first dollars of work income and taxable scholarships below the applicable exclusion threshold are exempt for benefit calculation purposes.
The following table presents the parameters of this credit based on an individual’s family situation and income.
|
Canada Disability Benefit |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
2025 |
Maximum amount |
Income threshold at which the benefit is reduced |
Reduction based on income |
Work income exemption |
|
Single |
2,400 | 23,000 | 20% | 10,000 |
|
Married or common-law partner (one individual receives the benefit) |
2,400 | 32,500 | 20% | 14,000 |
|
Married or common-law partner (both individuals receive the benefit) |
2,400 | 32,500 | 10% | 14,000 |
The benefit is paid over a period of 12 months from July of one year to June of the following year. Benefits are calculated based on the information contained in the previous year’s tax returns for the individual and their spouse.13 However, the individual must notify the CRA in the event of any changes to their marital status during the year.14 Payments cease automatically in the month following the individual’s 65th birthday.
Tax Credit for Disabled Dependants – New Brunswick
An individual who supports a child or a member of their or their spouse’s family15 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 dependant16 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.17
Child Care Expenses
See Section II.
Non-taxable Benefits
When a taxpayer is entitled to claim the disability tax credit, they may not have to include in their income certain benefits received from their employer (see Section V).
8 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?.
9 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.
10 Including Ontario and New Brunswick. Quebec does not allow a supplement.
11 Benefit amounts and income threshold for 2025, indexed annually.
12 For further details, visit the Apply page on Canada.ca.
13 Therefore, the entitlement to the benefit for the period from July 2025 to June 2026 is based on the 2024 income.
14 If, for a given month, the individual becomes ineligible for the benefit, the payments cease as of that month and a new application must be submitted to receive the benefit once more, where applicable.
15 Parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, niece or nephew.
16 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.
17 For further details, consult the list of eligible expenses published by the CRA.
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Recent change - Health, seniors and caregivers
See Recent change - Health, seniors and caregivers -
1- Medical expense credit
See 1- Medical expense credit -
2- Disabled persons
See 2- Disabled persons -
3- Home assistance - Seniors and persons with disabilities
See 3- Home assistance - Seniors and persons with disabilities -
4- Other assistance measures for seniors
See 4- Other assistance measures for seniors -
5- Caregivers
See 5- Caregivers -
6- Registered disability savings plan
See 6- Registered disability savings plan -
7- Indemnity for clinical trial - Quebec
See 7- Indemnity for clinical trial - Quebec