Accessibility and accommodation policy
If you need an accommodation to fully participate in an appeal, contact us or fill out the accommodations request form and send us a copy by email, fax, or mail.
Purpose
The Social Security Tribunal of Canada (SST) wants to make sure everyone can participate in appeals on an equal basis. So, we do our best to be accessible and accommodating. An accommodation is an arrangement to remove a barrier opens a new window so you can participate fully in an appeal.
The purpose of this policy is to explain your right to accommodation, how to request an accommodation, and our role and responsibilities.
Application
Any participant can ask for an accommodation. Participants include:
- the parties (the appellant, the respondent, and any added parties)
- representatives
- support persons
- witnesses
- interpreters
Our commitment to you
The SST’s leadership, staff, and members (decision-makers) are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible appeal process and an environment where everyone can participate fully and equally in appeals.
We’re committed to:
- helping people access justice through, among other things:
- plain language in our decisions and communications
- our navigator service
- treating everyone with dignity and respect
- taking people’s needs into account and respecting their independence
- reasonably accommodating needs related to a disability or any of the other grounds of discrimination opens a new window found in section 3 of the Canadian Human Rights Act opens a new window
- working continuously and proactively to address barriers opens a new window in:
- the way we communicate
- the way we use information and communication technologies
- the way we provide information about our appeal process
- the environment in which we provide our services (in person, over the phone, or virtually)
- thinking about the different ways people interact with their environments
- considering the types of marginalization and discrimination people face and how they overlap
- consulting with partners and the public when designing and developing our policies, programs, and services to make them as inclusive and accessible as possible
- meeting our obligations under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms opens a new window, the Canadian Human Rights Act, and the Accessible Canada Act opens a new window
- training staff on accessibility, equity, diversity, and inclusion
- monitoring and reporting annually on this policy to see what’s working and what we can do better
Your right to accommodation
The Canadian Human Rights Act says that everyone has the right to be treated equally and without discrimination when accessing services. The Accessible Canada Act requires federal entities to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to the full and equal participation of people with disabilities.
This means that, at the SST, you have a right to accommodation if you need it to participate fully in an appeal and it’s based on a ground of discrimination.
If you need an accommodation
It’s up to you to ask
Tell the SST as soon as possible if you need an accommodation. You can ask for an accommodation at any time during an appeal.
There are 2 ways you can do this:
- Reach out to us by:
- phone
- fax
- Fill out the accommodations request form and send us a copy by email, fax, or mail
Your request has to relate to one or more of the following grounds of discrimination opens a new window found in the Canadian Human Rights Act:
- race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, family status, genetic characteristics, disability, and conviction for an offence for which a pardon has been granted or in respect of which a record suspension has been ordered.
We’ll work with you to come up with a reasonable accommodation.
Ways we may accommodate
We’ve listed some examples below of ways we may be able to accommodate you before, during, or after a hearing. This list isn’t exhaustive. If you have needs that aren’t listed here, we’ll do our best to find a reasonable way to meet them.
When | Accommodations we may be able to provide |
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Before the hearing |
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For the hearing |
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After the hearing |
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Our role and responsibilities
Our duty to accommodate
We’re responsible for providing you with a reasonable accommodation so you can participate fully and equally in an appeal. We also have a duty to accommodate your needs related to the grounds of discrimination opens a new window. But that duty only extends to the point of undue hardship. Undue hardship happens, for example, when an accommodation would be too costly or would present health and safety concerns.
What we do when you ask for an accommodation
We’ll contact you to see what we can do to accommodate you. We may ask you for more information to help us better understand your needs.
In most cases, an SST staff member will be the one to help you. This can be a registry officer or a navigator. If you identify a barrier during a hearing, you can tell the member. The member will either work with you to address that barrier or put you in touch with a staff member who can help you.
We won’t tell the other party or parties that you asked for an accommodation. But they might know about any barriers or needs you mentioned in your written arguments or evidence. That’s because parties get to see each other’s written arguments and evidence.
Other ways we support your participation
Interpreters
Any participant can ask for an interpreter at a hearing or a conference.
We provide the following free of charge:
- spoken language interpretation, if English or French isn’t your first language
- sign language interpretation for languages like American Sign Language (ASL), langue des signes québécoise (LSQ), and Indigenous sign languages
- real-time captioning
Learn more about interpreters and translation.
Support persons
We welcome support persons at hearings. A support person helps you, but they don’t represent you. They can attend a hearing and observe it. Learn more about support persons.
Other barriers to full participation
There are other barriers besides those related to the grounds of discrimination opens a new window. For example, we know some people face barriers associated with poverty, digital access, or living in a remote location. We don’t have a legal duty to address these barriers, but our commitment to access to justice means that we’ll try to address these barriers when we can.
If you ask, we can try to do things like:
- provide a location with the necessary videoconference equipment if you want a virtual hearing but don’t have a phone or computer
- refer you to a list of organizations that can:
- help with telephone or digital access
- help with in-home assistance
- represent you free of charge
- photocopy a small number of documents for your hearing
- give you a hearing reasonably close to your home
Give us your feedback
We’ll review this policy regularly and update it as needed. Hearing from you will help with that.
Contact us if you:
- encounter a barrier during your appeal
- want to tell us about your experience at the SST
- have any questions or comments about this policy and how we can be a more accessible tribunal
This policy applies as of February 2024. It replaces all earlier versions.