I wrote this as a way of paying it forward for all the help the Blunt Bean Counter (BBC) gave me for setting up my son’s Disability Tax Credit for School Fees. The best place to start is a quick How To (or more of a How I, not sure your situation will work exactly like mine) setting up a CRAÂ Child Disability Benefit (Disability Tax Credit ( DTC )). This is the first important financial thing you must do if you have a disabled child. I will attempt to point to all the relevant parts of the CRA web site. You can call the CRA. February is a bad time to call, however. You can ask for clarification or help on how to do this.
Step One Does Your Child Have a Recognized Disability?
The first thing is, if you have a child with a recognized disability. You must take advantage of all the help you can from the Government (at all levels).  We were quite lucky when our son was diagnosed as being on the Autism Spectrum that the Psychologist at OCTC (Ottawa Children’s Treatment Centre)  at CHEO (The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario) filled out all our CRA forms for us (they even provided them).  We also worked with a social worker. There was a list of things for us to do, given we had a diagnosis.
At the time I was having a very hard time coming to grips with the diagnosis. Giving my brain something tangible to do, helped me, help our son. One day Mrs. C8j may write her perspectives on this. Just having a list of things to do made it easier to cope (in some ways).
So to sum up, the first thing for this Disability Benefits. You must get a diagnosis from an accredited medical professional (for that disability).
What Does the CRA Say?
I will quote the CRA website on this just for clarity’s sake the CRA Child Disability benefit states:
Not all children with disabilities are eligible for the disability amount. To be eligible a child must have a severe and prolonged impairment in physical or mental functions. An impairment is prolonged if it has lasted, or is assumed to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months
In many cases, a child’s disability is obvious. In these cases, there should be no issue with getting this disability benefit. For kids on the Autism Spectrum and other developmental disabilities, whether you get this benefit relies heavily on the documentation supplied by the diagnosing professional. The CRA can refuse your request for the Child Disability Benefit. This refusal for the Child Disability Tax Credit ( DTC )) can be if your documentation is not to their liking. Make sure the diagnosing professional has filled in the forms before. This should mean they know what needs to be said in the documentation.
Next Step Time to Find a Medical Professional
Second, you need to get a professional to fill in a T2201 Disability Tax Credit Certificate for your child. If your Doctor or other professional says, “I have never done this before” or “I don’t have very good luck with these,” I would strongly suggest you find a Doctor or Hospital that does have experience with child disability benefits forms (CHEO in Ottawa, Sick Kids in Toronto, The Children’s Hospital in Montreal as a few examples). These folks know the correct phraseology needed to help you out. Nothing can be more frustrating than not getting the benefits you deserve because of the writing shortcomings on a form.
You cannot claim the Child Disability Tax Credit (DTC) without a T2201. The Psychologist at OCTC knew the correct terms to use for our form. This helped our child disability benefit claim, which was accepted for 10 years. When Rhys turned 15 we had to reapply for the Disability Benefit. Update: OK, so it was actually at age 10 that we had to reapply.
After you have the T2201 (disability tax credit form for child) apply for the Child Disability Benefits, by filling out RC66 – Canada Child Benefits Application Form. The form is straightforward to fill in and wasn’t hard for my wife and me. There was an added wrinkle suggested by the OCTC Social Worker.
Can I Get Back Credit for my Child’s Disability Tax Credit (DTC) ?
Can the disability tax credit be backdated? Since our son was diagnosed at age 3, we also applied to have the diagnosis and thus the benefit retroactive to my son’s birth. This means we applied to get the benefit ongoing, but also for the earlier 3 years of my son’s life. OCTC gave us a template letter to fill in asking for this, to be included with the T2201, and RC66 application forms. Remember to send ORIGINALS, the CRA will ignore photocopied T2201 forms, as they state on their site, this is important.
The letter we included was quite simple. It was a simple statement of my son’s birth date, the fact that his diagnosis of Autism is a neurological disorder and that it was present at birth.
Time To Mail it Into the CRA
Once you have finally compiled all of this information, you then can mail it into the CRA for their approval. I usually sent these letters registered so if anything got lost, I would be able to trace it. You can also submit the forms using your My CRA account.
As I stated, there are no guarantees here. As long as you have followed all of the steps and have a well-written set of documents you should be OK. In our case the diagnosis was accepted, but I have heard of other instances where the diagnosis was not obtained.
I hope this helps those parents with disabled kids. While this may not be a complete list, it is what we went through with our son.
If your diagnosis is approved by the CRA the next step is to start looking for Medical and Disability related Tax implications. The first thing is asking the CRA for refunds. You can read about that in Child Disability Tax Credit (DTC)Â Application Letter (Template).
If your child is diagnosed, and they are in need of special schooling, you can also apply for the Education Costs to be treated as a Medical Expense. Here is a Template Letter to apply for that as well. All of this is also needed for when you apply for an RDSP.
Redux
Remember that if you get turned down, that does not mean NO. That means trying again. Find out from the CRA what the problems were, and try to remedy those before you re-apply.
Related RDSP Pages
- The RDSP Page is the Overview of all articles I have written about the RDSP (including DTC and other areas).
- RDSP : Laying the Ground Work (first things first)
What needs to be done BEFORE you can apply for a Registered Disability Savings Plan? A major aspect of this is the Disability Tax Credit (DTC), make sure you click on this page to get started. - RDSP : Working with The Account
Now that you have succeeded in getting your Disability Tax Credit (DTC) you need to open an RDSP account with a bank or such, but how is that done? It is not as easy as you might think. This page outlines many of the issues that have arisen for my family working with an RDSP account. - Disability Tax Related Topics
Thanks for my RDSP and DTC work I then had to learn a great deal about the tax implications of having a disabled child. - Autism Specific Articles
Being the proud Father of a child on the Autism Spectrum I also ended up writing a great deal about Autism specific things as well.
- RDSP : Laying the Ground Work (first things first)
i applied for the DTC on my cra acct.it says still processing,under that it says status,we are eligible to receive the benefit from xxx amount of years, for more info see our notice of assessment or reassessment …..does his mean it was accepted?
Sounds a lot like it. You can call and ask for a status of your case, make sure you have your case number.
Ah ok. Thanks for the reply
Just glad to finally get approved. This was my second attempt but I was more thorough in my information and additional documents.
It’s never easy to get done, and you should be proud of your achievement, but keep your records and maybe write down all you did to get this to work this time.
Hi
I just found out online that my Son was approved for DTC from 2011 – 2022
He was born 2011
Was wondering is it normal to only be approved for 10 years.
He is HFA and ADHD
Thanks
My son was in the same boat and he is on the Autism Spectrum. In the case of “Brain Injuries” sometimes they will give a limited approval. Read this for more details on this. Keep your documentation from your approval to use the next time you apply!
Hello.
The CRA has approved our application and advised they are currently in the process of reviewing our adjustments we provided to them.
Once/if they approve the adjustments – Do you know how long it takes to receive the funds from them, once they approve the adjustment figures?
Also, if the CRA initially advises they approved our child for coverage under the child disability credit program until 2023, can they simp,y decide to cancel that in the middle of that covered time period?
Thank you.
You will have to check on-line to see when the CRA is delivering the money (you can log into the site, using your on-line banking ID).
Can the CRA cancel? It can happen, I haven’t heard of it, but it is possible, if they review things and find problems. They will most likely inform you of any review before-hand.
Hi,
I just wanted to share my timeline. Son diagnosed with autism, he is 13 but had not been diagnosed before although he had several issues (anxiety, speech) but doctors didn’t pinpoint it as autism until now because he is ‘high-functioning.’
Anyway, doctor sent in Disability Tax Credit Certificate in August. Received August 18, 2017. Winnipeg.
Phone and asked if it was received. Was told it would take 8-10 weeks.
Today signed in to My Account and saw that it seems to have been approved, covering him since he was 1 year old until he turns 18 (I imagine I must get a new diagnosis then?).
Anyway, now I’m wondering if they will automatically issue the Child Disability Benefit and recalculate my old tax returns, or if I need to contact them for both things. We’ll see.
I would suggest you follow the instructions here: https://www.canajunfinances.com/2013/12/04/child-disability-benefit-application-letter-template/
Keep me posted.
Yes the children do live with us. It was my understanding that once the DTC became permanent and we no longer had to reapply that we also wouldn’t be required to re-advocate or provide further information in regards to the amounts related to the disabilities.
I don’t think it is a reapply, it is an explanation request of sorts? Again, I would check with the CRA about what they want.
