Eligibility Requirements

To qualify for the Disability Tax Credit, an individual must:

Be markedly restricted in one area;
Be significantly impacted in multiple areas that cumulatively equal a marked restriction; or
Require life sustaining therapy.

Below is a description of these requirements to help you determine if your situation will qualify.

Marked Restriction vs. Significant Restriction (Cumulative Effects)

MARKED RESTRICTION

Only ONE marked restriction is needed to qualify, an impairment is considered markedly if the individual cannot do the thing (walking, feeding, etc.) 90% or more of the time, in all settings, despite appropriate therapies.

CUMULATIVE EFFECTS

If an individual is NOT markedly (severely) restricted in any area but is significantly (not quite severe) in several areas, they should be checked under cumulative effects. Must have two or more to qualify. Cumulative means that, when two or more significant restrictions are taken together, they equal one marked restriction. If you have marked restrictions checked, you do not need to check anything in the cumulative effects section.

Physical Impairments

The accepted physical impairments fall into the following categories.

Dressing

48 months or older

Things such as:

can't pull on clothing
can't manage fasteners
can't use body motions necessary (back problems, joint problems, etc.)

Cannot be related to mental functioning, must be physical in nature (describe in EOI as a deficit in personal care skills. Check mental functions necessary for everyday life)

Feeding

can be from birth if the use of feeding devices has been necessary

Things such as:

inability to prepare food due to physical limitations such as the inability to use hands and arms effectively
motor challenges such as chopping, opening containers, stirring, lifting cooking equipment
the inability to use utensils to eat, can't cut food into bites sized chunks, can't lift a spoon to mouth, etc
chewing and swallowing problems
sensory problems that cause gagging and vomiting may qualify
inability to hold food down (persistent vomiting - 90% of the time after eating)
and so forth

CANNOT be related to mental functioning, must be physical in nature. Describe in EOI section as a deficit in personal care skills but check Mental Functions Necessary for Everyday Life.

Eliminating

36 months of age or older and have not achieved bowel and bladder control (still in diapers) can be from birth for children born with physical problems and cannot use the toilet and requires supportive devices such as ostomy appliances, catheters, etc.

Daily accidents or night wetting most often do not qualify.

If a person is completely unable to use the toilet then Elimination can be checked even if it is related to mental functions. If Elimination is a problem but not to the degree in which the individual cannot ever use the toilet, and the problems stem from a cognitive deficit, then it should be explained in the EOI section as a deficit in personal care skills but markedly restricted in the mental function necessary for everyday life would be checked.

Walking

(18 plus months)

To qualify for walking (marked restriction) a person must be unable to walk 100 meters or take three times longer to walk 100 meters as compared to average same-age peers.

Struggles with walking can be more than walking alone, if walking causes severe pain, fatigue, or other such problems, that qualifies.

If there is a significant impairment in walking that does not quite meet the criteria for a marked restriction, it should be checked under cumulative effects.

Here is a visual guide for how far 100 meters is (for those of us who can't comprehend distance)

Speaking

18 months of age or older, (for marked restriction)

Cannot PHYSICALLY speak in a way in which others can understand - even familiar people or takes 3 times longer than of average peers to speak in a way in which people can understand, even familiar people.

DO NOT check speaking for problems related to mental functions such as ASD and language disorders. These need to be checked under mental functions necessary for everyday life.

Hearing

People born with congenital hearing loss qualify from birth

Hearing applies when “even with the use of hearing devices cannot adequately hear in all settings”

Make that statement in the EOI and then list common problems EVEN WITH the use of hearing aides.

Such as:

Even with the use of hearing aides, Sally cannot hear other people speak to her unless in a silent setting.
Sally cannot communicate with others as a typical peer her age because, even with the use of hearing aides, she cannot hear and follow conversations
Even with the use of hearing aides, Sally relies heavily on lip-reading and nonverbal cues, she needs to be face to face in and close proximity to be able to hear what a person is saying.

THIS APPLYING TO HEARING LOSS IN ONE EAR ONLY

Make a statement such as "even though Jon can hear from his left ear, the loss of hearing in his right ear impair his ability to . . . (fill in with a list)"

Vision

The patient is considered blind if even with corrective lenses the visual acuity in both eyes is 20/200 (6/60) or less; the greatest diameter of the field of vision in BOTH eyes is 20 degrees or less.

Aside from technical numbers, you can make a case by listing problematic areas stating "even with the use of glasses . . ." (what is still a problem).

Mental Functions Necessary for Everyday Life

Categories to address when applying under the “mental functions necessary for everyday life”. As many of these as possible should be described in the “Effects of Impairment” section.

Ability to carry out skills for daily living
Ability to follow simple instructions
Ability to express basic needs
Ability to respond to social interactions appropriately
Severe developmental delays
Ability to plan, set goals, problem solve, and make age appropriate decisions and judgments
Lack of BASIC impulse control
Severe memory impairment (such as inability remember basic personal information)
Ability to adapt to minor change
Need for one-on-one support

NOTE ABOUT ONE-ON-ONE SUPPORT: This is one of the biggest factors in being approved. This should NOT be written as a category itself, ALL of the above topics should indicate a need for one-on-one support. For example, a summary paragraph in the effects of impairment sections could state: “Sally cannot carry out self-care such as dressing and hygiene without help. Caregivers must bathe and dress her. As well, she cannot follow simple instructions or plan, set goals, problem solve or make age appropriate decisions independently. She requires substantial one-on-one assistance with these skills. She also lacks basic impulse control and age appropriate judgement. She requires constant monitoring to ensure her safety and the safety of others.”

The above example is a brief summary and does NOT have the detail the EOI section needs - there needs to be a description included - for example what the child specifically does that is impulsive and how it endangers her. The EOI needs personal details or examples. If your child is aggressive, describe that. If your child can’t follow instructions, describe that.

Life sustaining therapy

Please note, this refers to people who are being literally kept alive with the use of machines or treatments, it does not include counselling/psychological therapy.

A person who has “Life Sustaining Therapy” may be eligible under the 2 following conditions:

Therapy is required to support a vital organ
Therapy is needed at least 3 times a week for an average of at least 14 hours per week.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) must receive confirmation that the applicant spends at least 14 hours per week on the activities specified by the CRA that are related to administering insulin.

These activities include:

Monitoring blood sugar
Preparing and administering insulin (loading, injecting and assessing the amount of insulin to deliver)
Calibrating/preparing necessary equipment, including changing infusion sites for the insulin pump
Adjustment of insulin dosage-blood glucose results recording and other activities to help adjust the dosage of insulin

There are certain activities that the CRA does not recognize, it is very important to exclude the following when applying for the DTC:

Counting carbohydrates
Exercising
Treating and recovering from hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia
Meal preparation
The time the insulin pump takes to deliver insulin
Attending medical appointments
Shopping for medication

You can find links to videos with further explanations of the impairments in our Steps for Applying article, here.

If you would like a free, no-obligation eligibility review of your specific case, register for access to our client portal.

We are happy to answer questions to help you to prepare your application at no cost to you. We can also assist you in preparing your application for a fee.