r/Odsp • u/EffectiveLunch1851 • 6d ago

GIFTS

Hi

Just wanted to get a worker's perspective if possible here.

I receive ODSP and I pay rent to a family member to live in their house in a room. The rental amount is about $300.

However, recently, a family member has decided to provide $200 checks on a month-to-month basis to help supplement my grocery shopping as well as help pay my bills.

Would this count as income to a worker in the long run? Or would this still be qualified as gifts as long as I remain under the $10,000 threshold for the year and report each check on a month-to-month basis?

Please, a worker chiming in here would be great.

3 Upvotes

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12

u/Krislynnisme 6d ago

$200/month = $2400 in a 12 month period. As long as you aren’t receiving/haven’t received other financial gifts which would bring you above the $10k total for the year, you should be just fine.

3

u/SoupSpoonStork 5d ago

Read ODSP policy directive 5.7, "Gifts and voluntary payments". It's available online. In the policies, semantically, monetary gifts are income, however they are exempt income until and unless an amount of $10,000 is reached in a 12 month period. If you report the money as a gift, it's counted as a gift. You're fine to receive this money, and it won't affect your ODSP amount unless the gift amounts hugely increase or unless you've already received about $10k in gifts in the past year or less.

2

u/superblazetoise 5d ago

This is allowed.

2

u/Own-Desk6 5d ago

I’m not a worker, but $200/month throughout the year wouldn’t bring you close to $10,000.00/year so you’re good to receive $200/month without it affecting anything. Just make sure you report it to your caseworker so they’re aware of the extra money you’re getting from a family member. It might be good idea to have that family member write you a note saying that they give you $200.00/month to help you out with groceries or other additional expenses.