Veterans Well-being Regulations (SOR/2006-50)

61 A detention benefit shall be paid as a lump sum in an amount equal to the amount set out in column 4 of Schedule 3 to the Act, as adjusted in accordance with section 63.1, for each of the following rates of pain and suffering compensation set out in column 1 of that Schedule:

• (a) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 30 days but not more than 88 days, 5%;

• (b) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 89 days but not more than 545 days, 10%;

• (c) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 546 days but not more than 910 days, 15%;

• (d) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 911 days but not more than 1,275 days, 30%;

• (e) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 1,276 days but not more than 1,641 days, 35%; and

• (f) in respect of periods of detention totalling at least 1,642 days, 40%.

General

62 A person to whom an amount is paid or payable under any of sections 100 to 103 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1, or who receives a critical injury benefit, a detention benefit, a death benefit, a disability award equal to or greater than the amount set out in column 3 of Schedule 3 to the Act as it read immediately before April 1, 2019, as adjusted in accordance with section 63.1, that corresponds to a rate of award of 5% set out in column 1 of that Schedule, or pain and suffering compensation equal to or greater than the amount set out in column 3 of Schedule 3 to the Act, as adjusted in accordance with section 63.1, that corresponds to a rate of pain and suffering compensation of 5% set out in column 1 of that Schedule, is eligible, on application, for the payment or reimbursement of fees for financial advice, to a maximum of $500, relating to the amount, award or benefit if

• (a) the financial advice is provided by an arms-length financial adviser who is primarily engaged in the business of providing financial advice;

• (b) the person makes the application within 12 months after

  • (i) in the case of an amount paid or payable under any of sections 100 to 103 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1, the date of the letter notifying the person of the amount paid or payable, or

  • (ii) in any other case, the date of the decision; and

• (c) the person provides an invoice containing the name and business address of the financial adviser and, if applicable, proof of payment.

• 63 (1) In this section, basic pension means the monthly basic pension payable under Schedule I to the Pension Act to a Class 1 pensioner without a spouse, common-law partner or child.

• (2) The amount set out in column 2 of item 4 of Schedule 2 to the Act shall be adjusted on January 1 of every calendar year so that the amount payable for that year equals the product obtained by multiplying

  • (a) the amount payable in the preceding calendar year

  by

  • (b) the ratio that the basic pension payable in the calendar year bears to the basic pension payable in the preceding calendar year.

• 63.1 (1) The amounts set out in items 2.2 and 3, column 2, of Schedule 2 to the Act and all the amounts in columns 3 and 4 of Schedule 3 to the Act and column 2 of Schedule 4 to the Act shall be adjusted annually on January 1 in accordance with the percentage increase to the Consumer Price Index, rounded to the next 0.10%, for the year ending on October 31 of the previous year.

• (2) The Consumer Price Index is the annual average all-items Consumer Price Index for Canada (not seasonally adjusted) published by Statistics Canada.

63.2 The Minister may require a person who may be entitled to an amount under any of sections 100 to 103 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1 to provide the Minister with any information or documents that are necessary to enable the Minister to assess whether the person is entitled to the amount.

64 A decision of the Minister with respect to an award under Part 3 of the Act shall contain the reasons for the decision.

65 The Minister shall send written notice of a decision made under Part 3 of the Act to the applicant and shall inform the applicant of their right

• (a) to a review of the decision under section 84 or 85 of the Act; and

• (b) to be represented before the Board

  • (i) free of charge, by the Bureau of Pensions Advocates or by a service bureau of a veterans’ organization, or

  • (ii) at the applicant’s own expense, by any other representative.

PART 3.1Caregiver Recognition Benefit

65.1 An application under section 65.1 of the Act shall be made in writing and shall include

• (a) the name, date of birth and address of the person designated for the purposes of subsection 65.1(1) of the Act;

• (b) a declaration by the veteran attesting to the truth of the information provided and their consent to the disclosure by the Minister of their personal information to the designated person for the purposes of Part 3.1 of the Act;

• (c) a declaration by the designated person attesting that they

  • (i) meet the requirements set out in paragraph 65.1(1)(c) of the Act, and

  • (ii) consent to

    • (A) their designation for the purposes of subsection 65.1(1) of the Act,

    • (B) the disclosure by the veteran of their personal information to the Minister for the purposes of Part 3.1 of the Act, and

    • (C) the disclosure by the Minister of their personal information to the veteran for the purposes of Part 3.1 of the Act; and

• (d) at the Minister’s request, any other information or documents that are necessary to enable the Minister to assess the applicant’s eligibility for the benefit.

65.2 For the purposes of paragraph 65.1(1)(d) of the Act, the veteran shall

• (a) either

  • (i) require a level of care and supervision that is consistent with admission to an institution,

  • (ii) require daily physical assistance of another person for most activities of daily living,

  • (iii) require ongoing direction and supervision during the performance of most activities of daily living, or

  • (iv) require daily supervision and is not considered to be safe when left alone.

• (b) [Repealed, SOR/2017-161, s. 6]

65.3 For the purposes of subsection 65.1(2) of the Act, the Minister shall consider only whether the veteran’s state of physical, mental or cognitive health is not likely to substantially improve for at least 12 months.

65.4 For the purposes of subsection 65.1(3) of the Act, the Minister shall consider only whether, when the person referred to in paragraph 65.1(1)(c) of the Act is unavailable,

• (a) the provision or coordination of the ongoing care would be compromised; and

• (b) the health and well-being of the veteran would be placed at risk.

