# Questions Re Disability Tax Credit



## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

I spent many hours last week trying unsuccessfully to get through by phone to Canada Revenue to ask some questions about my application for the Disability Tax Credit. I finally gave up in disgust and wondered if any of you know the answers to my questions:

1. My doctor filled in the required section explaining why I am eligible for the credit, and I mailed it in a couple of months ago. I have never received a response to date (which did not surprise me because I made the application at their busiest time of year.) But last week, while browsing on the CRA's My Account I clicked on "Benefits and Credits" and, much to my surprise, there was a note that said, "You are eligible to claim the Disability Tax Credit" and indicated that I was eligible for the years 2013 to 2018. I assume that means that my application has been approved. Can I assume that is correct and go ahead and claim the credit for 2016 on my current tax return, or will the CRA eventually notify me officially of the approval?

2. That note indicates that I am eligible for the credit back to 2013. Do I have to apply to have my tax returns reassessed for the years 2013 to 2015, or will Canada Revenue automatically do that for me?

Thanks for any advice you can give me.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Karen said:


> ... wondered if any of you know the answers to my questions:


Not sure there is an iron clad good answer as IMO, it's more about what you are willing to followup on ... but here is my take on it.




Karen said:


> ... 1. My doctor filled in the required section explaining why I am eligible for the credit ... on the CRA's My Account I clicked on "Benefits and Credits" and, much to my surprise, there was a note that said, "You are eligible to claim the Disability Tax Credit" and indicated that I was eligible for the years 2013 to 2018. I assume that means that my application has been approved. Can I assume that is correct and go ahead and claim the credit for 2016 on my current tax return, or will the CRA eventually notify me officially of the approval?


Only down side to claiming it that I can think of is the work to follow up should the NOA show a rejection of the claim. If it was me, I'd take a snapshot of the My Account note and claim it as this may be less work.

The alternative is to wait for an official letter, which may arrive after the deadline for submitting one's 2016 tax return. One would then have to wait for the NOA then file change to the return.

As you have a source that indicates it can be claimed - I would claim it.




Karen said:


> ... 2. That note indicates that I am eligible for the credit back to 2013. Do I have to apply to have my tax returns reassessed for the years 2013 to 2015, or will Canada Revenue automatically do that for me?


Sorry ... but based on my experience with a bogus RRSP over contribution, it's up to you to file the adjustments to previously filed returns.


For my RRSP, a CRA clerk was typing in the pension adjustment reversal (PAR) for leaving my previous company pension. Trouble was, instead of entering it so that it was added to what I already had - it was entered so that it over wrote what I had (i.e. instead of $15K existing plus $5K PAR to give $20K, the $5K PAR was entered to replace the $15K existing to end up with the smaller $5K). This caused the over contribution to affect four years of tax returns with thousands in penalties and interest charges.

After convincing a CRA clerk to review it, the error was quickly found and fixed on their end. When I asked when I should expect revised NOA's clearing up the bogus charges - the answer was that I had to file changes to the bogus NOA's for all four years affected as "CRA could not assume the tax payer would choose to apply the change". 

Really? A tax payer who knows it's CRA's error is going then going to *choose* to pay thousands in bogus penalties/interest?

Filing the four T1ADJ forms citing their mistake was more tedious than anything else but it seemed ludicrous as it was a CRA data entry clerk's mistake!
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/changereturn/


You might get lucky where they take care of it but my experience says it is up to you.


Cheers


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

Thanks, Eclectic12. It sounds as if your experience with CRA has not been very positive. I had a better experience when a clerk typed in a capital gain when I hadn't reported one, and I was reassessed extra tax of a couple of thousand dollars on it. Most years I would have noticed their error right away, but that happened to be the year I took a cash payout on a large 401K that my late American husband had left me, so I had a huge tax bill to pay and I didn't notice it. But several months later, the CRA found the error themselves, notified me of it, and refunded the extra tax I had paid plus the penalty they had charged me.


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## Nerd Investor (Nov 3, 2015)

Since you're already registered for My Account the fastest way to make the adjustments would be online. They let you go back three years online so I think you should be good.
Things generally get posted to My Account much faster than the actual snail mail letter you should receive. I'd echo the recommendation to take the snapshot of your screen, but short of a CRA rep making a huge error, it sounds to me like you've been approved. Worst case, you claim it, they deny it and you have to follow up/adjust it later.


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

Yes, I thought Eclectic12's recommendation to take a snapshot of the comment on the screen was a good one, and I will definitely do that. Thanks for your advice to amend my tax returns for the previous years on My Account. I didn't want to do that too quickly in case the CRA was already in the process of reassessing them. I'll keep trying to phone them to see what they suggest, but if I can't get through, I'll do as you suggest. Thanks again!


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Karen said:


> Thanks, Eclectic12. It sounds as if your experience with CRA has not been very positive.


Most of my interactions or changes made to the NOA by CRA have been positive.

I just found it annoying to have to argue for something like twenty minutes to get the details looked at where the problem was figured out in less than five minutes. The bigger irritant was that while I can see some situations where the tax payer might choose something different - no one in their right mind would choose to pay $$$ they don't owe so I don't see why CRA could not have fixed their own error.

As I say - it was more tedious than anything.




Karen said:


> Yes, I thought Eclectic12's recommendation to take a snapshot of the comment on the screen was a good one, and I will definitely do that ...


With how easy it is these days to add a printer driver that creates a PDF or capture software included in the OS - it is a quick way to show anyone that asks that the tax payer had a reason to make the claim. I usually find documentation keeps the conversation on track plus increases the odds of any penalties/interest to be waived. 


Cheers


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## hebsie (Mar 5, 2017)

Karen said:


> Yes, I thought Eclectic12's recommendation to take a snapshot of the comment on the screen was a good one, and I will definitely do that. Thanks for your advice to amend my tax returns for the previous years on My Account. I didn't want to do that too quickly in case the CRA was already in the process of reassessing them. I'll keep trying to phone them to see what they suggest, but if I can't get through, I'll do as you suggest. Thanks again!


...from my experience, you will have to both manually indicate the credit on line 316 of your 2016 taxes & then do a simple T1ADJ for years 2013-2015. 

Each year requires a separate form (very easy online though). On the T1ADJ, note line 316 and then enter the amount from here (you can verify these amounts on the CRA site)

2013 -- 7697
2014 -- 7766
2015 -- 7899

The CRA will not go back and do it for you, but by them back-dating your eligibility date to 2013, it simply means that they are 'agreeing' with your Doctor, that symptoms started effective 2013


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

Good news - I received a letter in today's mail from Canada Revenue informing me that they have determined that I am eligible for the Disability Tax Credit for the 2013 to the 2018 tax years and that they will forward my request for adjustments for 2013, 2014, and 2015 to "the appropriate section" of their office to review the amount of refund I am entitled to. So it seems that I panicked too soon. Sorry to have bothered those people who kindly replied to me.


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