08/24/2026
DISABILITY TAX CREDIT: The diagnosis is not the test. The day-to-day impact is.
Many people assume that having a diagnosis, medical condition or visible disability automatically makes someone eligible for the Disability Tax Credit. That is not how the DTC works.
The DTC is a non-refundable tax credit. Eligibility is generally based on how a severe and prolonged impairment affects basic activities of everyday life—even after appropriate therapy, medication and devices are used.
Consider these two examples:
👓 HASHIM’S EYESIGHT
Hashim has a very strong prescription. Without his glasses, he may not be able to tell whether a traffic light is red or green.
That sounds like a serious limitation—but the vision test considers his eyesight after correction. If his glasses allow him to see comparably to someone his age and his corrected vision does not meet CRA’s specific visual-acuity or field-of-vision thresholds, he would not qualify in the vision category.
The question is not simply, “How well can you see without your glasses?” It is, “What limitation remains after appropriate correction?”
🦿 AMPUTATION AND WALKING
Now consider a woman whose leg was amputated. The amputation itself does not automatically determine DTC eligibility.
However, if—even with an appropriate prosthesis, cane, therapy or medication—she is unable to walk or generally takes at least three times longer to walk than someone of a similar age without the impairment, and this restriction is present generally 90% or more of the time for at least 12 continuous months, she may meet the walking criteria.
The important point is the effect on everyday function, not simply the name or visibility of the condition.
DTC ELIGIBILITY CATEGORIES
• Vision
• Speaking
• Hearing
• Walking
• Eliminating—bowel or bladder functions
• Feeding
• Dressing
• Mental functions necessary for everyday life
• Life-sustaining therapy
• Cumulative effect of significant limitations
WHAT DOES “MARKEDLY RESTRICTED” GENERALLY MEAN?
For many categories, it means that—even with appropriate therapy, medication and devices—the person is unable to perform the activity or generally takes at least three times longer than someone of a similar age without the impairment.
The restriction must generally be present at least 90% of the time and must have lasted, or be expected to last, for a continuous period of at least 12 months.
WHAT IF TWO OR MORE LIMITATIONS WORK TOGETHER?
This is often misunderstood. It is not simply “two conditions that affect you 50% of the time each.”
Under the cumulative-effect rules, significant limitations in two or more eligible categories must exist together all or almost all of the time—generally at least 90%. Their combined effect must be comparable to being unable, or taking at least three times longer, in one category.
Life-sustaining therapy has its own criteria and is not included in the cumulative-effect test.
DON’T DELAY THE APPLICATION
The DTC application requires Form T2201 and certification from an appropriate medical practitioner. The practitioner describes the effects of the impairment, but CRA makes the eligibility decision.
The application and any resulting reassessments can take time. If CRA approves eligibility for earlier years, tax returns may potentially be adjusted going back up to 10 years, depending on the certified eligibility period and the applicable reassessment rules.
Think you or a family member may qualify? Learn more or contact Numeracy Accounting:
https://numeracyaccounting.com/disability-tax-credit/
General educational information only. Eligibility depends on the individual facts,
medical certification and CRA’s determination.