The point I was making about the Doctor is, you (or your husband) could simply reply about what the day-to-day work you need to do for your sons, and that might be sufficient, however, from a Doctor it might carry a bit more authority? Might be wrong on this, but the CRA is starting to act quite strange lately (i.e. the apparent changes for Diabetic Type 1 folks).
My husband and I have 3 children. The two oldest have been granted permanent DTC. Our eldest is 25 with Asperger’s Syndrome and our second child is 20 and has Sever to Profound Bilateral Sensory Neural Hearing Loss. Recently my husband received a letter from CRA requesting some further info for his 2017 Caregiver amount associated with the DTC.
One of the requirements read “an explanation as to how the dependent’s mental or physical infirmity causes them to be dependent on you for a considerable period of time. The dependency must be brought about solely by reason of the infirmity, and the degree of the infirmity has to be such that it requires the person to be dependent on you for a considerable period of time.”
How do we respond to this?
Thank-you
Catherine
So we assume the children are living with you. It seems like the CRA are asking you “how long do you spend taking care of your kids” (to over-simplify)?
Do the kids need 24 hour supervision? How much of your time is spent taking care of the children?
Mrs. C8j suggests getting a letter from their Doctor(s), and have them explain how the kids’ disability impacts your time in terms of supervising the kids. “Child is inacapable of taking care of themselves” or “Child is unable to feed themselves” might be the phraseology looking for, but I think you need a Doctor to say that (you simply saying that, might not be sufficient).
You could call the CRA and ask for an explanation of what they are looking for as well.
What is the impact of their disability on your daily life, seems to be the question, but I would ask the CRA for a clarification.
Can anyone provide the following information. My daughter turned 18 this year, so the regular child benefit has stopped. However, we never applied for the disability portion as her diagnosis came late. I am not concerned about CRA approval as she has already been registered and accepted by the DSO. Will I still be able to apply retroactively for the disability portion?
You should, but it depends on the disability as well. Is this a “from birth” disability or something else? It should be retroactive to either birth or whenever the disability started affecting her.
Thank you. It is a disability present since birth.
If it is since birth and is recognized that way by the CRA, then yes, the disability credit should be retroactive, but I am not sure how far back the CRA goes on this. You’ll need to check with them.
Hello
My son was approved until he was 10. After a few years the government said I had to reapply. So I did and they rejected my submission. How could they approve him in the first place to reject him for the same disorders the second time? Through speaking with others I found out I could keep applying so for that reason I would like to. His pediatrician made the diagnosis; however, since he was denied the second time he’s frustrated and won’t fill out the forms again. My family doctor is hesitant to sign in his place.
Would it seem shady if I found another pediatrician and had him/her submit for the tax credit? Or if I could somehow get my family doctor to sign off on it will the application fail to carry the weight if our pediatrician had signed it.
Is there a way to request the original document to see what was written on it?
Thank you
I don’t think it would seem shady, if the new pediatrician did the paperwork after actually meeting with your child, and doing their own diagnosis, and such (i.e. follow the procedures). Did you not keep a copy of the original forms? If not, call the CRA and ask about getting old copies, and explain your predicament, they might be sympathetic. They have a Nurse on call that is supposed to help medical professionals fill in the forms and such. You can also get a Nurse Practitioner to do the paperwork if needed be. Start by asking the CRA for the old forms, and look for someone else to help you (ask other parents who have had the diagnosis approved). Keep us posted too.
Hello.
Just curious, did the CRA cancel his approval during the years he was initially approved for, or at the end of the period he was approved for? Did they provide a reason?
Thank you.
Hello.
Our claim was accepted by the CRA. Our tax lady completed the adjustments for the previous years and sent it all into the CRA just a few days ago. I was wondering if you might know how long it usually takes before a person receives payment?
It can take a while, depending on when you send it in. You can follow it on your My CRA http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/myaccount/ , but you’ll need to set it up first (well worth having). Patience is all I can council you right now.
hi
when i apply 4 my son is approve in 5 month
and they give me payment april 20 .2015 .same month when is aprove.
but now they if they first approve .u have to wright a leeter in a leeter u have 2 say i was .now i need child disability benefits then again 2 to 5 month
How long does it take to receive my t-2201 application?
Do they email me or changed my status on “MY Account” to “processing your application”?
Currently it says they have never received an application under “Child Disabiltiy Benefit”
I sent an application April 5 and their hasn’t been a response since.
Thanks,
Jake
I would call the CRA and ask them. It can take a while, given it was the end of tax season. Your My Account will reflect when they have completed the whole thing. The message about not received an application, may be just because they are still processing, but I would call the CRA tax line, and ask for status.
Sorry I did not realize you replied so soon. Day just received a change in status.
You are entitled to claim the disability tax credit for xxxxxx xxxxxx.
I’m guessing that means the disability benefit as well?
What happens next?
Here is my timeline for all those who interested.
I had no idea of this benefit until my son was diagnosed last week of January 2017
2.received a signed t2201 from the doctor who diagnosed him first week of April 2017.
3.mailed in application April 5 and called in middle of May. They told us they never received it.
4.our doctor mailed another copy to us a week later and I mailed it the last week of May.
5.called 3 weeks later and they told me they had not received it yet. But they told me I would only know they had received it once they approve/deny it. I thought that was really strange because it can take them 6 to 8 weeks to process. I just wanted to know if Canada Post successfully​ delivered it.
6. June 19, 2017. My status changes to approved
Tips that I wished I would of thought of are
1. Pay extra with Canada Post to track your mail.
2. Photo copy your t2201 for your records.
Excellent points on the Canada Post tracking and always keep copies of things you send to the CRA (at least scan them so you have electronic copies).
Depending on the disability you can get back taxes and back benefits, that is your next quest. In my son’s cause Autism is viewed as a brain stem injury from birth, so he is viewed to have had it since he was born, thus they made my benefits retroactive to the day he was born.
You should receive cheques or get deposits in your account for this year’s tax submission (adjustments), although it could not hurt to call the CRA and ask them that same question and have them go through what they think is going to happen too.
I am pleased you have received your benefits (and you did it yourself too!)
where can we check
You can go on line, to the CRA site and log in and see what your status is using the MyAccount interface:
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/esrvc-srvce/tx/ndvdls/myccnt/menu-eng.html
You log in using your online banking ID, it should give you your current status.
I sent an application for the DTC back at the beginning of February. My CRA account says that their records indicate that I’ve never claimed this. I know they received my application as I paid money to have a tracking number through Canada Post. How long should it take for my account to show anything. Should I be concerned? Could it be because its now tax season? Any advice would be appreciated.
Yes, it is tax season so the CRA is going to take a while. They are also busy with problems with NETfiling and lots of folks asking lots of questions. I would be patient for now. Excellent idea to get the tracking number though, you never know what can happen in the mail. Wait a few more days, you can always try to call, but that is going to take a long time too. Patience for now, but keep checking too.
yes doctor write when he is started an how long process
You must now wait to see whether the CRA agrees that this is a disability, and see if they make it retroactive. You seem to have done all you can, now you must wait for the CRA response.
HI my dignosed adhd in 2013 nut we don’t know about that .adhd can apply for disability tax credit. now we know so we apply. I just want to know can we get child disability benefits from 2013 to 2017.he was born in 2008
If the CRA grants your Disability Tax Credit, then you can apply for back tax consideration, but only after the CRA has approved your DTC.
HI my dignosed adhd in 2013 nut we don’t know about that .adhd can apply for disability tax credit. now we know so we apply. I just want to know can we get child disability benefits from 2013 to 2017
If the CRA allows this as a disability, you will need to have a note from your doctor about when the diagnosis started. This all depends on whether the CRA allows this as a disability.
he dignosed in 2013 February. and he was born in 2008
My son (14) has just been diagnosed with Asperger’s. I’ve been trying to understand the best way to fill out the cumulative effects section in the T2201. If the mental functions has already been ticked as a yes, since birth… Does it have to be ticked yes? I’ve heard that it had to, and I’ve heard that it didn’t have to… Would you happen to know? Thanks!
I would have thought “Ticked” however, I would check with the CRA to be sure.
My son has been diagnosed with ASD few weeks now. I already filled up part A of the form T2201. Question is, who’s going to fill up part B? Is it the psychiatrist who diagnosed my son with ASD? Or my son’s pediatrician? BTW i can’t get a hold of the psychiatrist for sometime now. Never returns my call. Please help. Thanks.