• 65.5 (1) A designated person and the veteran in respect of whom the person is being paid the caregiver recognition benefit shall provide, at the Minister’s request, any information or documents that are necessary to enable the Minister to assess the veteran’s continued eligibility for the benefit.

• (2) The Minister may, for the purposes of section 65.31 of the Act, suspend the payment of the benefit so long as

  • (a) the designated person or the veteran, as the case may be, fails to comply with a request made under subsection (1); or

  • (b) the veteran fails to undergo an assessment required under section 65.3 of the Act.

• (3) Before suspending the payment of the benefit, the Minister shall provide the veteran and the designated person with written notification of the reasons for the suspension and the effective date of the suspension.

• 65.6 (1) For the purposes of section 65.31 of the Act, the Minister may cancel the caregiver recognition benefit if

  • (a) a suspension under subsection 65.5(2) continues for at least six months; or

  • (b) the veteran’s eligibility for the benefit was based on a misrepresentation or the concealment of a material fact.

• (2) On cancelling the benefit, the Minister shall provide the veteran and the designated person with written notification of the reasons for the cancellation, the effective date of the cancellation and the veteran’s rights of review.

• 65.7 (1) For the purposes of paragraphs 65.1(1)(b) and (c) and subsections 65.1(2) and (3) of the Act, care means any activity that is necessary for the health, welfare, maintenance and protection of a person.

• (2) For the purposes of paragraph 65.1(1)(c) and subsection 65.1(3) of the Act, home in relation to a veteran, means the dwelling, other than a health care facility, in which the veteran normally resides.

• 65.8 (1) The amount set out in item 5, column 2, of Schedule 2 to the Act shall be adjusted annually on January 1 in accordance with the percentage increase to the Consumer Price Index, rounded to the next 0.10%, for the year ending on October 31 of the previous year.

• (2) The Consumer Price Index is the annual average all-items Consumer Price Index for Canada (not seasonally adjusted) published by Statistics Canada.

PART 4General

Reimbursement of Travel and Living Expenses — Medical Examination

• 66 (1) For the purpose of subsection 74(1) of the Act, the Minister shall pay the costs of meals, transportation and accommodations in accordance with the rates set out in the Treasury Board Travel Directive, as amended from time to time, subject to the following conditions:

  • (a) if the means of transportation is a taxi, $5.00 shall be deducted from the cost of each trip unless the person’s mobility or cognition is severely impaired or the deduction would severely impede the person’s ability to access the medical examination or assessment; and

  • (b) if the means of transportation is an automobile other than a taxi, the costs of transportation are payable at the rate applicable to employees of the public service of Canada who have requested the use of their own automobile plus 2 cents per kilometre and shall include the costs of parking.

• (2) If a person undergoes a medical examination or an assessment in a country other than Canada, the payment of the expenses shall be made at the same rate and subject to the same conditions as the rates and conditions that are established for former members of the armed forces of that country for similar costs, or, if no such rates are established, at the rates that would be payable if the person were resident in Canada.

67 A claim for reimbursement shall be made in writing no later than one year after the day on which the expenditure is incurred and must include proof of the expenditures.

Waiver

• 67.1 (1) For the purposes of subsection 78.1(2) of the Act, the Minister shall notify the person in writing or orally.

• (2) For the purposes of subsection 78.1(3) of the Act, the person may accept to have the requirement for an application waived in writing or orally.

Review

• 68 (1) An application referred to in section 83 of the Act shall be in writing and, unless circumstances beyond the applicant’s control necessitate a longer period, shall be made not later than 60 days after

  • (a) with respect to a decision referred to in section 75.2 of the Act, the day after the day on which the member is released from the Canadian Forces; or

  • (b) with respect to any other decision, the day on which the applicant receives notice of the decision.

• (2) The review shall be based only on written submissions.

• (3) The Minister may confirm, amend or rescind the decision under review.

• (4) The Minister shall notify the applicant in writing of the decision setting out the reasons for the decision.

• 69 (1) An application for a review of a decision made under subsection 68(3) must be made in writing no later than 60 days after receiving notice of the decision unless circumstances beyond the control of the applicant necessitate a longer period.

• (2) The application must include the grounds for the review.

• (3) The review shall be based only on written submissions.

• (4) The Minister may confirm the decision under review or may amend or rescind it on the basis of new evidence or on the Minister’s determination that there was an error with respect to a finding of fact or the interpretation of a law.

• (5) The Minister shall notify the applicant in writing of the decision setting out the reasons for the decision.

• (6) A decision made under this section is not reviewable on application.

• 70 (1) An application for a review of a decision made under Part 3 of the Act must be made in writing.

• (2) The application must include the grounds for the review.

• (3) The review shall be based only on written submissions.

• (4) The Minister shall give the applicant written notification of the decision and the reasons for it.

• 71 (1) If the Minister reviews a decision on the Minister’s own motion under section 83 of the Act, the Minister may confirm the decision, or may amend or rescind the decision if there is an error with respect to the finding of any fact or the interpretation of any law.

• (2) Before amending or rescinding a decision on the Minister’s own motion under section 83 or 84 of the Act, the Minister shall provide the person affected by the decision with an opportunity to respond in writing.

• (3) The Minister shall give the person affected by the decision written notification of any amendment or rescission made on the Minister’s own motion under section 83 or 84 of the Act and the reasons for the amendment or rescission.