“My child has a learning disability. Will she qualify for the disability tax credit?”
This is one of the most common questions I get, and often, the answer is yes! First, let’s take a look at the conditions set forth by the Canada Revenue Agency, and then how learning disability might fit with those qualifications.
Impaired Mental Function
One of the medical conditions listed by the Canada Revenue Agency is “mental functions necessary for everyday life.” The most common mental functions occur under two subcategories: adaptive functioning and memory.
Adaptive functioning
- Self-care
- Health and safety
- Initiating and/or responding to social interaction and cues
- Common simple transactions
Memory
Remembering:
- Simple instructions
- Basic personal information like name and address
- Material of importance and interest
Those with impaired mental function may have trouble solving problems, setting goals, and making good judgments, all or almost all the time.
Learning Disability: A Definition
The Learning Disability Association of Canada presents an in-depth definition for learning disabilities. An individual who is learning disabled, child or adult, has otherwise average abilities, but is impaired in 1) perceiving, 2) thinking, 3) remembering and/or 4) learning. Individuals with LD, who by definition are of average intelligence, can occasionally compensate for their deficiencies using other skill sets and studied workarounds.
Difficulties can be seen across several areas:
- Oral language: listening, speaking, understanding
- Reading: decoding, phonetic knowledge, word recognition, comprehension
- Written language: spelling, written expression
- Mathematics: computation, problem solving
Learning disabilities may also involve difficulties with organizational skills, social perception, social interaction and perspective taking.
Merging Learning Disability and Mental Function
Children with learning disabilities need constant reminders to shower or get dressed (adaptive functioning). Instructions have to be broken down into small steps. They have trouble remembering what to do in social or safety situations (memory). Any parent, family member or educator knows that a learning disability follows a child around the ENTIRE day long, in EVERY task. As the demands of society increase, these impairments may hamper growth and opportunity for the learning disabled.
So, does your learning disabled child qualify for the disability tax credit? That depends. Many children with learning disabilities do. Putting together a proper application for learning disabilities is quite complex. The experts at DFAC have worked in the field of special education for over twenty years, and now apply that expertise to help you access your benefits.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us. It will be our pleasure to assist you.
Contact us today at 1-855-382-DFAC(3322) or fill out our online form.