By: Gabriella Rabaa
The Canada Disability Benefit Act became federal law on June 22, 2023, creating a framework for the federal government to create a financial benefit program to help strengthen financial security for Canadians with disabilities.
The Government's proposed Canada Disability Benefit Regulations were released on June 29, 2024, and set out the technical details to implement and administer the program.
The proposed Regulations address topics such as eligibility criteria, payment amounts and income thresholds, options to complete an application, the process to appeal decisions, and more.
A few key details set out in the Regulations include:
- Recipients of the benefit must be aged 18 to 64 and have valid eligibility for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC).
- A maximum benefit payment amount of $200 per month.
- Beneficiaries would only be eligible to receive the maximum benefit amount if they have an annual income below $23 thousand for single persons or $32 thousand in combined income for persons with a spouse or common-law partner.
You can visit the Canada Gazette website to read the full text of the Regulations or read the summary provided by Employment and Social Development Canada.
The Government is hosting another round of public consultations to gather feedback from Canadians with disabilities about the proposed Regulations. In turn, CNIB will be re-launching the CNIB Canada Disability Benefit Consultation Panel, which we previously established during the Government's first round of public engagement to gather the perspectives of our community members.
If you're interested in joining the CNIB Canada Disability Benefit Consultation Panel, we invite you to register by completing the online form (below). Please note that if you previously registered in 2023, you do not need to register again.
You can also participate in CNIB's consultation by completing our online survey.