Either can fill it in, however, since the Psychiatrist made the diagnosis, I would assume they should fill in Part B. If the Psychiatrist is not returning your calls, maybe it is time to drop by their office? Bring the forms with you.
The pediatrician can write a supporting letter (if they agree with the diagnosis), and it never hurts to have supporting documentation, but the diagnosing physician really should be the T2201 author.
Thank you for all the wonderful information. Our 4 year old son was diagnosed recently as well. I am wondering where I would obtain the template letter for the retroactive pay for the benefit?? Thank you for your time!
You could perhaps use this as a start? https://www.canajunfinances.com/2013/12/04/child-disability-benefit-application-letter-template/
Very helpful! Currently getting the forms together for my children. Didn’t know about this benefit. Daughter (14) reading/writing/math etc gr1-2 level. Severe dyslexia and social and learning disability. At this point it’s doubtful she will be able to live alone. Son (15) has severe anxiety and diagnosed by psychologist with “mild intellectual disability” After reading these, I am second guessing getting my GP to fill out the forms. I am fortunate to have private insurance that can cover seeing a psychologist. Should I get a referral to have them assessed? And have the psychologist do the forms? It’s been school board testing and psychologists to this point. I don’t want to have to reapply and do it over and over.
The referral will help it be covered by your insurance so yes, get the referral. Psychologist can do the forms, my opinion is to not trust the board psych folks (they work for the board, not for you). Get your own Medical team for support and such (especially if you have private insurance).
I have a friend who’s young son was just diagnosed,.. they were saying its very expensive for his weekly sessions. They live in Ontario, can be a few thousand a month to help their child. Question – does anyone know if Manitoba or another province, is a lot better at helping parents with the financial aspects of having an autistic child?
My daughter is 19 and has autism. We have spent the last 2 years going through establishing her right to BC provincial supports and services and then university accommodations. She is in an academic program and received her high school diploma, but is yes indeed, autistic.
Essentially each agency asks for a different version of the same information and in some cases autism has been excluded as a supportable diagnosis – the BC Ministry of Advanced Education has delisted that diagnosis as supportable and are looking to the new DSM guidelines. We had to essentially have her rediagnosed as having DCD in order to get the supports – but that diagnosis is now no longer implicit in the autism diagnosis – at least according to the new DSM guidelines
Her CRA certificate ran out the year she turned 19 so the next step is having that redone. The Form has changed and it seems that the way disability is now seen by our federal authorities is unless you are deaf, blind or physically challenged in walking then you are hooped. Its not enough to require supports to live independently or to be social or to function in the world, unless there is a measurable physical limitation that accompanies that difference. Talk about a narrow view of the world and great way to deny people their benefits. Now I know why they only gave us until she was 19 on the first certificate. Not because they expected her to change but because they moved the goal posts.
I’m trying to figure out how to have her qualify for something she deserves when the forms appear to be stacked against someone who is simply autistic. Any direction would be greatly appreciated. Our doctor is very experienced with these forms but even he can’t keep up with the changes to who people are measured for benefits.
Go to http://asdfunding.com/files for a whole library of stuff to do in BC, a great resource
I just applied for the disability tax credit for my son. He’s 10 and has ASD, ADHD, and motor tics…. and we were denied! I’m very discouraged :(. My family doctor, who was unwilling to even look at ASD for quite a few years, even with constant persistence on my part, the school, and various daycares, filled our forms out as this is what the psychologist said we needed to do. I don’t know what to do now… any advice would be greatly appreciated.
KK
Find another doctor? Find a psychologist that will do the forms ? Does the schoolboard know of any doctors? I would keep looking for someone who knows how the system works, and seems more interested in things?
Don’t give up! We applied 3x before finally being accepted. Good luck!
Good to hear! Yes, don’t give up.
I just got approved for the CDB for my son, after getting denied the first time I wrote a letter and got appro d, just wanted to know they said I can claim from 2012 , is that only done when u do taxes or will they assess it and give me whats owed, or do I have to request it? thanks
I believe you request for back taxes (i.e. ask for your Taxes to be reassessed back to 2012), and that should trigger the Child Benefit as well. Start with the letter asking for back tax reassessment.
Read this for the back benefits
Read this for back Disability Tax Credit
Nope they are not mine, they are someone who has done this a lot. 🙂
Hi,
finally CRA approved T2011 and paid Benefit,
Does anyone know hot to fill out the T1 ADJ form.
Do I need to put my previous years income and what I need to put section + -, I don’t have any idea about the numbers.
Do you know FCA is also back dated?
Thanks.
Hi.
My son was diagnosed with ADHD and ASD last year OCT by the psychologist. MY son’s PED filled out the the t2201 form and we got the form in june 2015 . The doctor has mention everything thing about his condition and how needs supports in everyday life.I’ve not submitted the form yet and wanted to ask you if i should also have to write about how i support him in everyday life or doctor’s letter is enough. Second question that i wanted to know if i should send the retroactive payment letter with the form or it’s better to wait for the approval. Also what do i need to do to adjust my tax return do we get the retro on tax refund for all the years too or not.
thanks in advance for answering me.
Any supporting letters from you couldn’t hurt, just keep it separate from the Doctor’s work. Yes, apply for the retroactive at the same time (we did).
Hi bigcajunman,
My son was diagnosed with ASD last month, the Psychologist filled out her part of the form which fall under “Mental functions necessary for everyday life” section.
However, I’ve noticed that she answered to the following subsection question
” If yes, when did your patient’s marked restriction in the mental functions necessary for everyday life
begin (this is not necessarily the same as the date of the diagnosis, as with progressive diseases)?”
she wrote 2014!
Does the mean we’re going to receive payments since 2014 not since he was born in 2011. in other words, does that answer dictate the retroactive payment period?
ASD is brain disorder since the child was born, it is not?
thanks in advance!
In my son’s case being on the spectrum was viewed as being a from birth issue, so I would go back to the Psychologist and ask why she didn’t put from birth (if you mean by ASD Autism Spectrum Disorder). My understanding is that in most cases ASD is a from birth issue. Yes, the way the form is filled in it would start at 2014, but maybe this was a typo or a mistake by the Psychologist? I would check with him/her first. Good luck!
Advice please. I am getting very annoyed. Forms completed by psychologist for my ASD son and sent in to CRA in mid Feb. I called in mid April and no record of receiving. 2nd set sent in to them and still as of Monday no record. How many times do I need to send it in? I realize it is tax season but do they not have a separate department for disability claims? The help line was not helpful. They just basically assured me that it isn’t sitting on a desk somewhere. That they create a file within 5 days of receiving and that it was probably Canada Post’s fault. Aside from sending it for a 3rd time and registering it, what more am I supposed to do? Their website states to be processed in 8 weeks. Certainly not in my case.
I sent mine “registered mail”, so that I knew whether the information was “received” or not, but I didn’t send during the tax season either. I would scan them and submit them electronically maybe?
Don’t get discouraged, be relentless in this case, don’t let your frustrations get the best of you. Keep pushing.
My twin boys 32 months old diagnosed with ASD recently. We have a question with DCB. Our pediatrician filled the forms, but she put the effective date as 2014. We learned that we can apply the DCB from birth since ASD is considered as a genetic disorder. Any suggestions about how to fill the forms, can we apply now and claimed the rest of it with a letter later?(since our pediatrician thinks that the first year of child life you can’t determine the ASD.
I called CRA but no help. They will consider the date put in the form. Does that mean I can not ask for previous years? Please advise. Thank you.
You will need another letter, be it from your Physician or another one stating that the condition is a from birth problem. The CRA only does what is written down, so you need either a Revised letter (maybe with an explanation) from your physician or a new letter from a different physician.
I’ve been approved for my 7 year old from 2009-2015. The tax professional told me they will only back pay child tax credit 14months. Is this true?
Don’t know, I would call the CRA about that one, I think it depends on the disability that is diagnosed. In the case of Autism, it is viewed as a brain-stem injury from birth, so all benefits start from birth, but you’d have to ask the CRA specifically, and be ready with your child’s exact diagnosis.
Our son was approved Nov 2014. They approved him from 2004. He is diagnosed Tourette’s syndrome, OCD with severe anxiety. The child tax credit went back farther than 14 months. It didn’t go back all the way to 2004 but close. They do 2-3 years at a time but fairly quickly. We had it all done and deposited by March 2015.
Excellent, thanks for the feedback. Sounds like the “tax pro” was on the ball on that previous comment.
