Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities Program
Learn about financial support to help families with the costs of caring for a child with severe disabilities and find out how to apply.
Ontario has increased the maximum monthly Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities (ACSD) payment by 4.5% effective July 2024
On July 1, 2024, the inflation-based increase to ACSD took effect. Assistance from this program can help families with costs such as:
- travel to doctors’ appointments, hospitals and other appointments related to the child’s disability
- special shoes and clothes
- parental relief such as respite
As of July 2023, the Ontario government has tied the ACSD maximum payment to inflation. Eligible families will begin to receive the higher amount at the end of July.
For example, if you have a child with a severe disability, your payment at the end of July could be up to $646 to help address extra costs.
About the program
If you are a parent or guardian who is caring for a child with a severe disability you may be able to get financial support through ACSD. This program provides financial support for eligible families to cover some of the extra costs of caring for a child who has a severe disability.
Eligible parents and guardians can receive between $25 and $646 a month to help with disability-related costs.
Annual increases to ACSD are now tied to inflation. This means that if prices go up, so will the maximum monthly amount for ACSD. In any year that payments go up, the new maximum will take effect in July of each year.
There are many other supports to individuals and families. Find out about other support programs you may be eligible for.
Eligibility
If you are a parent or a guardian of a child who is under 18 years of age (17 and under), lives at home and who has a severe disability, you may be eligible to receive funding from the ACSD program. Your eligibility and the amount of assistance you receive is based on a combination of factors.
Income eligibility
You may be eligible if your total household income is $76,200 or less. You must also meet other factors of eligibility.
Other factors for eligibility
Along with your household income, your eligibility and the amount you receive from the program is based on the:
- size of your family
- severity of your child’s disability
- extraordinary costs related to your child’s disability
Financial support for disability-related costs
Depending on your household income, the size of your family and your child’s disability-related costs, the ACSD program may provide between $25 and $646 a month to help with costs such as:
- travel to doctors’ appointments, hospitals and other appointments related to the child’s disability
- special shoes and clothes
- parental relief such as respite
In addition to getting monthly financial support through the ACSD program, children with severe disabilities may also receive coverage for:
- an assessment for an assistive device and/or the consumer contribution for a device provided under the Assistive Devices Program
- batteries and repairs for mobility devices
- prescription drugs through OHIP+
- dental care through Healthy Smiles Ontario program
- hearing aids and vision care, including eyeglasses
How to apply
Apply online
You can apply online for the Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities (ACSD) program.
You will have the option to save, edit and submit your application later.
You can only submit one application for your child. Submitting duplicate applications will result in delays in processing your application.
If you would like to apply for more than one child, you will need to submit a separate application for each child.
You have 90 days to complete and submit your online application. After 90 days, you will no longer be able to access your application and you will be required to complete a new application.
Download a paper application
You can also download a paper copy of the application to complete and send it to your local ministry regional office.
Assistance with completing the application
If you need help completing your application, you may contact a:
- community agency
- health care professional
- social worker
- family or friend
- other individual who may be involved in the child’s regular care and treatment
If you have any questions or need assistance, contact your local ministry regional office.
Please notify your local regional office of any changes to your information so that we can keep your file updated.
Once we receive your application, a special agreements officer will review your application and may contact you if they need more information.
You will receive a letter stating the decision on whether you qualify for ACSD.
Disagreeing with a decision
If you disagree with the decision, you have the right to ask for an internal review within 30 days of receiving the decision. Your decision letter will have information about how to request an internal review.
You should receive a letter telling you the result of the internal review within 30 days of your request received.
If you disagree with the result of the internal review, then you may appeal to the Social Benefits Tribunal. The letter informing you of the result of the internal review will also have information about how to request an appeal to the Social Benefits Tribunal.