4.0 Disability Benefits

Disability benefits are financial payments provided to individuals who have a service-related disability. There are two types of disability benefits: Disability Pensions and Disability Awards. April 1, 2019, Pension for Life (PFL) was introduced. As a result, Disability Benefits changed to include Disability Pension, Pain and Suffering Compensation and Additional Pain and Suffering.

Table 4.1 Disability Benefits Recipients

Disability Benefits Recipients	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Disability Benefits Recipients	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Veterans	109,460	110,848	112,631	114,888	119,966
Survivors	49,776	46,386	43,428	39,419	36,360
Subtotal: Veterans and Survivors	159,236	157,234	156,059	154,307	156,326
RCMP	14,371	15,328	16,436	17,867	20,686
Total: Recipients	173,607	172,562	172,495	172,174	177,012

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Disability Pensions (DP)

The Disability Pension Program recognizes and compensates eligible Veterans as well as Canadian Armed Forces members who applied and were eligible for a disability pension prior to April 1, 2006, and their survivors, dependants and civilians for the effects of a service-related disability and/or death. Compensation is provided in the form of a monthly disability pension. Disability pensioners who are hospitalized or receiving outpatient care for a pensioned condition are eligible to receive an additional allowance for that period. This program also recognizes and compensates those in receipt of a disability pension for the distinct effects that disabilities may have on clothing, on an individual's ability to perform personal care, and exceptional health needs. This is provided through a monthly allowance. This program is now delivered through grants.

Table 4.2 Disability Pension Recipients

Disability Pension Recipients^{Footnote 1}	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Disability Pension Recipients^{Footnote 1}	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Veterans	60,087	56,168	52,177	49,365	46,408
Survivors	48,790	45,283	40,704	38,189	33,910
Total: Recipients	108,877	101,451	92,881	87,554	80,318
Attendance Allowance	6,315	6,466	6,060	5,914	5,922
Exceptional Incapacity Allowance	1,507	1,517	1,422	1,357	1,331
Clothing Allowance	1,374	1,415	1,416	1,487	1,431

Disability Pension Recipients^{Footnote 1}	Forecast^{Footnote 2}
Disability Pension Recipients^{Footnote 1}	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Veterans	44,300	42,500	40,700	39,100	37,700
Survivors	31,200	28,700	26,400	24,300	22,400
Total: Recipients	75,500	71,200	67,100	63,400	60,100
Attendance Allowance	5,800	5,700	5,700	5,700	5,700
Exceptional Incapacity Allowance	1,500	1,600	1,600	1,600	1,600
Clothing Allowance	1,400	1,400	1,400	1,300	1,300

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.3 Disability Pension Expenditures

Disability Pension Expenditures (in $ millions)	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Disability Pension Expenditures (in $ millions)	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Veteran Pensions	$689.9	$676.6	$647.6	$639.9	$606.8
Survivor Pensions	$488.3	$454.5	$432.7	$405.9	$370.9
Subtotal: Pensions	$1,178.2	$1,131.1	$1,080.4	$1,045.8	$977.7
Total Special Awards	$83.7	$85.0	$84.1	$81.7	$86.3
Total: Pensions and Special Awards (Includes Adjustments and Corrective Payments)^{Footnote 3}^{Footnote 4}^{Footnote 5}	$1,261.9	$1,216.5	$1,227.6	$1,125.5	$1,065.1

Disability Pension Expenditures (in $ millions)	Forecast^{Footnote 6}
Disability Pension Expenditures (in $ millions)	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Veteran Pensions	$606.1	$602.8	$600.4	$599.9	$601.5
Survivor Pensions	$352.5	$332.9	$314.4	$296.8	$280.3
Subtotal: Pensions	$958.5	$935.7	$914.8	$896.6	$881.8
Total Special Awards	$88.0	$86.6	$88.3	$90.2	$92.4
Total: Pensions and Special Awards^{Footnote 7}	$1,046.6	$1,022.4	$1,003.1	$986.8	$974.1

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Disability Awards (DA)

Under the New Veterans Charter in effect since April 1, 2006, this program recognizes and compensates eligible Canadian Armed Forces members and Veterans, and in some cases surviving spouses/common-law partners and surviving children, for death, detention and non-economic effects of service related disability including pain and suffering, functional loss and the effects of permanent impairment on the lives of Canadian Armed Forces members, Veterans and their families. As of January 1, 2019, the maximum award is $374,169.60, depending on the extent of disability. Disability Awards may be paid as a lump-sum payment, annual payments over the number of years of the member/Veteran's choosing, or a combination of these two payment options. The Pain and Suffering Compensation replaced the Disability Award (DA) as the new non-taxable monthly benefit on April 1, 2019.