In response to the question about how far back child tax credit goes for repayment I just double checked. The child tax credit for us went all the way back to 2005-2014 when we were approved for my sons disability. Good luck!
Excellent! Thanks for the follow up ðŸ‘
T2201 approved. Now do I need to send a letter for retro pay on both the disability tax credit AND the monthly disability tax benefit. Are they the Same thing (one letter) or separate?
You can try to put it into one letter, and see what happens, they may say you have to apply separately, but never hurts to try to kill two birds with one stone . Good for you!
Hi,
I just received the DTC approval for my kid .it is good for 10 years , However the
10 years back dated from 2005 to 2015 .. Not sure what is going ..is it CRA ‘s usual practice , What strange is my kid already got the DTC for year prior 2013 . The 10 years is actually 3 years ( 2013,14,15) That means I need to get another DTC next year ( i.e year 2016 ) . Do they not check the file …should I ask them why or don’t bother ..go through the same application process next year ? any comment advis e is welcome ..Peter
Yes, call the CRA (sorry it’s going to take a while, it is tax season) and talk to someone about your concerns, tell them all the details and see what they say. If they don’t give you a sufficient response, then I am not sure how best to proceed, maybe check with a tax lawyer? Let’s hope the CRA help line can clear this up
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/cntct/phn-eng.html
few questions…..here goes..
1. it says on the cra my account site, that im entitled for my son from birth 2009- present for the dtc…whats the next step for me to do ?how long will cra take from this point?
2.if i already recieve cctb…do i need to apply for the monthly cdb?
3.is the child disabilty benefit retroactive….if i am approved for disabilty tax credit from birth(2009)?if it is how long does that take to see some money and is it one lump sum?
4.if i am approved for dtc from 2009-present do i need a”t1 adjustment”if so what is this and how do i go about this?
any help would be greatly appreciated
1) You need to send a letter asking for your owed benefits
2) Not sure, I would have thought it would start automatically, but check with the CRA about that
3) Should be when you send in your letter, you should get back benefits, not sure how the pay out works whether it is a lump sum or group of payments (1 for each year)
4) Not sure if you need both the letter asking for back benefits and a t1 adjustment, but then again, you can never send too many forms in to the system, to ensure you get all of your benefits
The payment will go back to 2009, the year you were first entitled. The payments start pretty quickly. Ours was approved Dec 2014 and our first tax return adjustment was deposited Dec 29 2014. Since then we have had another large lump sum deposited Jan 20 for back pay of CCTB and another coming Feb 20th. Goodluck.
Excellent, thanks for the update and clarifications ðŸ‘
My son was diagnosed about three Years ago. He’s 6 hell be seven in march. Born in 2008. I’m jw how far back will DTC back pay me? Iv saw some say they’ll go as far as when they were born and some say theyll go from when he was diagnosed. I also read that after 2003 dtc said that they’ll pay back from child birth and as far as ten years. Iv read so many things and can not find the right answer. My son has ADHD and turetts syndrome and still finding out what else. I filled out the papers so far and am waiting for my doctor to fill out the rest. Do you think hell be approved? The father is not in his life and I don’t not get maitnence support from him. I only receive the ctb and Gst. I’m getting so many answers and don’t know what’s right. He started showing signs as far back as daycare when he was almost one. He was a slow walker and learner. It says in the application to put receipts in with it for food, clothes and shelter but I didn’t keep any receipts so where should I start from and attach. Please help. Thanks, alicia Mac.
I don’t know about the ADHD and Turrets diagnosis, but, the Autism diagnosis is viewed as a brain stem injury, and is thus viewed as being from birth, not sure about your diagnosis, you can ask the CRA about that (they have a help line you can call, check this site for the correct number http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/cntct/phn-eng.html .
As for whether you will get money, I can’t say, as long as your Doctor filled in the forms correctly you should be ok, but if you are refused keep going. You can appeal decisions with the CRA. Find a support group in your area they may have even better tips on how to work with the system.
Good luck, you will be in my prayers.
Both of my sons are diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome and OCD one also has severe anxiety and one with ADHD. They both qualified for the disability tax credit for the full 10,years they go back. My youngest was denied twice though..we just reapplied. Goodluck!
I am just going through this as well as my sister. Her son is ADHD/Tourette’s/OCD et al but he was only approved from date of diagnosis (I guess there is no proof that condition exists from birth although parents of these children might argue differently). My daughter has a rare chromosomal disorder resulting in an intellectual impairment so her condition existed since birth. My doctor seemed confident that they will go all the way back to birth but I am unsure if they pay out in one lump (that would be really nice!) or in several lumps. I am also wondering how long they take to process things? We submitted for adjustments to our taxes for all those years as well as back Child Disability Benefit. We are hoping to have the money in time for September (it’s July now), so we can enroll her in educational programming to help her catch up or do better in school. The Notice of Determination we got went over how to file for the back money but I checked with my tax person just to make sure I had it right. It also said that it will automatically go back two years but for years before that, you have to ask in writing. So most people will benefit in two ways. One, it may reduce the amount of tax you owe on previous returns which may result in a larger return for those years than you already received. And two, all the back CDB. As well, the letter mentioned a third way to access money for a disabled child, the Registered Disability Savings Plan. If a parent invests even some of this money into the RDSP, the gov’t will contribute up to three times that amount. This is for low to moderate income families though, but it is also possibly retroactive as well.
HI I have same problems about my son .I just want to know how many years back payment u get
It depends on the nature of the disability, when it was diagnosed, and when the medical professional feels it started (and whether the CRA has approved it as a disability claim). In my son’s case it is viewed as a disability from Birth, so we received it back to when he was born, however, with other disabilities there are different diagnosis.
We have 2 sons both diagnosed with tourette’s, OCD and learning issues. My oldest was approved first time while my youngest was denied on the first and second attempts. Youngest has severe anxiety with his OCD. Finally he was approved on our third attempt! For those unsure of whether to apply or not…do it. If you are denied keep trying. Our first attempt was 2011…finally approved 2014! Good luck. Also, I can’t remember how long it took to get the money for reassessment of previous taxes? Anyone know? Does the amount go down when it is a second child? Thanks.
Can take at least 6-8 weeks to get previous tax even reassessed (sp?), so it will take a while.
Good persistance!!! See sometimes you just have to keep trying.
My daughter has been approved for the disability tax credit (T2201). It said on her paper work that she would also receive the child disability benefit. Do you know how long it is before they start paying this? Is it another 6-8 weeks?
At least would be my guess, sorry.
Thank you so much for the info posted on your blog. I just wished I had found this sooner…My 5 year old was diagnosed with ASD in June of this year, though he had already been diagnosed with Epilepsy in 2012. We initially applied for the DTC back then but were deemed not eligible. With the dual diagnosis, we have resubmitted the application, with my Family Doctor completing the form again. He advised me to include a copy of the full report from the Psychologist who made the ASD diagnosis. I spoke to CRA today, and they advised that they will be sending an letter to my Family Doctor asking for more info. Now that I realize that I should have gone back to the psychologist in the first place , I am concerned about whether or not they will accept our application this time. They said the Clinician who completed the form must also complete the follow up. As great as my doctor is, I understand that he may not be the most knowledgeable regarding ASD…the best I can do is ask my Dr. to correspond with the Psychologist for more details…or worst case, prepare to appeal… Meanwhile, we’re on an 18 month wait list for ABA…..Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!!!
Stay with it, is my advice, and yes get the Doctors to confer on this, goodness yes. I wish you good luck too. Maybe look for a local psychologist or Doctor who succeeded with the forms before? Is there a local Autism support group you could ask?
Hang in there!
We are on ODSP for my boyfriend health. I have not worked in over a year do to my own health. When I worked I made less then $10,000.00 a year. BUT I did put in for T2201 for my daughter ADHD and other stuff she is 12 years old. We do out taxes together so they will see the ODSP stuff. I never owned on my taxes. But I hoping for the other part that they add on too the baby bonus. Do you know anything of that.
Not sure, I am ineligible for this, you might want to check with the CRA on that.
I have recently applied for the DTC for my son who has ASD. It has been over a month since they received the paperwork and request to have it dated to 2007. All that it says on my online account is that that they are working on processing the information for my son (Dependant 1). When I call, the CRA agents just say that I have to keep checking online. They wont give me any more information than that. What is the average wait time for the DTC to be approved or denied?
Thanks.
Each case is different, usually 6-8 weeks is about right, but the CRA is correct, just keep checking on line (and then more likely you’ll get a letter in the regular mail with the results before it shows up on line). Good Luck!
