Canada Pension Plan disability appeals: Process at a glance
You got your Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability decision from Service Canada, and you don’t agree with it. What now? This page provides an overview of the appeal process.
Make sure you’re in the right place
If you got your CPP disability reconsideration decision from Service Canada and you don’t agree with it, you can appeal to the SST.
- Your Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability appeal at a glance
- Learn about the appeal process in more detail
If any of the following situations apply to you, the SST can’t help you:
You want to apply for CPP disability benefits
Apply to Service Canada on the Canada Pension Plan disability benefits section of Canada.ca opens a new window.
You have a complaint about the way Service Canada treated you
Contact Service Canada’s Office for Client Satisfaction opens a new window.
You believe that Service Canada gave you wrong advice or made an administrative mistake
You believe that Service Canada owes you money or that you shouldn’t have to pay back benefits because they gave you wrong advice or made an administrative mistake:
- Contact Service Canada opens a new window to ask them to pay you the money you would have received if the mistake had not been made. Or, you can ask them to remit (cancel) all or part of the overpayment.
- Make your request in writing to the same Service Canada office that issued your CPP decision.
You agree that you owe money to CPP
You agree that you owe money to CPP, such as an overpayment, but you want a payment plan or want the amount reduced:
- Contact Service Canada opens a new window to discuss repayment options. For example, you can request that the overpayment be collected over a longer period of time.
- Sometimes Service Canada can remit (cancel) an overpayment. Make your request in writing to the same Service Canada office that issued your CPP decision.
Your Canada Pension Plan disability appeal at a glance
Text version
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Service Canada makes a decision about your CPP disability claim that you don't like
- You ask Service Canada to reconsider
- You get their reconsideration decision and you want to appeal it
- You have 90 days to appeal from the time you got your reconsideration decision
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Appeal to the General Division
- We assign your appeal to a General Division member (decision-maker)
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We send a letter telling everyone how much time they have to send us documents
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You have time to send us your supporting documents and arguments (usually 8 months)
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Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has time to send us their supporting documents and arguments after you (up to 3 months)
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You get to see ESDC’s documents, then you have 1 month to reply to what they sent us
- You have your hearing at the General Division
- You get the decision you want
- You wait for ESDC to do what the decision says
- You don't get the decision you want but you accept it
- Nothing else to do
- You don’t agree with the decision and you want to appeal it
- You have 90 days to ask for permission to appeal at the SST’s Appeal Division
- You get the decision you want
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Appeal to the Appeal Division
- We assign your appeal to an Appeal Division member (decision-maker)
- You get permission to appeal
- You get permission to appeal
- You and ESDC have 75 days to send us evidence and arguments — the member may set different timelines if appropriate for your appeal
- You and ESDC have 30 days to respond to what the other has sent in
- The member may try to resolve your appeal without a hearing (Alternative Dispute Resolution)
- You have your hearing at the Appeal Division
- You get the decision you want
- You wait for ESDC to do what the decision says
- You don't get the decision you want but you accept it
- Nothing else to do
- You don’t agree and you want to ask a court to review it
- You get the decision you want
- You don't get permission to appeal
- You get permission to appeal
- We assign your appeal to an Appeal Division member (decision-maker)
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Ask the court for judicial review
- You (and any other parties) can apply to either the Federal Court or the Federal Court of Appeal depending on the decision you want reviewed – you have 30 days to apply
Appealing to the Social Security Tribunal (SST)
If you disagree with your reconsideration decision, you can appeal to the SST. We have 2 levels of appeal at the SST: the General Division (first level of appeal) and the Appeal Division (second level of appeal).
You can get help with your appeal if you need it.
General Division (first level of appeal): Appeal a reconsideration decision from Service Canada
If you disagree with Service Canada’s reconsideration decision, you can appeal to the General Division. The General Division is the first level in the SST’s appeal process.
We must receive your appeal within 90 days after you receive the reconsideration decision.
Think about these things while preparing your appeal:
- Do you know your reasons for appealing?
- What supporting documents should you send?
- Do you want a representative?
- Do you need a language interpreter or any accommodations (other arrangements) for accessibility?
Fill out and send us the Notice of Appeal – Income Security – General Division form to start your appeal.
We send you a letter to tell you that we received your appeal.
We let ESDC know that you’re appealing.
We send all the documents to you, ESDC and any added parties.
We assign your appeal to a General Division member (decision-maker).
You send us your supporting documents. Once you tell us that you’ve sent us everything, we move your appeal to the next step. The maximum amount of time we may give you to send us your documents is 20 months from when we receive your Notice of Appeal.
ESDC then has up to 3 months to send us their documents.
You then have 30 days to reply to what ESDC sent us.
In some cases, the member may decide to change this process. If this happens, we’ll let you know.
We’ll send you a Notice of Hearing with the date and time and the type of hearing (in person, over the phone, videoconferencing).
You can ask to change the date of your hearing.
Find out what a hearing is like: How formal, how long, who will be there, breaks, and more.
A hearing can also take place in writing. We’ll tell you if this is going to happen.
After your hearing, we’ll usually send you the decision in writing within 30 days.
If you have a representative, they’ll get it too.
Appeal Division (second level of appeal): Appeal a General Division decision
You can appeal to the Appeal Division if you disagree with the decision of the General Division.
Make sure you understand your reasons for appealing. You’ll first need to get permission to appeal. You have to explain what the General Division got wrong or give new evidence the General Division didn’t have.
After you receive the General Division decision, you have 90 days to apply to the Appeal Division. Fill out and send us the Application to the Appeal Division – Income Security form to start your appeal.
We send you a letter telling you that we received your appeal.
We tell ESDC that you’re appealing and we send the documents to you, ESDC and any added parties.
We assign your appeal to an Appeal Division member (Appeal Division members are different from General Division members).
The member decides whether to give you permission to appeal.
- If you aren't given permission to appeal, your appeal doesn’t go any further.
- If you’re given permission to appeal, the appeal will be heard as a new proceeding (you don’t need to prove the General Division made a mistake). In most cases, you'll have 75 days to send us new evidence and arguments. You’ll also have time to respond to the other party’s evidence and arguments.
In some cases, the member suggests alternative dispute resolution (this could be suggested earlier in the process too).
We’ll send you a Notice of Hearing with the date and time and the type of hearing (in person, over the phone, videoconferencing).
You can ask to change the date of your hearing.
Find out what a hearing is like: How formal, how long, who will be there, breaks, and more.
A hearing can also take place in writing. We'll tell you if this is going to happen.
Learn more about how to prepare for your hearing.
You’ll usually get:
- your permission to appeal decision within 30 days after you applied
- your final decision within 60 days after your hearing
If you disagree with the Appeal Division decision, you can ask a court for judicial review.