Disability Tax Credit (DTC)
Do you have questions about completing Form
T2201 the Disability Tax Credit Certificate for your patients?
If you do please call: 1-866-741-0127 to discuss your
questions with a CRA representative.
Do you need information in determining if you can complete
the form?
Go to www.disabilitytaxcredit.com
The following information was provided to us from the Canada
Revenue Agency. Additional documents can be found using the
following links to their website. Please check this website
for all up-to-date information.
The disability tax credit (DTC) is a non-refundable tax credit
that reduces the amount of income tax payable. If the eligibility
requirements are met, an individual may claim the DTC on his
or her income tax return to reduce tax that otherwise may be
payable. If the individual does not owe tax or does not need
to use the full amount of the DTC to reduce tax to zero, the
unused portion may be transferred to a spouse, common-law partner
or caregiver to reduce their tax payable. The DTC can be granted
retroactive, but this needs to be specifically requested in
writing, otherwise the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will only
provide the DTC for the current year.
In addition to the DTC, a supplement is available for individuals
under 18 years of age. However, the supplement applies only
to 2000 and subsequent years.
Under the Income Tax Act (Act), to qualify for the DTC, a
qualified person must certify that an individual has a severe
and prolonged mental or physical impairment, the effects
of which are such that one of the following applies, all or
substantially all of the time:
- An individual is blind, even with the use of corrective
lenses or medication,
- An individual is markedly restricted in their
ability to perform one of the basic activities of daily
living,
- An individual needs, and dedicates time specifically for,
life sustaining therapy.
Under the Act, a qualified person is a medical doctor,
optometrist, audiologist, occupational therapist, psychologist,
speech-language pathologist or physiotherapist.
An impairment is prolonged if it has lasted, or is expected
to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months.
Markedly restricted means that you are unable (or it
takes you an inordinate amount of time) to perform a basic activity
of daily living, even with and the use of appropriate devices,
medication, and therapy (other than life-sustaining therapy).
Significantly restricted means that although you do not
quite meet the criteria for markedly restricted, your
ability to perform a basic activity of daily living is substantially
restricted.
The cumulative effects of these significant restrictions is
equivalent to being markedly restricted in a single
basic activity of living.
Basic activities of daily living include walking speaking
so as to be understood by a person familiar to you in a quiet
setting, hearing so as to understand a person familiar to you
in a quiet setting, mental functions necessary for everyday
life, feeding, dressing and eliminating (bowel or bladder functions).
Only one of the basic activities of daily living needs to be
impaired to apply for the DTC. The basic activities of daily
living do not include any other activities such as working,
housekeeping and/or leisure activities.
Life-sustaining therapy is therapy that is required
to support a vital function. An individual must need to dedicate
time specifically for this therapy- at least three times per
week, for an average of at least 14 hours per week. Examples
of life-sustaining therapy include chest physiotherapy to help
in breathing, and kidney dialysis to filter blood.
Form T2201, Disability Tax Credit Certificate is the
prescribed form required to apply for the DTC. There are several
ways to obtain Form T2201. You can download the form from the
CRA's website at: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/t2201/README.html
phone 1-800-959-2221 (English) or 1-800-959-3376 (French),
or visit your local tax services office.
The applicant or his/her representative fills out Part A of
the form. Part B of the form must be completed and certified
by an appropriate qualified person. Medical doctors can certify
all impairments. Audiologists can certify for hearing impairments
and speech-language pathologists can certify speaking impairments.
Send the completed form to your CRA Tax Centre. To find your
Tax Centre, refer to:
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/individuals/faq/t1filingaddress-e.html,
or phone 1-800-959-8281(English) or 1-800-959-7383 (French).
You can submit Form T2201 at any time of the year, or attach
it to your income tax return.
When Form T2201 is received, the CRA examines the information
provided to determine if the eligibility requirements have been
met. If needed, the qualified person is contacted (in writing
or by phone) for additional medical information. To minimize
delays when processing tax returns, it is important to fully
complete the forms. Any fees related to the certification of
Form T2201 or for clarification or additional information are
the responsibilities of the applicant. These fees are not covered
by the CRA or by provincial Medicare plans, but you may be able
to claim them as an eligible medical expense on line 330 of
your tax return. See your General Income Tax and Benefit
Guide for details.