My daughter has ADHD , short term memory loss and has learning problems. We took her too a child psychologist at the age of 4. She said that my daughter ADHD was really high. BUT my GP is the one that filled out the forms the T2201. He still has the paper work from then from the child psychologist. I wonder should I mail that paper too them. My daughter is now 12 years old. She is grade 7, but her math and reading are at a grade 4. The school has a signed a computer that will go with her all the way thought school. Should I send the stuff that the school gave me about her.
I believe the CRA will read the T2201 only, you can send supporting documents, but not sure if they will use them or not. Don’t send originals, but more supporting documents couldn’t hurt, as long as they support the diagnosis. Good luck.
My daughter has ADHD and has learning problems. I just sent in my form about a mouth or so ago. The doctor sent his just over a week ago. I hope too have it cleared up by Christmas. We where told when she was 4 years old that she was ADHD and she is now 12 years old. I hope they say yes.
Good article on the Disability Tax Credit Certificate. You make excellent points. There are many people with disabilities that fall into what I call the grey zone. The nature of their disability doesn’t readily or obviously qualify for the DTC and their medical practitioner doesn’t have much experience in filling out the application. For those whose initial application is rejected, don’t give up so quickly. Appeal the decision and this is where you may want to get some assistance from somebody who understands the appeal process. There are agencies that do help with this process but you do need to be careful selecting an agency that really does have experience with appeals and is fair with their costs.
I recently filed for the disability for my 14 month old daughter. I hope she qualifies. She has a rare heart defect and is currently ng tube fed and will have surgery for a g tube. She need this to get her proper calories. She is also delayed. She is not crawling yet. But mentally she is good. How.long does it take to know if she is approved and is there a # to Contact them? Thank you
The CRA hot line is the best number to call http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/cntct/phn-eng.html
Our son who is diagnosed with combined type ADHD and ODD was approved for the DTC but from 2013 as this is the year the doctor put on the form for when he was diagnosed. He was born in 2009. Am I able to do something to recieve retroactive benefits to 2009?
I am not sure, with conditions like Autism it is viewed as a brain stem injury from birth, so it is deemed to have been there since birth. I would check with your doctor on this, and if he (or she) does not know, then check with the CRA on their interpretation of ADHD and ODD and whether it is a condition that they view “from birth”.
I just received my “Notice of Determination” from CRA and they’ve denied my daughters claim (ADA and ODD). Is there any advice you can give me? She was born in 2008 and has been disruptive throughout kindergarten and grade one (so far). Would a teachers letter be useful in the appeal process? Was my doctor not descriptive enough (he only put “has ADD and ODD” at the end of the application)? I even provided a copy of the psychological evaluation from a qualified therapy clinic. I’m at a loss… Thanks for any help you give.
Find a different doctor, is there a large children’s hospital near by (CHEO, Sick Kids, Children’s Hospital in Montreal are good examples), psychiatrist but see if you can find another professional who may be able to help you out. Teacher’s letter would be supportive, but would not be what the CRA bases their decision on (usually based on the Doctor who signed your forms).
Don’t give up, see if there are support groups locally that might be able to help out as well, they may have a better list of doctors who can help out.
got a letter from cra yesterday sayin they have completed the dtc for 10 years .they will send assessement amount separatelyand the caregive amount have sent to anther department. do u know when I will recive the cheque?
Couldn’t tell you, but soon(er) would be my guess if you have received a positive statement on it.
if I would claim dtc for 10 years how much refund do I get back from cra
That depends on how much you made at the time (I would think).
I recently filled out that form. The psychologist filled out what she could and wrote a nice letter to attach. Their pediatrician filled out the rest and I recently called to see if they had received my application and they said their decision was delayed because of what the pediatrician wrote. I think it’s because she only ticked three boxes? My twins both have autism and I’m worried I won’t get approved. Such stress 🙁
What absolutely needs to be filled out for it to be approved?
The form we filled in didn’t have any boxes, so I am not sure. It takes a while for this to go through, but keep thinking good thoughts on this, I have my fingers crossed for you too!
dtc been approved for 10 years.apply since feb2014 still didn’t get money yet.last letter from cra was quisionair ask if I reasidewith my mom,buy food,clothes,pay rent.how long will take cra to finalize this letter?is this the last step.have a friend apply for 3 years didn’t get this kind of letter from cra why me?
Get someone to call the CRA for you, or see if you can set up an account on line with them to ask them questions too.
How long will it take? Everyone is different, some folks are faster than others. If you have a DTC it shouldn’t be a big issue, but I would call the CRA help line folks and see if they can help, good luck on this, keep us posted.
My son turned 18 this year. He has ADHD, Autism and has qualified for the DTC since 2002. According to “My Account” on the CRA website, my ability to claim the DTC ends this year. He will have income in 2014 thanks to a family trust and will be going to college this fall. I expect him to file a tax return for the first time and claim the DTC on his own.
My question is, does he need to apply for a new DTC starting for 2015? Diagnosis is both time consuming and costly and nothing has changed. I don’t know where on the CRA website to find this information. Please help / guide me.
Thanks,
Neil Martin
As I usually preface these, you should call the CRA for a clarification about this, and my opinion is that yes, he will need a new Diagnosis, or have someone sign off on it. Maybe you can find the Doctor who did the original diagnosis, and have him extend it? Barring that you may need to get this in place for the coming tax year, here is hoping it is a shorter less painful Diagnosis (time wise and money wise).
You made reference to “start looking for Medical and Disability related Tax implications (to be covered in a later post).” – but I can’t find that “later post”. Can you please provide a link to it?
You can find the medical and tax implications at:
https://www.canajunfinances.com/2013/11/05/medical-tax-credit-for-school-costs-template/
https://www.canajunfinances.com/2011/02/22/medical-expenses-and-taxes/
https://www.canajunfinances.com/2013/11/04/disabled-children-school-fees-medical-credit/
I recently submitted Form T2201 and have been approved for my child, back dated into last years tax year. Any tips on how to get the tax credit given that I’ve already filed my taxes? I’m guessing I will need to submit a T1-ADJ form, but I don’t know what I need to put on it. Do I need to re-do my taxes to figure out the difference, or can I simply state “Disability Tax Credit” under “Name of line from return or schedule”?
I think you are correct, you need to ask for your taxes to be reassessed in light of the tax credit. Include a letter outlining everything, not sure about the T-Adj or not, you might want to call the CRA help line for exact steps, but sounds like you have the right idea, good luck.
Hi
My son recently was approved for the child disability tax credit with Aspergers but since then my daughter was referred to a pedetrician specialist where she has also been diagnosed with OCD, and High anxiety. Everyday life is a battle….. from what I’m hearing people seem to have a hard time with this diagnosis being approved has anyone had any luck or am I just wasting my time. They would like her to do therapy and its expensive.
Yes, I have heard a lot of folks have had issues getting a Disability Tag with OCD, all I can suggest is talking to your pediatrician, filling the forms in and seeing if anyone else has had success and what they did to succeed. Anybody reading this, please chime in!
Thank you for all this great information. My 20 yr old daughter has CP-right sided hemiplegic.(Medical diagnosis since 2) We want to set up a RDSP for her. Years ago we were told she was not disabled enough to qualify, since she can walk with a limp. Any suggestions would really be appreciated!
You will need the Diagnosis OK’ed by the CRA first, I would assume your doctor could do this for you. Get the CRA to OK it, get the date of when the condition started on the diagnosis, fill in the T2201 forms as well. Once that is OK’ed, take the tax credits, and the CRA statement of disability approval to the bank (or wherever) then open the RDSP for her. Start with your Doctor, and if you have problems talk to the CRA help line on this too.
Hi, My child was approved starting from 2007, and I realized that CRA updated my cctb owing but only for approximately 3 years (4 year less). Do they do the updates in two installments? Also I was told that I should write to the CRA to back date my taxes but I just wanted to know if there was anything important that I should include in the letter
Mine arrived in two installments, you could phone the CRA help line or check on line whether more is coming. Yes it is a simple letter with your Social Insurance Number, Identify the years you wish to be revisited, give the reason why (i.e. CRA has already approved the disability credit, but injury was from birth) and it couldn’t hurt to include the supporting documentation
Thank you for your prompt response. Your information is greatly appreciated. Keep up the great work!
Thank you for your prompt response. I was told I have to write a letter requesting this. Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing your information.
