Canada Disability Benefit: additional details and scenarios
This page provides answers to frequently asked questions about the Canada Disability Benefit and the Canada Disability Benefit Regulations. It also includes helpful scenarios to demonstrate how benefit amounts will be calculated for payments from July 2025 to June 2026.
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Who is eligible
The Canada Disability Benefit is an income-tested benefit for low- and modest-income working-age persons with disabilities. To be eligible for the benefit, you must meet the following conditions:
- be aged 18 to 64
- have been approved for the Disability Tax Credit
- be one of the following:
- a Canadian citizen
- a permanent resident
- a protected person
- a temporary resident who has lived in Canada for the last 18 months
- registered or entitled to be registered under the Indian Act
- be a resident of Canada for the purposes of the Income Tax Act
- have filed an income tax return with the Canada Revenue Agency for the previous tax year. To receive benefits between July 2025 and June 2026, for example, you must have filed a return for the 2024 tax year.
If you are married or have a common-law partner, your spouse or common-law partner must also file an income tax return for the previous tax year for you to be eligible. This requirement may be removed in some cases.
If you are serving a sentence of imprisonment of two years or more in a federal penitentiary, you are only eligible to receive the benefit for the first month you are incarcerated and the month in which you are released.
The benefit amount you receive will depend on how much income you have. Generally, the higher your income, the lower your benefit amount will be. This is to make sure the benefit goes to those who need it the most (consult how much you could receive and benefit amount scenarios below for more details).
When you can apply
The application process for the Canada Disability Benefit is not yet open. More details will be available on the Canada Disability Benefit application page in the coming months, including information on when, where and how to apply.
What you can do to get ready to apply
First, you will want to make sure that you know your Social Insurance Number (SIN) or apply for one if you don't yet have one. For more information on how to apply for a SIN and what to do if you forgot your SIN, visit Social Insurance Number.
If you aren't yet approved for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC), you can learn how to apply for the DTC and submit an application to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). A medical practitioner will need to certify your application and there are several types of medical practitioners authorized to do this. There is also a new online form that can make this process easier.
You can also prepare you income tax return for the 2024 tax year and file it with the CRA. For more information, visit Get ready to do your taxes. If you have a spouse or common-law partner, remember that they will also need to file their income tax return for the 2024 tax year for you to be eligible for payments between July 2025 and June 2026.
When benefit payments will start
Payments are anticipated to start in July 2025.
If you apply later, you can receive retroactive benefits back to when you were eligible, but not before the start of the program.
How much you could receive
The maximum amount you can receive from July 2025 to June 2026 is $200 a month ($2,400 annual maximum). The amount you receive will be based on:
- your adjusted income
- your family status (whether you are single or have a spouse or common-law partner, and, if you are in a couple, whether both you and your spouse or partner are eligible for the benefit)
- whether you and/or your spouse or common-law partner have employment or self-employment income (working income)
You will receive the full benefit if your adjusted income is $23,000 or less if you are single, or $32,500 or less if you have a spouse or common-law partner. Your adjusted income is based on family net income and includes all sources of money that you and your spouse or common-law partner reported on your income tax return to the CRA, such as social assistance payments, workers' compensation and income from employment. Adjusted income does not include Canada Disability Benefit payments.
If you are single and have employment or self-employment earnings, up to $10,000 of it will be exempt when calculating your benefit. If you have a spouse or common-law partner, up to $14,000 of combined earnings will be exempt when calculating your benefit. This is called the working income exemption (consult benefit amount scenarios below).
Benefit amount scenarios
Scenario 1
Alina is single, lives with her parents, and is eligible for the benefit. Her income is $10,000 a year in provincial social assistance.
Although she lives with her parents, only Alina's income is considered when calculating her benefit amount because incomes of relatives, including parents and children, are not considered.
Because Alina's income of $10,000 is below the $23,000 income threshold for a single person, she receives the full benefit with no reduction ($200 per month).
Scenario 2
Nguyen is single, lives alone, and is eligible for the benefit. He works full-time and earns $35,000 a year. He does not receive disability-related income or income from any other sources.
Because Nguyen has employment income of $35,000, the maximum working income exemption of $10,000 is subtracted from his earnings ($35,000 - $10,000 = $25,000). Only $25,000 of Nguyen's income is considered when calculating the benefit amount, which is $2,000 over the $23,000 income threshold for a single person.
For each dollar of adjusted income above $23,000, Nguyen's benefit amount will be reduced by 20 cents, which results in a $400 reduction ($2,000 x 0.2 = $400). This $400 is subtracted from the maximum annual benefit amount of $2,400 and divided by 12 to determine his monthly benefit amount: ($2,400 - $400) ÷ 12 = $167 per month.
Because Nguyen's income is above the $23,000 income threshold for a single person, his benefit amount is reduced and he receives a partial benefit of $167 per month.
Scenario 3
Sam and Rupinder are married and have a young daughter, and only Sam is eligible for the benefit. Sam has a job paying $48,000 a year, while Rupinder cares for their daughter and receives $7,000 from the Canada Child Benefit.
The Canada Child Benefit does not have to be reported on any income tax return, so it is not considered in calculating Sam's benefit amount. Because Sam and Rupinder's adjusted income includes employment income of $48,000, the maximum working income exemption of $14,000 for couples is subtracted from their earnings ($48,000 - $14,000 = $34,000). Only $34,000 of Sam and Rupinder's income is considered when calculating the benefit amount, which is $1,500 over the $32,500 income threshold for a couple.
