Disability Tax Credit

General Discussion
41

  1. I can still drive. I drive to all my medical appointments. I am wondering if one has to be 90% disabled how can they drive?

  2. I am afraid I could be audited if I claim driving expenses on my income tax to see my doctors, therapists, and the groups I attend.

42

I wouldn’t even know what or how to claim that stuff.
I don’t have over $300 of medical expenses anyways and I think that is the minimum.
My parents claim medical expenses.

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43

Check that your driving expenses qualify - it has to be quite a long drive for medical care you can’t get closer. You can read the details here https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/individuals/topics/about-your-tax-return/tax-return/completing-a-tax-return/deductions-credits-expenses/lines-330-331-eligible-medical-expenses-you-claim-on-your-tax-return/details-medical-expenses.html#trvl40

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44

Mine is low seven figures for last year.

45

Thank you Caro. I will ask an accountant for more details.

46

How long did it take for CRA to contact you after they received your application?
Thanks

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47

Where did you get the 90%?

48

I got an approval letter 5 weeks after I applied, this was many years ago though.

49

I think my physicians secrets didn’t send it it.

Been over 8 weeks

50

I thought that’s what the CRA website says I think.

A few weeks ago a lady was denied and she took CRA to court and won. She represented herself.

51

You could call CRA and ask if they got it.

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52

Six months. After a few weeks CRA sent me a letter stating they will be contacting my medical practitioner for more info.

53

Wow, it has really changed.
I’m not surprised, there are way more applications now.

54

Hi Jammer - I think you are referring to a Service Canada Form and Canada Pension Plan Disability. Service Canada will pay medical professionals a small fee to complete the CPPD medical report.

Service Canada isn’t involved in administering any tax credits or related forms. The Canada Revenue Agency, CRA, doesn’t reimburse taxpayers or their doctors for any medical reports required to get approval for the Disability Tax Credit (T2201). I think you can claim the cost to obtain medical reports as medical expenses on your income tax return (non-refundable tax credit if your out of pocket eligible medical expenses exceed a threshold) which is minimally helpful for a few people. The costs to complete these reports is usually quite minimal and medical professionals follow the guidelines of their provincial associations (e.g. recently well under $100 in Alberta, Ontario and BC for medical doctors to complete a T2201).

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55

Marykate - the timeline to hear back a decision from CRA is still typically less than 8 weeks from the time CRA receives your completed application. CRA will tell you that you are approved or denied or that they require additional information from your medical professional. As Jammer suggested, you should contact them if its been 8 weeks.

If you don’t receive an outright rejection with the first letter, that doesn’t seem like a totally bad thing. If they need more medical information, it might take several months for your medical professional to correspond back and forth with the CRA to adequately address all of their questions and, hopefully, you’ll ultimately be approved.

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56

What information would they need from my DR?
I have contacted my physicians office and asked secretary to check for mail and make an appt with my Dr

57

Hi MaryKate,

Are you referring to more info request from CRA? My therapist refused to tell me. She said it’s confidential.

58

It was just how far I could walk?

My dr filled it out with me there.

I have always been involved with forms sent to my Drs and asked for completed copies as it’s your chart.

59

Hi Marykate - Jammer mentioned something about this in another posting, so I’ll try to elaborate here. I realize your case must have something to do with the inability to walk, but you might be curious as to why a person might not receive a copy of everything in his medical file.

In cases of disabling psychiatric illness, it is standard practice, where there is any concern about the health or safety of the patient or others, that psychiatrists, psychologists and other medical doctors specifically indicate on the report itself that copies are not to be provided to patients and the doctor will not give a copy to the patient. You will not be able to obtain a copy from CRA or Service Canada. LTD insurers are even more cautious, and will generally not provide any medical reports directly to claimants where a psychiatric diagnosis is involved.

Really, when you think about it, this makes sense. We want people to be approved for the benefits they deserve. From what David has said, it’s very hard to be approved for LTD, CPPD and DTC for a psychiatric disability, so we really do want our doctors to be free to provide the best information they can to support the approval of our applications for legitimate disabilities. That’s the bottom line, isn’t it?

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60

That’s correct. Two thumbs up.