My baby born on 2013 summer, and has been diagnosed as “motor development delay ” when he was 2 month old , the local infant development program is in, however, we never get a diagnose yet…It may has something to do during my labor ..lack of oxygen.
The pedi just say – lets wait for more symptom, and our next app is in next 6 month ! he will be 14 month by then …… We didn’t get a MRI yet.
I am not sure whom should I spoke to in order to get more assistance.
If this case qualify for any benefit from CRA ?
You need to get your Doctor to make the diagnosis, but if they do, don’t worry it can be back-dated (you would get benefits from birth, if the diagnosis allows for it). If you live in a larger city, maybe see if you can find an appointment with another Paediatrician to see if you can get a second opinion. You must get a diagnosis from a Doctor first, then you can get the Doctor to fill in the forms for the CRA.
Was wondering if you could answer a question for me. I have a daughter who was diagnosed with ADHD inattentive subtype as well as Mild Intellectual Disorder. I applied for the disability tax benefit as well as the Children’s Disability Benefit. We were approved and all adjustments and retroactive payments have been received dating back to her birth. I have a son who was diagnosed with ADHD Disruptive Behaviour Disorder with Oppositional and Attentional Features as well as Conduct Disorder back in 2008. At that time, the diagnosing physician gave me tax forms but I didnt clearly understand what they were for and never bothered filing those with my return. With the recent diagnosis of his sister, and my now full understanding of the tax benefits surrounding their disabilities, he is applying for the Disability Tax Credit for himself as he is now 21. He is currently a student. My question is this… if and when he is approved through CCRA for the disability tax credit, can I apply for the Children’s Disability Benefit for the years that I should have received when I should have applied way back when even though he is now over 18 and no longer eligible under the CTB program?
I don’t know, that sounds like a question for the CRA. You could always just apply for it and see what happens, or you could wait until the Tax deadline and call the CRA after that (I would bet their phone in lines are jammed about now). If you have the old tax forms that should help, although you might need a corroborating note from the original physician backing up the original diagnosis? I would check with the CRA first.
How long can one continue to transfer the Disability Tax Credit. Disabled son still living at home, receives Social Assistance and holds a part-time job.
So if you read here http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/tpcs/ncm-tx/rtrn/cmpltng/ddctns/lns300-350/318/dpndnt-eng.html you see WHO can.
This page http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/tpcs/ncm-tx/rtrn/cmpltng/ddctns/lns300-350/318/dpndnt-eng.html states:
“The dependant was your or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, or niece, and you claimed an amount on line 306 or line 315 for that dependant, or you could have if he or she had no income and had been 18 years of age or older in 2013.”
So it depends what “no income” really means, I would call the CRA and ask.
I’m not sure if anyone else has looked up the lists of DTC amounts to claim for previous years & blindly submitted like I did so I wanted to mention the supplement of $4490 that you need to add to that amount! For some reason the CRA automatically reassessed years 2003-2010 but didn’t reassess 2011-2013, so I submitted my request online. I pulled the amounts off a website (2011 $7341, 2012 $7546, etc.) but when the reassessments from previous years came in the mail I noticed the amounts were significantly higher than those I had submitted for the recent years. That’s when I found out there is a supplement of $4490 for anyone under 18 you’re claiming the DTC for. I believe there is also a Family Caregiver amount of $2040? I requested another reassessment with the revised amounts. I was a bit surprised they didn’t adjust the amount on their end to correct it, but that’s probably asking a lot, especially being the busiest time of year for them. For anyone just starting, or considering starting, an application for T2201 I have to say the folks at CRA have been very patient, kind and helpful through the entire process.
Good to hear!
My daughter born premature has DTC approved by CRA and valid till 2015. Her food is pediasure milk fed overnight thru feeding machine. She thrives on this and we have Pediatrician’s supporting letter etc. I spend around 2000 $ every year. Can i claim this as Medical expense (i know it is not prescription drug but my kid lives on this milk and our doctor supports with letter etc) Pls help
I would phone the CRA and ask them, it sounds like it should, but you need to get confirmation from the CRA before you claim it, OR, you can do an addendum to your taxes once you have submitted them asking if these can be included in the Medical expenses and the CRA will then approve (or disapprove) and adjust your taxes then (which is what we did for my son’s school fees). I would call the CRA first.
Thanks bigcajunman.
Keep me posted on your progress, if I can help in any other way, shout out.
Update to my November 29 post, we received the initial amount from the CDB in January with the second portion arriving this week. However, I just received a letter telling me there has been a delay in processing my tax credit as they need the amounts I paid for childcare for the years 2003-2005. I don’t have those receipts and since I was claiming childcare for 2 kids during those years I have no idea which portion was her childcare and which was her brother’s. This amount affects the amount you get back so I don’t want to guess – and I REALLY don’t want to guess and be audited! So what to do? I thought we only had to keep tax receipts for 6-7 years… Not 10. Sigh!
Keep thinking positive, maybe you can find them, who knows? You are in my prayers on this one.
I just found your blog and lots of great info on here. I applied for my granddaughter for this disability credit. I knew nothing about it and found out through a family friend who is receiving it for her grandson .( he is off now because of age) Also when i started asking around about it i found out a family member is getting it for their children.
Anyway off i went and applied for it since up till now i have been paying out of pocket for speech therapy for my granddaughter and it is expensive.
I was shocked to see what the qualifications are to get this credit since both these people that i know that were getting it have children with alcohol syndrome but their children seem fine besides some behavioral issues. I am not sure how they managed to get this credit.
This credit was meant for children like my granddaughter for sure who have severe issues with speech, learning , feeding herself , and motor skills.
Anyway my doctor sent of the papers and i got a letter saying they wanted more info. This was after four months of waiting. The info they wanted was just repeat questions of the same info we had already sent them and even my doctor said it did not make sense. I ended up calling my local mp and complaining since it upset me because in the meantime my granddaughter is falling further behind because i can no longer afford all the private help. They said they would step forward and help me if the second application was not approved. I also called the tax disability and told them i had spoke to my mp and i was not impressed at the wait time.
Anyway i was just approved a week ago so now i am wondering what kind of wait it will be till i see any money from them. I also had to send in a letter asking for them to give me this credit after i was approved and for the years that she qualified for.
Does anyone know how long it takes to receive any money after the first process?
Also i just wanted to tell all those people out there that might have been not approved to maybe get their mp involved. This credit was meant for kids with disabilities that are severe and it upsets me that people with children with severe disabilities are being denied yet some people with children that should not be approved are flying through the process..?
They did not have this credit when my children were little so i had never heard of it until this year. Sad because my eight year old granddaughter could have used it for the extra help .
Well put, thanks for the update!
To most, the DTC is thought to be something for people who are seriously disabled, but it helps many people offset out of pocket costs for other conditions that do not obviously impair somebody, in my case type 1 diabetes. Under CRA guidelines, I do qualify for 14 hours per week of life sustaining therapy, as insulin is required to sustain life. My doc estimated we spend 20 hours per week. The CRA is a pain to deal with, they take months do do the simplest things. it was 2 months ago i wrote in for retroactive re-assessment of my taxes to apply the DTC, and still no word.
The wheels of the CRA turn slowly, I agree, let us hope all will turn out well for you. The Tax Credit is an important way the government can make sure all disabled folk get the help they need.
Hi
I was diagnosed by my family doctor with “osteoarthritis” in 2009. I have this problem in my both knees, and in lower back. Although , I was suffering from this problem since 2005 but doctors couldn’t diagnosed it and keep on prescribing Advil/Tylenol.
Because of Arthritis, I am not able to perform my job with full capacity and I feel pain in my body(as my job involves lots of walking, bending) when I come back to home. Do I qualify for DTC?
Waiting for your response.
Thanks.
You will need to get a Doctor to certify your disability I would talk to them first and see if they will help fill the CRA tax forms for this.
@Woreout, what results did you get by calling your local MP? What did you tell/ask them? I might do the same but aren’t sure what they could do to help?
I am so glad to have found this site. I had applied for the CDB for my 10 year old child who was diagnosed with ADHD and OCD/Anxieth. After paying our GP $90.00 to fill out the forms, I regret to say she was not approved! I know RCA had sent out an additional letter to the doc requesting more information and the letter was to be sent directly back to them so she did so and we were denied. My question is, should I reapply? I did get the school to write a letter indicating the challenges and learning struggles she faces so do you think that will help? I feel that she should qualify given that some of her OCD symptoms can be quite debilitating at times and she has not responded well to medication.
Thanks so much for any feedback.
