Learn what to do if you stayed home with children

If you don’t meet the contribution requirements because you stayed at home or made less money because you were caring for your children, you still might be able to get Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability benefits.

You would do this using the “child-rearing provision”. The child-rearing provision can make it easier to meet the contribution requirements.

To use this provision to get CPP disability benefits, all of the following must be true:

• you were the main person looking after your children when they were younger than 7 years old
• you stopped working or made less money so you could take care of your children
• you or your partner received Family Allowance payments or were eligible for the Canada Child Tax Benefit

You or your partner can ask to use the child-rearing provision. But you can’t both use it for the same period of time.

How to use the child-rearing provision

To use the provision, you must send the Child Rearing Provision form with your application for CPP disability benefits.

You also need to include either:

• each child’s name, date of birth, and Social Insurance Number (SIN), or
• a certified copy or an original birth certificate for each child

If your child was born outside of Canada, you may also need to give proof of the date they entered Canada.

If you use the child-rearing provision, the time you looked after your child does not count towards the amount you get in CPP disability benefits.