Answering this question can be difficult, especially considering the Income Tax Act doesn’t offer a clear definition of what it means to be infirm or suffer from a disability.
With that being said, if your doctor has documented your physical or mental impairment and can provide information regarding the nature, commencement, and the duration of your impairment, you’ll qualify for certain tax credits.
Note: The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) might ask for a signed statement from your doctor with the details mentioned above unless they already have an approved T2201: Disability Tax Credit Certificate on file.
Click here if you have dependants that suffer from a physical or mental impairment.
What is the disability tax credit (DTC) and how do I claim it?
The disability tax credit provides people with disabilities or their family some relief from the costs related to the disability by allowing you to reduce 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 CRA has an approved T2201 certificate on file for you or for the person for whom you’re claiming the tax credit. 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 be able to also access the registered disability savings plan, the working income tax benefit (and based on your income, the related disability supplement), and the child disability benefit. The child disability benefit gets added to the monthly Canada child benefit payment you receive.
To claim the DTC for yourself in H&R Block’s tax software, follow these steps:
- Under the PREPARE tab, click the OTHER icon.
- Navigate to the Special situations page. You’ll find yourself here:
- Select Yes to the question Did you suffer from a mental or physical disability in 2016? If you did, would you like to claim thedisability tax credit? and respond to the subsequent related questions that show up.
Note: 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. Check out our article on Disability amount transferred from a dependant for more information.
Where can I learn more?
- Line 306 – Amount for infirm dependants age 18 or older (CRA website)
- RC4064 - Medical and Disability-Related Information (CRA website)
- Family caregiver amount (FCA) (CRA website)
- Line 315 – Caregiver amount (CRA website)
- Informal caregivers (Revenu Québec website)