Maybe find another doctor? Who did the ADHD and OCD/Anxiety diagnosis? I assume a Psychologist or Psychiatrist? If it was your GP, you might want to try to get a Psychologist to make the diagnosis and get them to fill in the form? It may be the CRA didn’t value your GPs opinion, or maybe it didn’t like how the wording in the letter? (I am only guessing here).
I would say if you can find another Doctor that might help, or maybe call the CRA up and ask if you can talk to someone about the denial. I wish you luck, but don’t give up just yet.
Thanks for your response. I guess that is my next option, I mean she was diagnosed with OCD and ADHD and her condition is severe at times but I know there are a lot of other people worse off. I have also read that there was a time when people were abusing this program and CRA was threatening to collapse the whole program so I do understand the need for their stringent guidelines and criteria. I guess my question would be…do you think my child’s diagnosis qualifies or should I just give up?
Thanks for your response. I guess that is my next option, I mean she was diagnosed with OCD and ADHD and her condition is severe at times but I know there are a lot of other people worse off. I have also read that there was a time when people were abusing this program and CRA was threatening to collapse the whole program so I do understand the need for their stringent guidelines and criteria. I guess my question would be…do you think my child’s diagnosis qualifies or should I just give up?
Ps. We met with a team of doctors so she was diagnosed by a psychiatrist and psychologist.
I wouldn’t “give up” see if there is another way? If the Psychiatrist did the diagnosis, why didn’t he (or she) do the forms for the CRA? As for the diagnosis qualifies, I don’t have the qualifications to comment on that, but maybe you need to talk to the CRA?
The place where she got the diagnosis has a bad reputation for not being that helpful in that respect so I think I’ll go seek a psychologist to fill out the form and resend it. I also have a letter from the school which will also carry some weight in their decision, I’m sure.
Thanks so much.
Don’t “Give Up” is the only advice I can give right now. Sounds like you are going in the right direction, keep me posted.
I submitted T2201 form and it is approved by CRA.
Now they asked me to submit new T2201.
Also, CRA also asked me to write A request letter to adjust previous tax years.
Also, CRA asked for a written request for the years 2008-2012 for CDB(child Disability Benefit); Please guide me how to write these two requests letters.
They would like to give you more money, I think, so the letters are not very complicated. Include your Social Insurance Number, the T2201, your child’s Social Insurance Number, your address in the header, and state what you want.
As I said in the post:
Thank you for quick and detailed response.
This has been very informative…but my turn for a question that I don’t see asked/answered. *Apologies if I simply missed it! 🙂
I sent in my T2201 end of July and just received a letter this week indicating that my 15yo has been approved for the DTC for the years 2003-2013. On the CRA site it shows this also. I see there has been a reassessment on my CCTB (to include the CDB), but only back to July 2011. In the letter I received, it says that if I want the CDB benefit for 2003-2011 that I need to send in a written request. Is that normal? Nothing indicates that I need to fill out the RC66 so I just typed up a letter and sent it out asking for the CDB for 2003-2011.
I also understand that there are 3 instalments when the retroactive payments are processed, but I’m confused. One of them so the reassessment on the CCTB to include the CDB (which I see will be deposited Nov 20) *mine only being for the last 2 years. I understand another instalment is the results of my taxes being reassessed with the DTC applied for the last 10 years. I requested that be done in a letter when I sent the T2201 in July, but don’t see any indication of a payment coming. Any thoughts on that? And what is the 3rd instalment for? I don’t see anything regarding that either.
Sorry for the long message – appreciate any feed back!!
~ Living one day at a time ~
If you didn’t ask for it in your initial request, I suppose.
I would also call the CRA or whoever you sent your letter to and ask these questions, they usually have a “help” line that should help you out. As for if the payment is just slow? It could be, but I wouldn’t assume that, go and find out (i.e. call and ask).
I asked for my taxes to be reassessed to reflect the CDB for the previous 10 years. You would think that would be sufficient. Sigh…
So regarding receiving 3 instalments – any feedback on what those are? CDB payment, tax reassessment, and ??
🙂
My guess is they may send the CDB payment in two parts? I seem to remember a number of different cheques showing up, or maybe it’s a “here is some free money for being a good person” cheque? (sorry bad humor there). I seem to remember the CDB back payments came in two parts (age 0-2 and 2-5 ?).
Hello
My son has suffered severe emotional anxiety and depression most of his life. Most recently being a teen and being hospitalized for suicidal attempts. I have had him in counselling all of his life due to emotional/behavioural issues. Unfortunately, due to limited income he has only seen counsellors when he was little. In grade 1 the school wanted to have him assessed for adhd but his counsellor said no because he would be labelled and be given a harder time in school. My son was very smart when he was young, so she did not think he had add/adhd. So I never had him assessed. After being hospitalized and school becoming an issue more and more as he got older the psychologist recomended that his phyciatrist start him on add meds to help with school. The psychologist that he recently saw has said he SHOULD have been diagnosed as a child and probably has been add since he was a child which is why I had so many behavoural/emotional issues with him all his life. He was continually suspended in grade 1. Then when middle school started the depression and anxiety started and the grades started to fall because of his inability to focus.
If my son has just been diagnosed NOW with ADD, he is 17 and diagnosed officially in 2009 with major depression. Can the ADD diagnosis be backdated somehow? They say, looking back that he was ADD all along but just not diagnosed. The CRA said they can go back to when the problem started and they have a “cumulative effect”
Who should fill out this form? My family dr just put Has has ADD since childhood on the form along with his depression date of 2009. And didn’t fill out the cumulative part. But CRA said to put the ADD on there even though he was just diagnosed even though his problems started in childhood. Can anyone help with this situation. Feeling very sad that I did not believe and get my son the help he needed for his ADD long ago 🙁
Get the family Dr. to fill it in correctly, or find a Clinical Psychologist or Psychiatrist to do it (if you are in a large Metro area, see one of the Children’s hospitals since your son is still younger (I think)). The ADD diagnosis should be helpful, so get a Doctor to back date it, is the right idea (i.e. you are right), not sure about the backdating, but the Psychologist or Psychiatrist might be able to do it (I don’t know about ADD as much, my exposure has been on the Autism spectrum side of things). As I have said the view on Autism is it is a brain stem injury from birth, really not sure about the ADD diagnosis (but find someone who can answer that question to your satisfaction).
As for the feelings that you have somehow failed your child, stop that! You are doing the best you can, no one gives us a manual as parents, and we all learn along the way, and kids with special needs luckily get special parents too, so keep working hard, you are working hard for your son (don’t convince yourself otherwise).
Thank you for that. The important thing is that the medication he recently started seems to be helping him with his school work and in turn helping his depression and anxiety.
My son is about to turn 18 and the discussion about ADD happened in family counselling last year with a short term psychologist after he was released from the hospital for depression. He has only been seeing his psychiatrist for the last few years. But the family dr seems to think I shouldn’t apply for the CDTC. The family physician has known some of his problems regarding depression and hospitalization but not all of his behavior and anxiety issues since he was a young child. That is when I continually had him in counselling thinking it was just a behavioral issue.
I think I will ask that his psychiatrist fill out the form as he is the one treating him for it. He is also the dr that got the info from the psychologist that he has ADD and has had it his whole life, hence the reason for all the behavioral issues I had with him his whole life.
Sounds like a plan, good luck with your journey.
My daughter was approved for the DTC from 2009 to 2014 for a different issue. Last February she was diagnosed with severe Autism. Our Dr filled out the DTC forms and we sent them in. In Sept she was approved from 2007(her year of birth). We sent in a letter requesting the retroactive payments and I was checking online on my account and it said they were processing her information then this past Friday that part was no longer there and it doesn’t show whether we will be receiving the retroactive payments or not. Can they reject not giving the retro active payments?
I can’t see how (but again, this is my opinion only). It may be that they have simply completed things and are preparing to send you your grants. In our case the explanation we got (from CHEO) is that Autism is viewed as a Brain Stem injury from birth, so if they have approved the diagnosis, it seems natural they would make it retroactive, but again if this does not happen, continue to fight for it (but I am optimistic it is just the system grinding along slowly). Good luck, keep me posted.
My grandson was approved for the Disability Tax credit and the letter from CRA says it goes back to the year he was born. My son would like to apply for the CDB retroactive to 2006, but we don’t know what to write in the letter. Can you post a sample letter? It would be much appreciated.
I will check with Mrs. C., but I would have thought the CDB “request” is done as part of the CRA letter, but let me check ( want to make sure I get this right ).
