Can you live common law?

[anne]

Hi,
I was just wondering if you could live common law or even get married
while on odsp. Do you lose your benefits? I want to move in with my
boyfriend but I don't think it would be fair to him to have to support
me. Sorry if this is a repeat question but I tried to go look at past
questions but could not find any on this subject,


Thanks Anne

[abrowne]

Anne,
Sure you can move in with your boyfriend or get married, but
like 85% of people on ODSP it doesn't happen very much because
your benefits do get increased to cover both of you, but whatever
earnings they have get taken off your benefit cheque by 50% of
net income (plus $100 work allowance).  If the person is earning
good money, yes you will lose your benefits.  If they are earning
but don't quite take you off, it does result in impoverishment of
both of you ... and they have to live by ODSP rules too, even
if they never signed up for them.  For example, if they have more
than $7,500 in the bank, you will lose benefits regardless even
though you likely won't get any of it, same with RRSPs.

This is NOT the case if your source of income was CPP, WSIB,
long-term disability, EI or almost anything else ... but because you
are on ODSP, it damages the chance for you to get involved or
to stay in relationships.  It keeps the family in poverty unless the
person working makes VERY good money.
Angela

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From: anne <niki...@gmail.com>

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[Sarah Moir]

Does anyone know if there is a specific "fight" (for lack of a better term) going on that we could support regarding making the rules for ODSP the same as CPP, WSIB, long-term disability, EI on this issue?  I mean a focused effort that is already underway.  I am too tired to take it on myself- lol, but I think something needs to be done about it.  Be well

[benjer weigl]

Not that I am aware of, I did suggest once a march on parliment hill, but logistics and many cannot afford transpoartation etc. seemed to make it unfeasible.Down here our rally saved a local tv station for another year, so i suppose you would need a rally of some kind which gets media attention ,I as many sure have a lot of ideas as for me, I have my ideas but i lack the knowledge to manifest those ideas into reality.

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[Cindy S-C]

anne, angela responded really well to your question. i believe, for a
lot of us on odsp, it is a reason that we do not try to pursue a
relationship. because basically, you're losing your odsp "safety
net" (such as it is). everything that angela said is quite true.
unless the person makes enough money to support both of you,
comfortably, then you're both going to be buggered really. and then
what happens if the relationship doesn't work out?
~
now, i was not around at all when there was the "three year" rule on
ontario works (not sure about odsp, again, because i was not around,
i.e., i was working and didn't know a thing about ow or odsp) where
you could live common-law with someone for three years before their
financial status (if you will) affected your cheque. i know one woman
who had a live-in relationships, but would end them just before the
three years was up. perhaps they were ready to end regardless, but
she made sure that her cheque was never affected.
~
as far as anything collectively going on to fight anything/everything
that we would like to fight, to the person who asked the question, you
had said that you are too tired to fight. i think that's the case
with all of us (too tired, too ill, too mentally not okay) and *they*
know that. i did just post an e-mail i received from isac from 25 in
5, which gives you some suggestions of who you could write to, etc.
but i think it really means that everyone has to get involved. i
think that's one of the things that i meant about if we even feel good
for one day a month (which i know in some cases is very hard to do),
spend the time reading, signing up for different newsletters (like the
one i posted) and at least write to your mpp, slimy mcguinty himself
and the minister of community and social services.
~
the last "collective" thing i saw done (in my experience only) was
postcards to raise the minimum wage and also postcards to end the
child tax benefit clawback (which he did and he didn't). i also
posted a link to a poverty questionnaire, which you could feel out.
~
but no, all of us are pretty much the same. too sick, too tired, too
beaten down to be able to do anything collectively. but i think it is
pretty easy, again, if you have one day a month where you feel okay,
to sit down at the computer and at least write.
~
even in my experience when writing to end the clawback (starting back
in 2000), i found that even though i spent the time and energy to send
the e-mails or letters, i usually got what i would consider a form
letter in response.
~
it would be very nice to be able to pick a day and say, okay, on this
day, we're all going to deluge our mpp and mguinty and the madame
there, but say i pick october 1st. how does anyone know how they're
going to feel october 1st?

[abrowne]

Sarah,

As far as I know, there isn't a lot of direct legal cases on the matter now, though

if a case came into my office, I would certainly be pleased to take it on.  The best

test case would be a fairly new relationship, the non-disabled spouse always worked

and has no eligibility of their own, and is living with or married to a person receiving

ODSP who is not able to work, or is not working at all.

 

I would be interested in how the ODSP impacts on the economic and employment

decisions made by the non-disabled spouse, how it impacts on both costs and

benefits to the family income, as well as how the relationship itself is affected.

In the cases I am aware of, when this occurs, the family is not able to get out

of poverty (as ODSP does not cover all the costs of a spouse working), and

as well, when families are formed, in most cases, two incomes are needed.

 

The provincial government is supposed to be doing some type of review of

social assistance.  Nobody knows if and when this review will start and what it's

scope will be.  I think we should be pushing for this review and for it to have

a broad enough scope to address benefit unit issues.  It isn't just spouse, but

also adult children who are not involved in post-secondary education.  Like

anything else, just because a child turns eighteen, the family's housing costs do

not go down (and many times an adult child is unable to contribute).

Angela

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From: Sarah Moir sjm...@yahoo.ca

Does anyone know if there is a specific "fight" (for lack of a better term) going on that we could support regarding making the rules for ODSP the same as CPP, WSIB, long-term disability, EI on this issue?  I mean a focused effort that is already underway.  I am too tired to take it on myself- lol, but I think something needs to be done about it.

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[abrowne]

Cindy,

The only thing that has changed is when spousal status is not stated

by the recipient, they have three months before a common-law couple

needs to be determined if they are spouses or not.  This also applies

to same sex couples.  A survey is provided and spousal status is then

determined on the basis of the result of that survey. 

 

To me, it is much easier just to disregard the income and assets of the

spouse ... it's not going to cost them anymore than they are already

paying, and besides that, some people may find their way out of poverty

this way.  But then again, we have to push the provincial government

to understand that people with disabilities have way different needs

than people receiving Ontario Works.

Angela

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From: Cindy S-C <cin...@yahoo.ca>

now, i was not around at all when there was the "three year" rule on
ontario works (not sure about odsp, again, because i was not around,
i.e., i was working and didn't know a thing about ow or odsp) where
you could live common-law with someone for three years before their
financial status (if you will) affected your cheque. 

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