What is the Canada Dental Care Plan (CDCP)?
The Canada Dental Care PlanOpens a new website in a new window is a federal government plan to help some Canadians get access to dental care at low or no cost to them.
It covers most of the common reasons you would need to see a dentist, such as for routine care like cleanings, x-rays or fillings, or more serious treatment like a root canal or dentures.
Who is eligible for the Canada Dental Care Plan?
There are few boxes you need to tick to qualify:
1) You don’t have any other dental care coverage — This means that you don’t have any access to dental care coverage elsewhere, like through your workplace benefits plan, your spouse’s plan, or a personal health and dental plan.
2) Your adjusted net family income is less than $90,000 per year — If you’re single, you’re eligible if your adjusted net income is less than 90K each year. If you’re married or common-law, you and your partner need to have an annual adjusted net income of less than $90,000 combined. To get technical, the number in Box 23600 of your and your partner’s tax return should not total more than this amount; this doesn’t include any Universal Childcare Benefits or Registered Disability Savings Plan amounts from that year.
So, if you make $65,000 net each year and your spouse makes $15,000 net, your family is eligible for this plan – but if you make $80,000 net per year and your partner makes $15,000 net each year, you wouldn’t qualify. This assumes you don’t have any other worldwide income not reported to the CRA on a tax return. If you do, that amount contributes to the total income your eligibility is judged against
3) You are a Canadian resident for tax purposes
4) You filed your Canadian tax return last year
How is the CDCP being rolled out and who can apply?
The government is phasing this in by age group, meaning some people are already eligible. They’re working down from oldest to youngest.
As of May 2024, here are the expected dates eligible Canadians will qualify:
- Already eligible — Ages 70+
- Eligible May 2024 — Ages 60+
- Eligible June 2024 — Any adult with a valid Disability Tax Credit certificate; Children under 18 years old
- Eligible 2025 — Everyone else
What if you already have dental care coverage through another government social program?
The Canada Dental Care plan is meant to complement other coverage you might have under other government social programs. This means you could still be eligible for it even if you’re already covered under another government program that helps with the cost of dental care.
What is covered under the Canada Dental Care Plan?
According to the government, the plan covers “a wide range of oral health care services.”
This includes:
- Dental exams
- Dental x-rays
- Cleaning and scaling
- Fillings
- Root canals
- Crowns
- Dentures
- Oral surgery, like removing a tooth or treating a jaw bone fracture
FYI: Some of these treatments, like getting a crown, need “pre-authorization.” This means your dentist will have to submit an estimate for the procedure to the Canada Dental Care Plan for approval before the service can be performed.
Any of the dental care services that require pre-authorization will not be available until November 2024.
Some orthodontic services will also be added to this plan in 2025.
Will the Canada Dental Care Plan cover the whole cost of an eligible dental care expense?
The amount that you are reimbursed will depend on your family’s adjusted net income.
Heads up: If the price your dentist charges is more than the amount in the fee guide (or fee grid, as they call it) used by the Canada Dental Care Plan, you’ll have to pay the difference out-of-pocket.
For example, let’s say the Canada Dental Care Plan fee guide says the amount for a filling is $100, but your dentist charges $120. Even if you’re eligible for the maximum reimbursement level, the CDCP will only cover $100, and you’ll pay the remaining $20 yourself.
Even if you’re covered by the Canada Dental Care Plan, if you get dental care services that aren’t included in the plan, you have to pay the full amount out-of-pocket.
Here’s how much coverage you’ll get through the Canada Dental Care Plan , depending on your adjusted family net income:
- Less than $70,000 — The plan covers all of the eligible costs, up to the amount in the fee grid
- $70,000 to $79,999 — The plan covers 60 percent of the eligible costs, up to the amount in the fee grids; you pay 40 percent.
- $80,000 to $89,999 — The plan covers 40 percent of the eligible costs up to the amount in the fee grids, you pay 60 percent.
What happens if you already have dental care through another plan, like your workplace benefits or coverage you purchased?
You are only eligible for the Canada Dental Care Plan if you don’t have access to dental care.
If you are able to access dental care through any of the below, you are not considered eligible:
- Your employee benefits, or a family member’s employee benefits.
- Your pension benefits, or a family member’s pension benefits.
- A private plan you or a family member have purchased; in this scenario, you’re not eligible for as long as that plan is in force.
You can’t opt out of a workplace plan in order to qualify.
That’s because this plan is designed to support those lower-income Canadians who would otherwise struggle to afford dental care and have no other means of covering their dental care needs.
Many Canadians will not be eligible for the Canada Dental Care Plan, which means it can still a great thing to have private dental care coverage, either through your workplace benefits or through a personal plan like Freedom to Choose health and dental insurance.
These plans can help cover the costs of dental services for which you’d otherwise pay out-of-pocket.
If you are thinking of getting coverage under the CDCP, and you’re eligible, it’s also worth speaking to your current dental provider to discuss their participation in the plan.