Table 4.4 Disability Award Recipients^{Footnote 8}^{Footnote 9}

Disability Awards	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Disability Awards	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Veterans	67,575	73,844	-	-	-
Survivors	1,581	2,383	-	-	-
Subtotal	69,156	76,227	-	-	-
Death Benefits	538	602	-	-	-
Total: Awards	69,694	76,829	2,457	161	81

Disability Awards	Forecast^{Footnote 10}
Disability Awards	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Disability Awards	-	-	-	-	-
Death Benefits	-	-	-	-	-
Total: Awards	60	60	40	40	30

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.5 Disability Award Expenditures

Disability Award Expenditures (in $ millions)	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Disability Award Expenditures (in $ millions)	2017–18^{Footnote 11}	2018–19^{Footnote 11}	2019–20^{Footnote 11}	2020–21^{Footnote 11}	2021–22^{Footnote 11}
Disability Awards	$1,603.9	$1,306.7	$115.1	$2.8	$1.7
Death Benefits	$17.5	$16.9	$0.6	$0.3	$0.0
Total: Awards^{Footnote 12}	$1,621.4	$1,323.7	$115.6	$3.0	$1.7

Disability Award Expenditures (in $ millions)	Forecast^{Footnote 13}
Disability Award Expenditures (in $ millions)	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Disability Awards	$1.5	$1.5	$1.4	$1.0	$0.7
Death Benefits	-	-	-	-	-
Total: Awards	$1.5	$1.5	$1.4	$1.0	$0.7

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Disability Award and Disability Pension Duals

The table below provides a breakdown of Veterans and Survivors for those who receive both a Disability Pension and a Disability Award.

Table 4.6 Disability Award and Disability Pension Duals^{Footnote 14}

Dual Recipients	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Dual Recipients	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–12
Veterans	18,202	19,164	19,811	19,642	21,473
Survivors	1,133	1,280	1,447	1,758	2,027
Total: Recipients^{Footnote 15}	19,335	20,444	21,258	21,400	23,500

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Pain and Suffering Compensation

Pension For Life (PFL)

April 1, 2019, Pension for Life (PFL) was introduced. Pension for Life includes three new benefits: Pain and Suffering Compensation; Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation; and Income Replacement Benefit. The Pension for Life Benefits package is intended to meet the following objectives:

Providing recognition, income support and better overall stability to Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members and Veterans who are living with a disability due to a service-related injury and/or illness.
Providing a holistic package that reintroduces lifelong monthly pain and suffering payments; implement a new recognition benefit, and consolidate six of seven existing income-related financial benefits.
Addressing concerns raised by military and Veteran communities and families by empowering CAF members and Veterans living with a disability, caused by a service-related illness or injury, to choose the form of compensation that works best for them and their families.

Table 4.7 - Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Recipients

Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Recipients^{Footnote 17}	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
	2019–20	2020–21	2021–12
Veterans	79,771	85,176	95,006
Survivors	2,009	2,819	3,649
Subtotal	81,780	87,995	98,655
Death Benefits Recipients	587	749	805
Total Recipients	82,367	88,744	99,460

Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Recipients	Forecast^{Footnote 16}
	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Veterans	102,500	109,800	112,700	115,400	117,900
Survivors	4,300	4,900	5,600	6,300	7,000
Subtotal	106,800	114,700	118,300	121,700	124,900
Death Benefits Recipients	900	1,000	1,100	1,200	1,300
Total Recipients	107,700	115,800	119,400	122,900	126,100

Table 4.8 - Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Expenditures

Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Expenditures (in $ millions)	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Pain and Suffering Compensation	$904.5	$1,063.6	$1,519.8
Death Benefits^{Footnote 18}	$12.4	$21.9	$23.2
Total Expenditures^{Footnote 19}	$917.0	$1,085.5	$1,543.0

Pain and Suffering Compensation and Death Benefits Expenditures (in $ millions)	Forecast^{Footnote 16}
	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Pain and Suffering Compensation	$1,479.4	$1,552.2	$1,004.5	$1,006.6	$1,045.0
Death Benefits	$26.8	$27.4	$13.9	$14.1	$14.3
Total Expenditures^{Footnote 19}	$1,506.2	$1,579.7	$1,018.4	$1,020.7	$1,059.3

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Disability Benefit Recipients

The table below indicates the disability class (percentage paid out) to Veterans and survivors in receipt of Disability Pension/Award as of March 31, 2022.