Oh and CONGRATS on getting approved (not sure that is the correct way to put it, but I am glad to hear your grandson will be getting some financial help).
So if the CRA has back dated things, it should cause the CDB to be “reassessed” as well (at least that is what happened to us), but you might want to follow up with the CRA on that one to be sure (or Services Canada).
Hi again. I thought maybe you could give me some advice regarding the CDB. As stated earlier my grandson was approved for the disability tax credit, however my son was denied retro pay for my grandson because they say he wasn’t in receipt of the CTB for the years 2006-10. My son and his partner separated in 2010 and he has custody of the children. Well as everyone knows mothers are the usual recipients of the CTB as per Rev Canada. Do you think an appeal would be successful?
It might be, but you are out of my depth on this one. Not sure what the legal implications are on this, perhaps your son’s EX should be the one applying for it?
A letter has been sent to my Doctor requesting more information, is this normal do you know or has any other parent on here gone through the same thing? Thanks for any info!! 🙂
This can happen , it is the CRA looking for specific info, your doctor needs to be clear. Yes I have heard of this , the CRA is not satisfied with the initial letter, but are giving the doctor a chance to clarify.
My doctor filled out my papers this week and I sent them in, all he wrote was: borderline mentally challenged, developmentally delayed and questionable autism spectrum disorder (or something like that) … do you think it will be denied?
Can’t say for sure, it is up to the CRA to decide, hopefully your Doctor filled it in to their (the CRA) satisfaction. If this attempt “fails” not sure about retrying, but you could ask the CRA why they turned down the application, and see what they say.
he also put Social and behavioral issues … it is so hard to find info on here with or talk to people who have applied in the past.
As I have mentioned, we were very lucky in the CHEO (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario) guided us through it, and the Psychologist who did the form for the CRA knew what important things to highlight.
Are permanent residents eligible?
If you pay Income Tax, I would have thought so, but that is only my guess, you can call the CRA help line 1-800-267-6999 to get the official answer.
my son has just been diagnosed with autism but the center he was seen at told me there are no resources or anything else they can do for us but it seems like other families dealing with this have found help im frustrated that these people seem unwilling to help me how do i get started the center he was diagnosed at gave us an appt for next year and my son turns five in Jan!
You need to get your disability benefit set up right away, and remember you need to get it “back dated” to the day he was born as well, that is where you start. Follow the instructions above, but find a Doctor or Psychologist who has done it before to help you if you need (in Ottawa CHEO is very helpful, in other cities the Children’s hospitals should have resources to help with this part of things). This will take time, but you must start now.
Find other parents, there are support groups for parents and sometimes that is where you will learn more about how to get resources to help your son with his journey.
Don’t panic, remain calm, you have now been appointed his Advocate and you are his Voice to get what he will need, it will seem at times too much, too hard, or even impossible, but you can do it (what is more, you will do it).
On Facebook check out Autism Awareness as a group. https://www.facebook.com/AutismAwarenessPage
Good luck on your journey, keep me posted.
Update: I haven’t forgotten that I was going to keep you update on my son’s reapplication of CCTB. It was sent out on Jan. 26th and I haven’t heard anything back yet. I’m considering phoning to see the progress. If I wait till the 20th to see if it gets direct deposited and it doesn’t, I have to wait till after the 25th to inquire.
Not to be apologetic for the CRA, but it is a kind of busy time of the year too, maybe give them another month? I suppose calling really doesn’t hurt, but you are going to wait a while on the phone too.
Must be my lucky day then, I got through on my first call and payments will be in full with retro on March 20th. Have a good weekend!
FAN-BLOODY-TASTIC!!! Good to hear! I didn’t want to get your hopes up, I have dealt with the CRA and government enough that their response may not be quick.
I was definitely surprised and very relieved! The man who helped me was great too, didn’t rush me, even did a break down of the CTB, looked into my account, glanced over my 2012 income tax and asked if I had any other questions or concerns. Oh yea he told me that my Disability tax credit thing was in fine standing as well. Gotta like that!
Good to hear! I have never really had any issues with the CRA folks I have dealt with, they have been helpful and told me when they didn’t know something and usually called me back. Good on “The Tax Man” for having good folks on the phones.
Hey, I’m glad I found your blog. Where exactly did you send your letter to? My son is only 2 years old and has Austim, we have been accepted for CCTB, (we’ve already had the T2201 and RC66 forms filled and sent), but now I would like to try to see if I can get some retro pay from his birth date. We are in a very long wait list and are paying everything out of pocket for speech therapy, and everything else.
If you can please reply back to me, that would be great. And if you could provide the template letter, that would be perfect.
Wow, after reading this I’m hesitant to send in my application for the DTC. The doctor who completed our form noted “markedly restricted” for mental functions & speaking, but under “Effects of Impairment” he only wrote “impaired social & academic function”. He assured us the diagnosis of ASD, Bipolar & social anxiety would be enough. We’re exhausted from the fight we had to endure just to get the diagnosis’ and survive regular daily life (we have 7 kids, 4 at home – 3 with disabilities). I don’t need an emotional roller coaster ride that ends in a rejection letter.
I wouldn’t NOT send it in, just remember that sometimes the CRA says no. Maybe ask the Doctor if he (or she) has done this before and whether it was successful. I didn’t mean to stop anyone, just be careful and make sure the forms are well filled in.
my form was sent in 4 months ago and the doctor only marked markedly restricted on mental functions with his diagnosis of autism. The only effects he listed were speech delay and impaired mental function and i was approved within a month and money sent out one month later. I think its worth a try if he filled in everything he was supposed to.
Good to hear your success! Yup, I think it never hurts to send it in, but if you get a NO, don’t give up either.
Thanks so much for sharing. I tracked down extra supporting paperwork & once I get a few more points down in my letter I will send it in and will post an update when we hear. Thanks again, there’s a lot of great tips and advice on this blog!
UPDATE: I finally braved it and sent in my form with an honest & open letter about our experience with our child and after about 6 weeks we’ve been APPROVED!! Thanks for the helpful advice and the extra push to apply. For a family struggling to support an amazing child and give her the best chance for a full life, this is the best Christmas gift ever!
EXCELLENT!!! that is the kind of comment and news I love to read. Enjoy your Christmas and let’s hope for a good coming year.
Don’t give up Lindsey. As Sherrie mentioned in her post, she’s getting some extra paperwork together along with a letter. It doesn’t hurt to have your point of view on your child’s disorders/disabilities, or even write about a day in the life of your child stating their challenges. Even if you could get a letter from a speech therapist or teacher, they don’ t ask for it but it certainly can’t hurt. With my first application, 10 yrs ago, the doctor was straight and to the point, didn’t really elaborate and we were approved. I wish you luck!
All the best to your family.
Did you get your CDB this past Friday (18th) I only rec’d the Child Tax Credit portion. Someone else my mother knows didn’t receive their’s either, and like me no notice of why… My son who has autism has been receiving it for about 10 or 11 yrs. Nothing so far written over at the government site. Tried calling CRA but they won’t let you get through until the 25th… just curious if it was a computer glitch or what?
A check arrived, but I will check with Mrs. BCM on whether she heard about changes. Stay tuned.
Thanks for checking. I found out why. I have to remind myself to read all of the CCTB and OCB notice next time it comes. Apparently my son’s Disability Tax Credit Certificate forms have expired. I read above that the same is for your son. So off I go to print out the forms.
Thanks!
Good luck and keep me posted on your status!
Thank you! As of Wednesday, papers were dropped off at the doctor’s office. Will let you know the outcome.
Excellent, yes please keep me appraised! Good luck too, you deserve a financial break.
An outstanding post. Figuring out gov’t benefits for those with disabled children is a huge hole in consumer’s knowledge, there seems to be very little info on it. You should write an ebook on it – like Mike’s RESP book.
I may do that depending on how many posts I string together on this topic. I’ll have to share the byline with Mrs. C8j on that but it is being thought of.
BCM, well done. Dare I say you sound and write like an accountant 🙂
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You make a very important point. If someone was not aware of the disability claim and/or process, the CRA will often let you go back and re-file, sometimes for as many as 10 years for the disability claim.
P.S.- I watched the first season of Sons of Anarchy, instead of the Leafs game. Told you I would protest this year.
Well as protest for the Football I watched Cars 2 with my son! Yes, it is important to remember that you can back date the diagnosis and take advantage of rebates, in some situations.
The reason it is organized is Mrs. C8j edit’ed it (a great deal).