For each dollar of adjusted income above $32,500, Sam's benefit amount will be reduced by 20 cents, which results in a $300 reduction ($1,500 x 0.2 = $300). This $300 is subtracted from the maximum annual benefit amount of $2,400 and divided by 12 to determine his monthly benefit amount: ($2,400 - $300) ÷ 12 = $175 per month.
Because this couples' income is above the $32,500 income threshold for a couple, Sam's benefit amount is reduced and he receives a partial benefit of $175 per month.
In this scenario, Sam's benefit would be the same if Rupinder were working and earning $48,000 and he was not working, or if both were working and their total earnings were $48,000. The working income exemption works the same whether the beneficiary or their spouse or common-law partner earns the income.
Scenario 4
Donna and Lucia are a common-law couple, and both are eligible for the benefit. They each earn $27,000 from a combination of work and self-employment, for a combined income of $54,000. They have no other sources of income.
Donna and Lucia are a couple and are both eligible for the benefit, which is based on family income, so the calculation of each of their benefit amounts will be the same. Because they have combined employment income of $54,000, the maximum working income exemption of $14,000 for couples is subtracted from their earnings ($54,000 - $14,000 = $40,000). Only $40,000 of their income is considered when calculating their benefit amounts, which is $7,500 over the $32,500 income threshold for a couple.
For each dollar of adjusted income above $32,500, each of Donna and Lucia's benefits will be reduced by 10 cents, which results in a $750 reduction in each of their benefits ($7,500 x 0.1 = $750). This $750 is subtracted from the maximum annual benefit amount of $2,400 and divided by 12 to determine each of Donna and Lucia's monthly benefit amounts: ($2,400 - $750) ÷ 12 = $138 per month.
Because this couples' income is above the $32,500 income threshold for a couple and they are both eligible for the benefit, Donna and Lucia's benefit amounts will be reduced and they each receive a benefit amount of $138 per month.
Substantive changes made to the Canada Disability Benefit Regulations since the pre-publication of the draft regulations
The consultation period for the proposed Canada Disability Benefit Regulations, published for public comment in the Canada Gazette, Part I, ended on September 23, 2024. The following changes were made to the regulations following the consultation period:
Representatives
In response to suggestions from the disability community, the heading "Incapacity" was changed to "Representatives" to use less stigmatizing language in the regulations.
The regulations were also changed so that only a legal representative under provincial or territorial law (such as a guardian or trustee) can receive benefit payments on someone's behalf. This change responds to suggestions from the disability community that the Minister should not have a role in assessing someone's capacity or determining when agreements for representatives are needed. Individuals will still be able to receive assistance from a support person (for example, a friend, family member, or support worker) if they need support to apply for the benefit, request a reconsideration of a decision, or appeal a decision.
Tax filing requirements
The eligibility criteria were changed to require that both someone applying for the benefit and their spouse or common-law partner, if they have one, must have filed their income tax return with the CRA for the previous tax year. This was needed because the benefit amount is calculated based on family income, which takes into account the combined income of an individual and their spouse or common-law partner.
In response to feedback received during the consultation period, the regulations were changed to allow someone to ask Service Canada to remove the requirement that their spouse or common-law partner files taxes in certain cases. These include cases where someone's spouse or common-law partner is not resident in Canada for tax purposes, where someone lives apart from their spouse or common-law partner for reasons they do not control (for example, they live in a long-term care home), or where it would be unsafe for someone to ask their spouse or common-law partner to file a return.
The regulations were also changed to require that people aged 18 years and six months at the end of the last tax year file their taxes to be eligible for the benefit. This change was made to avoid information gaps that would have made it take longer to approve the application of individuals in this age group. It also encourages people in this age group to file their taxes to be ready to access other benefit programs that require tax information, such as the Canada Disability Savings Bond and the Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) credit.
Benefits payments
Retroactive payments are payments for months where someone was eligible but did not apply for the benefit. A change was made to the regulations to make sure that people are eligible for retroactive payments for up to 24 months (but no earlier than June 2025), regardless of whether they are eligible for the benefit in the month they apply.
The regulations were also changed to allow someone to ask Service Canada to suspend their benefit payments for up to 24 months. Before this change, someone could have asked that their benefit payments be suspended for any amount of time, which would have resulted in administrative barriers for Service Canada. A person is not eligible for the benefit while their benefit is suspended.
Reference to the Humanitarian Designated Classes Regulations
The reference to the Humanitarian Designated Classes Regulations was removed from the eligibility criteria because individuals who came to Canada under a visa issued under those regulations were already captured by other immigration status eligibility requirements. This change does not affect anyone's eligibility for the benefit.
Re-applying when released from prison
The regulations were changed so that if someone becomes ineligible for the benefit because they are in prison, they must re-apply when they are released to receive benefit payments again. This change ensures consistency, as someone must re-apply for the benefit if they become ineligible for any other reason (for example, changes to their residency status or Disability Tax Credit eligibility).
Decisions that someone can request to be reconsidered
The regulations were changed to more clearly state the types of decisions that someone can ask the Minister to reconsider. These include the benefit amount that someone has received or will receive.
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