For more information on the DTC, visit the CRA's website at:
www.ccra.gc.ca/disability
or read Form T2201.
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Tips for Speech-Language
Pathologists and Audiologists certifying Form T2201
There are four sections in Part B of Form T2201 that you must
complete: the specific basic activity of daily living section
(page 3 for speaking and hearing), the "Effects of impairment,"
the "Duration," and the "Certification"
sections on page 9.
Use the "Effects of impairment" section to
describe the effects of your patient's impairment on his or
her ability to hear or speak. With your patient's permission,
you can include copies of assessments and/or progress reports
with the completed Form T2201. It is not necessary to provide
a diagnosis, as eligibility for the DTC is based on the functional
impairment and not the medical diagnosis. The "Duration"
section is your opportunity to certify whether the hearing or
speaking impairment is prolonged and if so, for how long the
DTC should be approved. Although a client's impairment may be
permanent, its effects on hearing and speaking may only be temporary.
If this is the case, indicate the year in which the client's
marked restriction should be re-evaluated.
Once determined eligible for the DTC, individuals do not need
to send another Form T2201 to the CRA unless the period of approval
has ended or the CRA asks for a new form.
Many patients and families are not aware of the disability
tax credit and we should let them know. Should your patient/client
have a disorder that you cannot certify, for example blindness,
you should encourage your patient or client to review Form T2201
with the appropriate qualified person.
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Information For Speech-Language
Pathologists who are asked to certify Form T2201:
Speech-language pathologists must first assess the two qualifying
criteria of the patient's impairment separately: whether the
effects of the impairment markedly restrict the patient's ability
to speak; and whether the speech impairment is prolonged. The
patient must be assessed relative to someone of a similar chronological
age who does not have the speech impairment.
For the section on speaking, the speech-language pathologist
is asked to judged whether the patient is markedly restricted
in speaking:
"The patient is considered markedly restricted in speaking
if all or substantially all the time, he or she is
- unable to speak so as to be understood by another person
familiar with the patient, in a quiet setting, even with appropriate
therapy, medication and devices or
- takes an inordinate amount of time to speak so as to
be understood by a person familiar with the patient, in a
quiet setting even with appropriate therapy, medication and
devices."
Examples of devices:
- Devices for speaking include tracheoesophageal prostheses,
vocal amplification devices and an inordinate amount of time
is judged to mean that speaking so as to be understood takes
significantly longer than for an average person who does not
have the impairment.
Examples of " markedly restricted in speaking":
- The patient must rely on other means of communication such
as sign language or a symbol board, all or substantively all
of the time.
- In your office, you must ask the patient to repeat words
and sentences several times and it takes a significant amount
of time for the patient to make himself/herself understood.
Speech-language pathologists cannot certify mental
functions necessary for everyday life or feeding impairments,
even for those with swallowing disorders. Of course impairments
in a patient's mental function impact on his ability to speak,
but the Act specifies that these certifications can only be
made by medical doctors and psychologists. Dysphagia is in the
scope of practice for speech-language pathologists, but only
occupational therapists (and medical doctors) can certify feeding
impairments, as described in the Act.
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Information for Audiologists
The audiologist must first assess the two qualifying
criteria of the patient's impairment separately: whether the
effects of the impairment markedly restrict the patient's ability
to hear and whether the hearing loss is prolonged. The patient
must be assessed relative to someone of a similar chronological
age who does not have the "marked restriction".
For the section on hearing, the audiologist is asked to judge
whether the patient is markedly restricted in hearing:
"The patient is considered markedly restricted in hearing
if, all or substantially all the time, he or she is
- unable to hear so as to understand another person familiar
with the patient, in a quiet setting, even with the use of
appropriate devices; or
- takes an inordinate amount of time to hear as to understand
another person familiar with the patient, in a quiet setting,
even with the use of appropriate devices."
Examples of devices:
- devices for hearing include hearing aids, cochlear implant,
etc.
Examples of " markedly restricted in hearing":
- The patient must rely completely on lip reading or sign
language, despite using a hearing aid, in order to understand
a spoken conversation, all or substantially all the time.
- In your office, you must raise your voice and repeat words
and sentences several times, and it takes a significant amount
of time for your patient to understand you, despite using
a hearing aid.
If you are unsure or have questions about certifying Form
T2201, qualified persons can call and speak with a CRA representative
at 1-866-741-0127.