The links below provide the rate tables for which the percentages are paid at:

Disability Award Rates Table 2018 (PDF)
Disability Pensions Rates Table 2018 (PDF)

Table 4.9 Recipients by Disability Class as of March 31, 2022^{Footnote 20}

Disability Class	Veterans				Survivors
Disability Class	Disability Pension (DP) Only	Disability Pension and Award / Pain and Suffering Award	Disability Award / Pain and Suffering Compensation Award Only	Total Disability	Disability Benefits
Class 1 (98%-100%)	2,080	4,239	2,897	9,216	3,829
Class 2 (93%-97%)	334	698	679	1,711	184
Class 3 (88%-92%)	453	723	786	1,962	244
Class 4 (83%-87%)	542	744	865	2,151	273
Class 5 (78%-82%)	697	817	1,042	2,556	483
Class 6 (73%-77%)	774	869	1,197	2,840	401
Class 7 (68%-72%)	921	910	1,392	3,223	564
Class 8 (63%-67%)	1,064	885	1,665	3,614	612
Class 9 (58%-62%)	1,333	1,009	1,848	4,190	854
Class 10 (53%-57%)	1,502	966	2,364	4,832	853
Class 11 (48%-52%)	2,254	994	2,686	5,934	1,558
Class 12 (43%-47%)	1,905	1,105	2,763	5,773	914
Class 13 (38%-42%)	2,603	1,097	3,370	7,070	1,687
Class 14 (33%-37%)	2,342	1,161	3,627	7,130	1,875
Class 15 (28%-32%)	2,892	1,218	4,373	8,483	2,893
Class 16 (23%-27%)	3,146	1,184	4,673	9,003	3,511
Class 17 (18%-22%)	3,817	1,098	6,196	11,111	4,073
Class 18 (13%-17%)	3,782	959	7,362	12,103	3,223
Class 19 (8%-12%)	5,213	669	11,315	17,197	3,870
Class 20 (5%-7%)	4,690	154	8,694	13,538	4,231
Class 21 (1%-4%)	1,753	16	3,645	5,414	74
Nil Assessments	168	0	0	168	1,587
Not Available	0	0	0	0	0
Total	44,265	21,515	73,439	139,219	37,793

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.10 Most Common Medical Conditions^{Footnote 21} (Fiscal Year 2021–22)

The table below is based on the number of Veterans who received a favourable decision for the medical condition related to their service.

Ranking	All Veterans	Canadian Armed Forces Veterans	RCMP Veterans	Afghanistan Veterans^{Footnote 22}
1.	Tinnitus	Tinnitus	Post Traumatic Stress Disorder	Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
2.	Post Traumatic Stress Disorder	Post Traumatic Stress Disorder	Tinnitus	Tinnitus
3.	Hearing Loss	Hearing Loss	Hearing Loss	Hearing Loss
4.	Lumbar Disc Disease	Depressive Disorders, including Dysthymia and Major Depression	Lumbar Disc Disease	Depressive Disorders, including Dysthymia and Major Depression
5.	Osteoarthritis Knee	Lumbar Disc Disease	Osteoarthritis Knee	Anxiety Disorders, including Panic Disorder
6.	Depressive Disorders, including Dysthymia and Major Depression	Osteoarthritis Knee	Chronic Mechanical Low Back Pain	Adjustment Disorder
7.	Osteoarthritis Hip	Adjustment Disorder	Osteoarthritis Hip	Lumbar Disc Disease
8.	Adjustment Disorder	Osteoarthritis Hip	Plantar Fasciitis	Generalized Anxiety Disease
9.	Cervical Disc Disease	Cervical Disc Disease	Cervical Disc Disease	Cervical Disc Disease
10.	Chronic Mechanical Low Back Pain	Chronic Mechanical Low Back Pain	Bruxism	Chronic Mechanical Low Back Pain

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.11 Most Common Conditions – First Applications Completed (Fiscal Year 2021–22)^{Footnote 28}

The table below represents the number of decisions for fiscal year 2021-22 for each medical condition. Decisions are based on evidence presented and legislated eligibility requirements.

