Dispelling the myths & rumors behind the new Canada Disability Benefit
Recently, I have been getting lots of questions and confusion around the Canada Disability Benefit that was introduced by Bill C-22. This bill proposes to enact the Canada Disability Benefit Act to create the new Canada Disability Benefit for working-age persons with disabilities. This Act was tabled in the House of Commons on June 21st 2022.
As of right now (January 2024) there have been no updates on what this will exactly this benefit will entail, although there is some misinformation online about this benefit. To add some clarity to what this benefit will be, here is the overview of what we do know:
The act seeks to reduce barriers to employment and benefits that are available for those with disabilities. It also outlines Canada’s framework of laws to address the financial and social barriers that persons with disabilities face. This framework includes:
- The Accessible Canada Act
- The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- The Poverty Reduction Act
The Act also notes that reducing poverty helps Canada to realize its international obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and reach the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Within 12 months of this Act coming into force, the Governor in council will make regulations across a range of matters relating to the Canada Disability Benefit. In the spirit of “Nothing for us without us” the minister must provide persons with disabilities from a range of backgrounds with a meaningful and barrier-free opportunity to collaborate in the development and design of the regulations.
Two progress reports will be required once the act comes into force. One within 6 months of it coming into force and 1 year after the act comes into force. There will also be parliamentary reviews after this has been in force for 1 year, 3 years after that, and then every 5 years after that.
An order by the Governor in Council will set the date that the Act comes into force, and must be on or before the first anniversary of this act being adopted into parliament; one year after June 22, 2023.
An information session with disability stakeholders was held on August 23 2023 to establish a common understanding of the regulatory process. An online engagement tool was open from November 15, 2023 to Jan 4, 2024. Round tables and bilateral meetings to bring together the views of persons with disabilities, stakeholder organizations, and technical experts on key areas under the regulations
The second phase will begin with the publishing of proposed regulations in Part I of the Canada Gazette. The Government will analyze the comments received and may make changes to the regulations in response to feedback before finalizing them. The final regulations will be published in Part II of the Canada Gazette.
There has been much confusion online as to what the “amounts or payment schedule may be” and there have been people who have confused this benefit with the already existing CDB (Child Disability Benefit) and/or CPPD (Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits). In the past few weeks, I have read several articles about the Canada Disability Benefit coming out of India and other countries. These sites DO NOT have accurate information and seem to be written by an AI writing program. When looking at any Canadian benefits, the best place to check is the official CRA website Canada.ca
Having said that, I will keep you updated with any updates that the CRA brings out on this front. As it stands, several benefits are available to Canadians with disabilities. Some of the best federal benefits to look into are CPPD (Canadian Pension Plan Disability Benefits), DTC (Disability Tax Credit) , and RDSP (Registered Disability Savings Plan). Here in Alberta, there are programs like Income Support , PDD (Persons with Developmental Disabilites), FSCD (Family Support for children with Disabilites), Special Needs Assistance for Seniors and AISH.
These days there are more resources than ever for individuals with disabilites, althought it can sometimes be overwhelming, there are resources to make this process easier. One of which is this benefit finder from Service Canada or this one from Prosper Canada. There are also very helpful people at community organizations like FCSS or ASA’s Family Resource Centres that can help you on an individual basis. To learn more about the Disability Tax Credit I recommend checking out this article I wrote on the DTC.
As always, if you have questions feel free to reach out! stephen@stephensicoli.com