Disability Tax Credit

Written by Heather Bowie, CPA, CA on Mar. 16, 2018

You may qualify for the disability tax credit and not even realize it.  If so, you could collect as much as $2,500 a year in tax savings!!!

You do not need to be in a wheelchair to be eligible for the disability tax credit. If someone isn’t able to walk the length of a football field unassisted they are likely eligible for the credit. Anyone who can’t fill out forms because of bad vision or can’t articulate their thoughts will also likely qualify. Anyone who needs life sustaining therapy to support a vital function, such as dialysis, can also apply.

Often the disability tax credit can be applied retroactively up to ten years

Anyone who has problems with the following may be eligible for the disability tax credit:

  • seeing;
  • speaking,
  • hearing,
  • walking,
  • bowel or bladder functions,
  • feeding,
  • dressing or
  • performing mental functions necessary for everyday life

People with long-term disabilities can save more than $2,500 a year in taxes. Often this credit can be applied retroactively up to ten years. If a dependant that you assist is disabled, you may be able to claim the unused amount of their disability tax credit. In addition, if you have a child under the age of eighteen that is disabled, a supplement to the disability tax credit is also available. If you have a parent or grandparent that is living in a home you maintain, any unused credit may be transferrable to you.

People with long-term disabilities can save more than $2,500 a year in taxes

In order to receive the disability tax credit a T2201 form must be completed and submitted to CRA. It’s now even easier to file the form T2201 as CRA is now accepting the form electronically.

Who can sign the form:

  • Doctors,
  • Optometrists,
  • Audiologists,
  • Occupational therapists,
  • Psychiatrists,
  • Speech language pathologists, and
  • other medical professionals

The doctor only has to sign for one of the conditions in order for you to qualify for the disability tax credit. To be considered, the impairment must have lasted, or be expected to last for at least 12 months.

If you think you or one of your family members may qualify for the disability tax credit, please contact us today at 780-466-6204 or email us by clicking here.

Thanks to Jean Dubois of KWB Chartered Accountants for providing much of this content

Here is a list of some of the medical conditions that may entitle you to the disability tax credit (DTC):

Agoraphobia
ADHD
Alzheimer’s
Amputation
Anxiety
Arthritis
Asperger Syndrome
Ataxia
Autism
Bipolar
Bladder Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder (BDP)
Bowel Disorder
Brain Tumour
Cerebral Palsy (CP)
Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease
Chronic Pain
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary (COPD)
Colitis
Coronary Artery Disease
Cri du chat Syndrome
Crohn’s Disease
Cystic Fibrosis (CF)
Deaf
Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD)
Dementia
Depression
Developmental Delay
Diabetes
Down Syndrome
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome
Epilepsy
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Fibromyalgia
Fragile X Syndrome
Glaucoma
Global Developmental Delay
Hearing Impairment
Herniated Disc
Hip Injury or Pain
Huntington’s Disease
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Juvenile Arthritis
Learning Disability
Lou Gehrig’s (ALS)
Mental Illness
Motor Vehicle Accident
Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
Obsessive Compulsive (OCD)
Osteoarthritis (OA)
Panic Disorder
Paraplegia
Paralysis
Parkinson’s Disease (PD)
Personality Disorder
Physical Impairment
Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD)
Psoriatic Arthritis
Psychosis
Quadriplegia
Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)
Schizophrenia

This list does not include every medical condition that may qualify for assistance.

Heather Bowie, CPA, CA

Heather Bowie, CPA, CA

Manager

Heather completed her Bachelor of Commerce with an accounting major at the University of Alberta. She articled with a mid-sized national firm, during which time she received her CA designation.

Over the years, Heather has achieved a variety of work experience including as an online facilitator for the CA program, senior accountant in industry, and as a practice reviewer for CPA Alberta.

With KWB, Heather is a Manager and also leads the development of our advisory practice, Onsight Advisory.

Away from work, Heather and her husband own an HVAC company in Sherwood Park allowing her to understand business from both the client and the accountant perspective.

Heather has an amazing husband and two teen daughters who are growing way too fast for her liking. In her spare time, Heather enjoys attending her girls’ sporting events and dance performances, keeping active, and playing board games.

Heather's Contact Information

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