Medical Conditions	Favourable Decisions		Unfavourable Decisions		Total Decisions
Medical Conditions	# of Favourable Decisions	% of Favourable Decisions	# of Unfavourable Decisions	% of Unfavourable Decisions	Total Decisions
Tinnitus	6,561	93%	468	7%	7,029
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder	5,636	96%	230	4%	5,866
Hearing Loss	3,369	82%	741	18%	4,110
Lumbar Disc Disease	1,062	94%	108	6%	1,710
Osteoarthritis Knee	1,474	93%	116	7%	1,590
Depressive Disorders	1,451	98%	31	2%	1,482
Osteoarthritis Hip	1,037	88%	142	12%	1,179
Adjustment Disorder	999	97%	26	3%	1,025
Cervical Disc Disease	888	91%	85	9%	973
Arthrosis of Knee	862	95%	43	5%	905

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.12 Disability Benefits (First Application) Decisions and Favourable Rates

The table below provides the number of decisions rendered on first applications. Note that one application may have multiple conditions listed.

Applications
First Applications	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
First Applications	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Favourable (Approved) Decisions	17,648	18,729	20,593	20,773	34,192
Unfavourable (Denied) Decisions	3,516	4,131	4,739	3,607	3,641
Total: Applications – Decisions Rendered^{Footnote 23}	21,164	22,860	25,332	24,380	37,833
Favourable Rate (Dockets) %	83%	82%	81%	85%	90%

Medical Conditions
First Applications	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
First Applications	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Favourable (Approved) Conditions	27,715	26,077	29,110	27,497	49,549
Unfavourable (Denied) Conditions	7,967	8,463	9,161	6,986	6,376
Total: Conditions – Decisions Rendered	35,682	34,540	38,271	34,483	55,925
Favourable Rate (Conditions) %	78%	75%	76%	80%	89%

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Table 4.13 - Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation: Recipients and Expenditures

Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation is a non-taxable monthly benefit to recognize and compensate Veterans for the non-economic loss associated with service-related permanent and severe impairments that cause a barrier in life after service.

Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation^{Footnote 24}	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation^{Footnote 24}	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Recipients (Veterans)	-	-	14,223	18,326	21,846
Expenditures (in $ millions)	-	-	$119.1	$154.1	$180.3

Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation	Forecast^{Footnote 25}
Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Recipients (Veterans)	26,300	30,700	33,000	35,200	37,500
Expenditures (in $ millions)	$228.0	$274.5	$306.3	$340.4	$376.9

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Critical Injury Benefit (CIB)

The Critical Injury Benefit provides a tax-free lump sum award for Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members and Veterans who sustained a service-related injury (or developed an acute disease) that occurred as a result of a sudden and single incident after March 31, 2006. This benefit is in recognition of the immediate pain and suffering experienced after the traumatic incident.

Table 4.14 Critical Injury Benefit Recipients and Expenditures

Critical Injury Benefit	Actuals as of March 31, 2022
Critical Injury Benefit	2017–18	2018–19	2019–20	2020–21	2021–22
Recipients^{Footnote 26}	16	9	11	18	14
Expenditures (in $ millions)	$1.2	$0.7	$0.8	$1.4	$1.1

Critical Injury Benefit	Forecast^{Footnote 27}
Critical Injury Benefit	2022–23	2023–24	2024–25	2025–26	2026–27
Recipients	22	20	20	20	20
Expenditures (in $ millions)	$1.8	$1.7	$1.7	$1.7	$1.8

Source: Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Services Branch

Footnotes

Footnote 1

Excludes RCMP.

Return to first footnote 1 referrer

Footnote 2

VAC Client and Expenditure Forecast is prepared in October 2022 by the Statistics Directorate, Finance.

Return to footnote 2 referrer

Footnote 3

Totals may not add due to rounding. Includes Gallantry Awards & Flying Accidents, therefore numbers differ from table 3.1.

Return to footnote 3 referrer

Footnote 4

Disability Pension and Special Award breakdown provided at fiscal year end only.

Return to footnote 4 referrer

Footnote 5

More information about the payment can be found at this link Disability Pension Corrective Payment.

Return to footnote 5 referrer

Footnote 6

VAC Client and Expenditure Forecast is prepared in October 2022 by the Statistics Directorate, Finance.

Return to footnote 6 referrer

Footnote 7

Excludes Gallantry Awards & Flying Accidents.

Return to footnote 7 referrer

Footnote 8

Cumulative number of DA recipients active as of March 31st (does not include deceased recipients) although not necessarily in receipt of an award payment in a particular fiscal year.

Return to footnote 8 referrer

Footnote 9

April 1, 2019 Pain and Suffering Compensation was introduced and replaced Disability Awards. As of April 1, 2019 Disability Award recipients are Pain and Suffering Compensation recipients. Expenditures include one-time DA additional amount as well as DA max rate adjustments and outstanding periodic payments.

Return to footnote 9 referrer

Footnote 10