OSAP Appeals

Exemptions for Non-Employment Income

• Indian Residential School (IRS) Payments
• Hepatitis C Compensation Payments
• Pain and Suffering Awards
• Special Access to Locked-in Retirement Account (LIRA), Life Income Fund (LIF), or a Locked-in Retirement Income Fund (LRIF)
• Married Student and Spouse Elect to Split Pension Income
• Withdrawals from a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP)
• Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP) for Crown Wards

 

Indian Residential School (IRS) Payments

 As per Government of Canada direction, Indian Residential School (IRS) payments should not be included in the calculation of the income contribution for parents of dependent students, students or their spouses. 

Who is eligible for this review?

• Parents of dependent students who have received payments in the year for which they are reporting their income for assessment purposes (i.e., estimated current year income or actual previous year income);
• Married students and their spouses who have received payments in their pre-study and/or study period.
• Students who are single or sole support parents who have received payments in their pre-study and/or study period. 

  Documentation required:

The Government of Canada is finalizing program details. When supporting documentation requirements have been finalized, this manual will be updated.

 

Hepatitis C Compensation Payments

 Hepatitis C Compensation Payments should not be included in the calculation of income contributions, as per Government of Canada direction.

Who is eligible for this review:

• Parents of dependent students who have received payments in the year for which they are reporting their income for assessment purposes (i.e., estimated current year income or actual previous year income);
• Students and their spouses who have received payments in their pre-study and/or study period.

  Documentation required:

• A copy of the Compensation Agreement. 

 

Pain and Suffering Awards

 Pain and suffering awards, including the general damages component of personal injury awards and WSIB Non-economic loss (NEL) awards, in amounts less than $100,000 are exempt from income. Any amount over $100,000 is considered to be income in the period it was received. If payments are made for different incidents, the payments related to each incident are exempt up to $100,000. Pain and suffering awards held that are in excess of $100,000 (per incidence) and which are not considered income (as per criteria above), should be reported as assets on the student’s OSAP application form.

 Who is eligible for this review?

• Students and their spouses for payments received in pre-study and/or study period.

Documentation required:

• a copy of a letter from WSIB, legal court document, or payment stubs specifying a pain and suffering or NEL award, the amount(s) paid and the date(s) received. 

 

Special Access to Locked-in Retirement Account (LIRA), Life Income Fund (LIF), or a Locked-in Retirement Income Fund (LRIF)

 Students and their spouse, if any, are not to report funds that are invested in a locked-in retirement savings account (i.e., Locked-in Retirement Account (LIRA), a Life Income Fund (LIF), or a Locked-in Retirement Income Fund (LRIF)) as an asset on the OSAP application.  In addition, students and their spouse, if any, who gain special access to money invested in any of these funds prior to the usual withdrawal age (e.g., age 55) are not to report the amount withdrawn as income on the student’s OSAP application.

Exception:

Once a student/spouse withdraws any money invested in these accounts as per the fund’s usual withdrawal age (e.g., 55), he or she must report the amount withdrawn as income in the applicable section of the student’s OSAP application.

 Note:

A locked-in retirement savings account is an account into which an individual's pension benefit is transferred when the individual terminates their membership in a registered pension plan. The money payable to the individual from this locked-in account can be used only to provide retirement income and is therefore locked-in until the individual reaches the age of 55. In Ontario, there are three types of locked-in accounts: Locked-in Retirement Accounts (LIRA), Life Income Funds (LIF), and Locked-in Retirement Income Funds (LRIF).

Documentation required:

No documentation is required; student/spousal income will be verified through the Income Verification Process.

 

Married Student and Spouse Elect to Split Pension Income

 An adjustment to the pre-study period or study period income contribution may be made if a student and spouse make a joint election to split pension income on their current income tax returns.

Documentation required:

• a copy of the student’s and spouse’s Notice of Assessment from Canada Revenue Agency. 

 

Withdrawals from a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP)

 Withdrawals by the student and/or spouse from an RDSP are exempt from income during the pre-study period and the study period. 

Documentation required:

• Documentation showing that an RDSP has been set up for the student or spouse;
• Proof of the amount of withdrawals that have been made from the RDSP during the pre-study period and/or study period, as applicable.

 

Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP) for Crown Wards

 Funding from a Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP) that a current or former Crown ward intends to use for the current period of study may be exempt from income if the RESP was set up for the individual by a Children’s Aid Society using federal Universal Child Care Benefit funding. 

Documentation Required:

• A letter from the Children’s Aid Society or a court order providing proof that the individual was made a Crown ward pursuant to a court order made under the Child and Family Services Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.11; and
• A letter from the Children’s Aid Society or other documentation providing proof that the RESP was set up for the individual by the Children’s Aid Society using Universal Child Care Benefit funding. 

Notes:

For income verification purposes the student is expected to report on his or her application, the amount of the RESP that will be withdrawn for the study period.

 While students may wish to provide a Court Order as a form of verification of their current or former status as a Crown ward, these Orders sometimes contain personal information about third parties such as siblings or parents that the student does not have permission to disclose. Therefore, students should be encouraged to request a letter from their Children’s Aid Society. If a student is unable to obtain a letter from the Children’s Aid Society and chooses to provide a Court Order, FAAs may not make a copy of the Order and must, instead, make a notation on the students file that a Court Order was viewed and that it confirmed the student’s Crown ward status.