Menu
Free guide · Canada

ODSP, explained

Ontario’s disability support: up to $1,436 a month for a single person from July 2026. Who qualifies, how work and savings affect it, how to apply and how to appeal.

Checked against official sources on September 28, 2026.

On this page
A woman working out a budget with a calculator at a kitchen table

The Ontario Disability Support Program pays a monthly amount for living costs, plus health benefits like prescription drugs and vision care, to Ontarians with a disability who are in financial need. From July 2026 a single person can get up to $1,436 a month. This page covers who qualifies, how much it pays, how work and savings affect it, how to apply and what to do if the answer is no.

  • $1,436

    A month at most, single

    $825 basic needs plus up to $611 for shelter

  • $1,000

    Earnings a month that don’t count

    Then ODSP drops by 75 cents per dollar

  • $40,000

    Asset limit, single

    $50,000 for a couple; your home, car and RDSP don’t count

  • $0

    Lost to the Canada Disability Benefit

    Ontario exempts it in full

Who qualifies

You must be 18 or older, live in Ontario, be in financial need, have assets under the limits below, and meet ODSP’s definition of a person with a disability: a substantial physical or mental impairment, continuous or recurrent, expected to last a year or more, that substantially restricts your ability to work, care for yourself or take part in community life. You can start applying up to six months before your 18th birthday.

Already on CPP Disability? You are in a “prescribed class”, so you skip the disability assessment entirely and only the financial test applies. The same goes for people already found eligible for adult developmental services and a few other groups.

A woman standing at a window in her apartment, looking out
ODSP’s definition is broader than the federal tax credit’s: it looks at work, self-care and community life together.

How much it pays

The payment has two parts. Basic needs covers food, clothing and personal items: $825 a month for a single person from July 2026. The shelter allowance covers rent or mortgage, heat, utilities, property tax and insurance, at your actual cost up to a maximum: $611 for one person, $959 for two. Rates rise with inflation every July; the 2026 increase was 1.9%.

Most ODSP pays a month, from July 2026

Basic needs plus the maximum shelter allowance. Shelter is your actual cost, up to the maximum; children add more.

ItemBarPer month
Single person$1,436
Couple, one with a disability$2,148
Couple, both with a disability$2,603

Living with family who provide your meals? That is a board and lodging situation, with a different amount. People north of the 50th parallel without year-round road access get a Remote Communities Allowance on top.

Working on ODSP

How work changes the payment

First $1,000

of net earnings: no change

+

25%

of the rest you keep on top

+ $100

Work-Related Benefit each month you earn

Work always leaves you better off

A spouse without a disability keeps the first $200 a month and half of the rest.

Total monthly income for a single person who works

Net earnings plus ODSP, including the $100 Work-Related Benefit in any month with earnings. Assumes the full $1,436.

ItemBarTotal
No earnings$1,436 (ODSP $1,436)
$500 earned$2,036 (ODSP $1,536)
$1,000 earned$2,536 (ODSP $1,536)
$1,500 earned$2,661 (ODSP $1,161)
$2,000 earned$2,786 (ODSP $786)
$2,500 earned$2,911 (ODSP $411)

Report your earnings by the 7th of the following month through MyBenefits, the phone line or the paper report; earnings in one month change the payment the next month. Full-time students’ earnings are fully exempt, and so are the earnings of children under 18.

Savings, gifts and the Canada Disability Benefit

A woman with a calculator and papers at her kitchen table
  • Asset limits: $40,000 for a single person, $50,000 for a couple. Your home, your main vehicle, an RDSP, an RESP and household items don’t count. Trusts from an inheritance or life insurance are exempt up to $100,000.
  • Gifts: each person can receive up to $10,000 in gifts, voluntary payments, inheritances and trust payments in a 12-month period without it counting as income.
  • RDSP payments are exempt as income, so an RDSP is the safest place for long-term savings.
  • The Canada Disability Benefit is exempt in full: it doesn’t affect your eligibility or your ODSP payment. See what it pays.

When it is paid

2026 payment days

The last business day of each month. Ontario hasn’t confirmed the December 2026 date yet.

  • ODSP payment

The tables below list every date in words.

All the provincial and federal disability dates are together on the disability payment dates page, with a calendar file for your phone.

How to apply

Applying, start to finish

  1. Apply online, by phone or in person

    Online takes 20 to 30 minutes, for you and the family members who live with you. Phone: 1-888-999-1142.

  2. A caseworker calls within 15 business days

    To book a verification appointment. Bring ID, bank statements, rent or mortgage proof and income records.

  3. Financial eligibility

    You hear within 15 business days of the appointment, if nothing else is needed.

  4. The Disability Determination Package

    Your health care professional completes it; you add the Self Report. You have 90 days to send it back. Skipped if you get CPP Disability.

  5. The disability decision

    The Disability Adjudication Unit writes within 90 business days.

  6. Your plan and first payment

    Your caseworker sets them up. Need money while you wait? Apply to Ontario Works at the same time.

Before the verification appointment

  1. Social Insurance Numbers, OHIP cards and birth certificates or immigration papers for everyone in the application.
  2. Bank statements for at least one month before you applied; sometimes up to 12 months.
  3. Your lease or mortgage statement, and recent utility bills.
  4. Pay stubs, CPP or EI statements, and any other income.
  5. Details of savings, investments, vehicles and property.

If you’re turned down

An older woman with a rollator at the front door of her home
Every step of the appeal runs on a 30-day clock. Write the dates down when the letter arrives.
  1. Internal review: ask within 30 days of receiving the decision. You should hear back within 30 days.
  2. Social Benefits Tribunal: appeal within 30 days of receiving the internal review decision, or once 30 days pass with no decision.

Community legal clinics across Ontario help with ODSP appeals for free, and so does the CLEO guide to appealing a social assistance decision.

Questions people ask

How much is ODSP in 2026?

Up to $1,436 a month for a single person from July 1, 2026: $825 for basic needs and up to $611 for shelter. A couple where one person has a disability can get up to $2,148, and a couple where both do up to $2,603.

How much can I earn on ODSP?

The first $1,000 of net earnings a month doesn’t change your payment. Above that, ODSP drops by 75 cents for each dollar, and you get a $100 Work-Related Benefit in each month you earn.

What is the ODSP asset limit?

$40,000 for a single person and $50,000 for a couple. Your home, main vehicle, RDSP, RESP and household items don’t count.

Does the Canada Disability Benefit reduce ODSP?

No. Ontario exempts the Canada Disability Benefit in full, so it doesn’t affect your eligibility or your payment.

I get CPP Disability. Do I have to prove my disability again for ODSP?

No. People receiving CPP Disability are a prescribed class and skip the Disability Determination Package. Only the financial test applies, and CPP Disability counts as income.

How long does an ODSP application take?

Ontario says a few months: about 15 business days for the financial review, up to 90 days for you to return the Disability Determination Package, and up to 90 business days for the disability decision.

Sources

Checked against these on September 28, 2026. Amounts change every January or July; we recheck them each year.

Free tools