Canadian Dental Care Plan: Employers and pension plan administrators responsibilities
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Reporting access to dental insurance or coverage
Since the Dental Care Measures Act came into effect in 2023, employers and pension plan administrators have been required to include the dental insurance or coverage they offer on their:
- employees' T4 slips (box 45)
- pensioners' T4A slips (box 015 when there is an amount present in box 016)
Employers and pension plan administrators must:
- report whether or not they offer dental insurance or coverage on T4 or T4A slips
- make sure they are using the correct code
- quickly provide the necessary documents if their employees or pensioners are asked for additional documents by the Government of Canada to confirm the coverage offered (or not offered) to them under a member eligibility review
Failure to comply with the Act may result in a penalty of $100 per incorrect T4 or T4A slip.
Non-compliance includes:
- not completing the box on the T4 or T4A
- removing the box from the T4 or T4A
- reporting the incorrect code
Incorrect coding may trigger an unnecessary member eligibility review for an employee or pensioner who is a member of the Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP). In such cases, they may need to ask you for documents confirming they do not have access to dental insurance or coverage through you.
How to report access to dental insurance or coverage
You must report whether you offered your employee or pensioner dental insurance or coverage on December 31 of the reporting tax year. Do not report whether your employee or pensioner has chosen to use it, opted out or refused coverage. If you offered benefits, you must report:
- that the employee or pensioner was offered dental insurance or coverage
- the level of coverage according to the applicable codes
Use one of the following 5 codes:
- Code 1: Employee or pensioner is not offered access to any kind of dental insurance or coverage
- Code 2: Employee or pensioner only
- Code 3: Employee or pensioner, their spouse or common-law-partner, and dependant children
- Code 4: Employee or pensioner and their spouse or common-law-partner
- Code 5: Employee or pensioner and their dependant children
Where to report:
- employers must report a code in box 45 of a T4 that corresponds to the dental insurance or coverage they offer to an employee and their family
- pension plan administrators, who report an amount in box 016 of a T4A, must report a code in box 015 of the T4A that corresponds to the dental insurance or coverage they offer to a pensioner and their family
Third party organizations preparing T4 or T4A slips for clients must obtain information on dental insurance or coverage from clients (i.e. employers and pension plan administrators) to report it accurately.
Learn more:
If your employee or pensioner's Canadian Dental Care Plan eligibility is under review
We do member eligibility reviews to ensure only people who qualify for the CDCP receive coverage.
If your employee or pensioner or their spouse/dependant(s) is/are selected for an eligibility review, you will be asked to give them a document confirming you do not offer them dental insurance or coverage.
They will have 45 days from the date the letter is issued to mail their documents back to Health Canada. You must quickly provide them with one of the following:
-
Canadian Dental Care Plan Member Eligibility Review Form [PDF, 1.15 MB]
-
a letter confirming one of the following for your employee or pensioner:
- does not qualify for dental insurance or coverage and the effective date
- the date their dental insurance or coverage ended or became unavailable
- updated insurance or coverage information
- their opt-out date and confirmation that they cannot opt back in
- the date their employment or pension benefits ended
Contact us
Contact the Canada Revenue Agency if you have questions on completing T4 or T4A slips.
Contact Health Canada if you're an employer or a pension plan administrator with questions or concerns about:
- compliance under the Dental Care Measures Act
- documents you need to provide your employees or pensioners who are undergoing a member eligibility review