Canada Workers Benefit disability supplement: who gets it and how it is paid

What is the Canada Workers Benefit disability supplement?

The Canada Workers Benefit disability supplement is an extra refundable credit, on top of the basic CWB, for low-income workers who are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC). The maximum is $843 for the 2025 tax year (CRA, how much you can get) and $860 for 2026 after 2.0% indexation (CRA indexation table).

The supplement is not a separate program you apply to. It is calculated on the same Schedule 6 as the basic amount and paid through the same advances and tax refund. The 2027 maximum is not yet announced; indexed CWB figures usually appear late in the preceding year.

Who gets the CWB disability supplement?

You get the CWB disability supplement if you meet the general CWB rules and the CRA has an approved Form T2201, Disability Tax Credit Certificate, on file for you for the year (CRA, who is eligible). Your net income must also be under the supplement's own cut-off, which is higher than the basic amount's.

You need less working income to start receiving the supplement than the basic amount: the CRA's minimum working income threshold for the supplement is $1,150, against $3,000 for the basic CWB. The general age, residency and student rules are explained on Canada Workers Benefit eligibility.

Do you need the DTC for the CWB disability supplement?

Yes. An approved Disability Tax Credit is the only way to qualify, and the CRA must have approved it for the tax year you are claiming. Having a disability, receiving provincial disability assistance or getting CPP disability does not by itself qualify you.

1. Have a medical practitioner complete and certify Form T2201, then send it to the CRA.
2. Wait for the CRA's notice of determination, which states the years the DTC is approved for.
3. Claim the supplement on Schedule 6 for each approved year; software does this automatically once the DTC is on file.
4. If the DTC is approved for past years you already filed, ask the CRA to adjust those returns so the supplement can be added.

The same DTC approval is also the gateway to the federal Canada Disability Benefit, a separate monthly payment run by Service Canada with its own income test.

What are the disability supplement income limits?

For 2025, outside Quebec, Alberta and Nunavut, the supplement starts to fall once adjusted net income passes $37,740 for a single person and ends above $43,360. For a family where one spouse qualifies it falls from $49,389 and ends above $55,009, and where both spouses qualify it continues up to $60,629 (CRA, how much you can get).

The CRA has not yet posted 2026 end points; they will appear with the 2026 Schedule 6. In Quebec, Alberta and Nunavut the supplement ends at different incomes, for example $37,486.90 for a single person in Quebec and $75,157 in Nunavut for 2025 (CRA, who is eligible).

How the supplement changes the total: two examples

Because the supplement's reduction starts almost exactly where the basic CWB runs out for a single person, a DTC holder keeps getting some CWB at incomes where other single workers get nothing. Both examples assume working income equals net income and use the 15% reduction rate, which matches the CRA's published cut-offs.

In the first example, up to half of the $2,525, or $1,262.50, could come in advance. The full formula for the basic amount is on how much is the Canada Workers Benefit.

Is the CWB disability supplement paid in advance?

Yes. Up to 50% of your expected disability supplement is paid in advance, inside the same three Advanced Canada Workers Benefit deposits as the basic amount. In 2026 those deposits were January 12, July 10 and October 9, and the next is due in January 2027 on a day the CRA has not yet published (Canada.ca benefits payment dates). The dates are listed on CWB payment dates.

Your RC210 slip separates the two parts. Box 10 shows the basic advance and box 11 shows the disability supplement advance, which goes on line 38122 of Schedule 6 (CRA, RC210). How the advance is set and reported on line 41500 is covered in how the Advanced Canada Workers Benefit works.

How couples claim the disability supplement

When only one spouse qualifies for the DTC, that spouse claims both the family basic amount and the disability supplement. When both spouses qualify, only one claims the basic amount, but each spouse claims their own disability supplement on a separate Schedule 6 (CRA, how to claim).

Putting both supplements on one return is an easy mistake to make. If you use tax software, prepare both returns together so the program can place each claim on the correct return. The Canada Workers Benefit overview has the other guides in this series.