Learn more about the British Columbia disability programs, benefits, and credits including:
- Disability Assistance
- Endowment 150 Grant
- B.C. Access Grant for Students with Disabilities
Services for people with disabilities https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/family-social-supports/services-for-people-with-disabilities
If you are living with a disability in B.C., there are programs and services available you. These programs and services get funding of more than $5 billion each year. They are offered through government, crown agencies and corporations.
Disability Assistance
About This Program
Disability assistance can help you if you need financial or health support. You must be designated as a Person with Disabilities (PWD) to receive this type of assistance.
Eligibility
To be eligible, you must:
- Show that you meet financial eligibility to receive assistance
- Be 18 years old (you can start the application process when you are 17 ½)
- Have a severe physical or mental impairment that is expected to continue for more than two years
- Be significantly restricted in your ability to perform daily-living activities
- Require assistance with daily living activities from
- Another person
- An assistive device, or
- An assistance animal
How to Apply/Application
The application process includes:
- Showing that you meet financial eligibility to receive assistance
- https://myselfserve.gov.bc.ca
- Completing the Persons with Disabilities Designation Application
- Contact income and disability assistance services to request an application. It has three sections:
- You fill out the applicant portion
- Your doctor or nurse practitioner fills out the medical report portion
- A prescribed professional fills out the assessor report portion. For example, this could be a doctor, registered nurse or social worker
- After you submit your application, we’ll review it. We’ll let you know if you meet the eligibility criteria for the PWD designation.
Contact Information: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/family-social-supports/income-assistance/access-services
Endowment 150 Grant
Website: https://www.rdsp.com/endowment-150/
About This Program
The Endowment 150 grant offers eligible people with disabilities a one-time grant of $150 to help their Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) grow.
Plan Institute, Disability Alliance of BC, and the British Columbia Aboriginal Network on Disability Society, have united to launch a new program designed to help British Columbians with disabilities learn about and access tax benefits that will help them save for the future. As part of this initiative, Plan Institute is distributing a one-time $150 grant to help low-income British Columbians to start growing their RDSP, thanks to the support of the Vancouver Foundation.
Endowment 150 grants are available for all children in BC with RDSPs, and individuals and families with low-incomes who are residents of BC and have an RDSP. If the individual who receives the $150 endowment grant is eligible for matching government grants, they could receive an additional payment of up to $450 into their RDSP, bringing the total contribution to $600.
How to Apply/Application
- Apply for a child – https://www.rdsp.com/how-to-apply-for-a-child/
- Apply for an adult – https://www.rdsp.com/how-to-apply-for-an-adult/
Contact Information: Find the answers to frequently asked questions on the FAQ page, or contact us for assistance at [email protected].
B.C. Access Grant for Students with Disabilities
Website: https://studentaidbc.ca/explore/grants-scholarships/bc-access-grant-students-disabilities
About This Program
This program helps full-time students with a permanent disability, or a persistent or prolonged disability with the cost of education by replacing up to $1,560 ($30 per week of study) per program year in B.C. student loan funding.
You may be eligible if you:
- qualify for federal and provincial student financial assistance
- are enrolled in a full-time program at a designated public or private post-secondary institution
- have a permanent disability, or a persistent or prolonged disability as defined by the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program
How to Apply/Application
- You will be automatically assessed for the B.C. Access Grant for Students with Disabilities if you have previously submitted verification of your disability to StudentAid BC.
- If you have a permanent disability, or a persistent or prolonged disability, but it has not been verified by StudentAid BC, complete the Appendix 8 – Disability Programs Application form.
Application Form: https://studentaidbc.ca/explore/grants-scholarships/bc-access-grant-students-disabilities
Contact Information: To speak with a StudentAid BC representative call between 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Pacific Time):
- 1-800-561-1818 (Toll-free from within Canada and the US)
- + 1-778-309-4621 (From outside North America)
