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Ontario Disability Support Program Resources
Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) Resources
Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) provides helpful information on a variety of tenant rights issues. In addition to the brochures below, you can learn more at the CLEO website or by calling 416-408-4420.
Appeals and Internal Reviews
July 2009
This brochure outlines the process to follow when a person disagrees with decisions about their right to social assistance from Ontario Works or the Ontario Disability Support Program. It describes how to request an internal review, file an appeal with the Social Benefits Tribunal, and apply for interim assistance. A blank Internal Review Request Form is included.
Community Start-Up and Maintenance Benefit
December 2009
The Community Start-Up and Maintenance Benefit is for people who qualify for social assistance in Ontario. This benefit helps pay the costs of setting up a new home when moving or leaving an institution. It can also help people who are about to lose the home they are living in because they owe rent or utility payments. This booklet explains who is eligible, how much they might get, how to apply, and how to appeal a refusal.
Disability Benefits In Ontario: Who Can Get Them, How To Apply
May 2009
This booklet explains who qualifies for benefits from the Ontario Disability Support Program, how to apply, and how to appeal a refusal.
Do You Live With Someone Who Might be Seen As Your Spouse?
April 2010
This booklet deals with the rule that spouses who live together must qualify for social assistance as a couple. It explains how Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program decide whether two adults who live together are spouses. Topics include applying for assistance while living with someone, being on assistance when someone moves in, living separately from a spouse, and being falsely alleged to be living with someone. There is also a section on how to appeal if assistance is refused or cut off.
Getting An Inheritance When You Are On Ontario Disability Benefits
December 2009
This booklet deals with how inheriting money or other property can affect a person’s right to benefits from the Ontario Disability Support Program. It mentions the rules about assets, income, and payments for disability-related items and services.
Support Payments When You Are On Social Assistance
February 2010
This booklet explains under what circumstances a person on social assistance is expected to try to get support payments from someone who is or was their spouse or same-sex partner, or who is the other parent of their children, and what they are expected to do. It talks about how support payments affect benefits and what to do if support payments are late or not paid.
Under 18 And On Your Own: Getting Social Assistance
July 2009
This booklet is for 16- and 17-year-olds who need financial assistance and are not living at home. It explains how to apply to Ontario Works for assistance, the special rules for 16- and 17-year-olds, and how to appeal a decision to refuse or cut off benefits.
When The Social Assistance Office Asks For Information Or An Interview
July 2009
This brochure explains the rights of people on social assistance when they are asked for information to prove they are still eligible for assistance. Topics include what information and documents can be required and what to do if a document is hard to get. There is also a section on how to appeal if assistance is cut off or reduced
Working And The Ontario Disability Support Program
May 2010
This booklet explains and offers worksheets to calculate how income from work or training can affect the amount of assistance a person gets from the Ontario Disability Support Program. It notes the ways ODSP can help with the cost of working and also deals with going off assistance and getting back on.