1. Learn about OW for adults who live with their parents

You can apply on your own for assistance from Ontario Works (OW) if you’re “financially independent”.

Being financially independent

OW will say you’re financially independent if any of the following apply to you:

• you’re living with or have lived with a spouse
• you are or have been eligible for assistance from the First Nations Post-Secondary Funding Program or from the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) if you were not a dependant student. 
• you’ve been out of high school for at least 5 years
• you have a college diploma or university degree
• you have or had legal custody of your child

And, if there’s a month when you have assets or income above what OW allows for a single person on OW, you’re financially independent for that month.

Living independently for 2 years

OW will also say that you’re financially independent if one or more of the following apply and the time they apply adds up to 2 years or more:

• You had income above the amount OW allows for a single person on OW. And this income was not from child or spousal support.
• You got your housing costs and basic needs from someone other than your parents or an institution, like a hospital or a prison. For example, you lived with a friend who supported you.
• You got social assistance on your own from OW or the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP).
• You lived away from your parents’ home after the age of 18, unless you were away to attend school full-time.

The 2 years do not have to be all in a row.