The federal disability tax credit provides people with a disability or their family with some relief from the costs related to the disability by reducing your tax payable. The maximum disability amount you can claim for 2016 is $8,001. An additional amount of $4,667 can be claimed as a supplement for persons under 18 years of age.

You can claim the disability amount if the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has an approved T2201 certificate on file for you or for the person for whom you’re claiming the tax credit (such as a dependant or your spouse or common-law partner). Your doctor has to complete this form, certifying that you have a severe and prolonged impairment and provide related details.

Notes:

• If you don’t have an approved T2201, you won’t qualify for the disability tax credit but your spouse might still be able to claim the family caregiver amount for you.

• If you’re eligible for the DTC, you might also be able to access the registered disability savings plan, the working income tax benefit (as well as the related disability supplement, depending on your income), and the child disability benefit. The child disability benefit gets added to the monthly Canada child benefit payment you receive.

If you want to claim the DTC for a dependant, you must be named as the person who can claim the disability amount on the dependant’s approved T2201. Keep in mind, your dependant must first claim the disability tax credit on their return. If they don’t need all of the tax credit to reduce their own taxes to zero, they can transfer the remaining amount to you. Check out our article, Disability amount transferred from a dependant for more information. 

Similarly, you can transfer your disability tax credit to your spouse or vice versa, as long as the spouse receiving the tax credit is named on the approved T2201 and the transferring spouse doesn’t need to claim the entire amount on their tax return.

Provincial disability tax credit

If you’re eligible for the federal disability tax credit, you’ll also be able to claim the corresponding provincial/territorial tax credit, which will vary based on which province or territory you live in:

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Newfoundland and Labrador
• Northwest Territories
• Nova Scotia
• Nunavut
• Ontario
• Prince Edward Island
• Saskatchewan
• Yukon

If you’re a resident of Québec, you can claim the amount for a severe and prolonged impairment in mental or physical functions amount (worth $2,625) if you have an approved federal T2201 certificate or TP-752.0.14-V: Certificate Respecting an Impairment. As with the T2201 certificate, your doctor will also need to complete relevant sections of the TP-752.0.14-V form. 

Where can I claim this?

Click the following links for steps on claiming the DTC in H&R Block's tax software: 

• For yourself
• For a spouse or common-law partner
• For a dependant

To claim the DTC for yourself in H&R Block’s tax software, follow these steps:

1. Under the PREPARE tab, click the OTHER icon. 
   
   
2. Navigate to the Special situations page.
   
   
3. Select Yes to the question Did you suffer from a mental or physical disability in 2016? If you did, would you like to claim the disability tax credit? and respond to the subsequent related questions that show up.

To claim the DTC for your spouse in H&R Block’s tax software, follow these steps when preparing your spouse’s return (if you and your spouse are preparing your returns together):

1. On the PREPARE tab, click the OTHER icon.
   
   
2. Navigate to the Special situations page. You'll find yourself here:
   
   
   
   
3. Select Yes to the question Did you suffer from a mental or physical disability in 2016? If you did, would you like to claim the disability tax credit? and the related questions that follow it.
   
   
4. Click the WRAP-UP tab and on the OPTIMIZATION icon, go to the Spousal transfers page.
   
   
5. Select Yes to the question On your approved T2201: Disability tax credit certificate, is {Spouse} named as the person who can claim all or part of the disability amount if you don’t need it?.

 If you and your spouse are not preparing your returns together, follow these steps:

1. On the PREPARE tab, click the OTHER icon.
   
   
2. Navigate to the Amounts from {Spouse’s} 2016 return page.
   
   
3. Answer Yes to the questions, Is {Spouse} suffering from a prolonged physical or mental infirmity? and Is there a Disability Tax Credit Certificate on file with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)?.
   
   
4. Click the WRAP-UP tab. Under the OPTIMIZATION icon, proceed to the Spousal transfers page.
   
   
5. Answer Yes to the question, On your approved T2201: Disability tax credit certificate, is {Spouse} named as the person who can claim all or part of the disability amount if you don’t need it?.

If you want to claim the DTC for a dependant, make sure that you’ve told us about the dependant(s) from whom you’ll be transferring the disability amount. To do this:

1. On the GET STARTED tab, click the ABOUT YOUR DEPENDANTS icon.
   
   
2. In the spaces provided, enter all the required information about your dependant. If you want to add  more than one dependant, click the +Add Another Dependant button on your screen. 

Once you’ve told us about your dependant(s), follow these steps to transfer the disability amount:

1. Click the name of your dependant on the left-hand navigation panel. 
   
   
    
2. Under the Transfer amounts heading, select the checkbox labelled Disability amount, then click Continue.
   
   
3. When you arrive at the Disability amount page, answer the questions to find out if you’re eligible to claim your dependant’s disability amount. Once confirmed, enter your information into the tax software.
   
   
4. Click the WRAP-UP tab and navigate to the OPTIMIZATION icon.
   
   

5. On the Credits and claims page, depending on whether you’re filing your return with your spouse or separately, you’ll need respond to either of the following questions that appear:

   • Would you prefer not to claim these credit(s) or, would you like to distribute them differently between you and your spouse (if applicable)?
     
     
   • Who do you want to claim the disability amount transferred from a dependant?