Age-Friendly Caledon

Walking track access is FREE at both the Caledon Centre for Recreation and Wellness (CCRW) and Caledon East Community Complex (CECC) for residents 55+, under the following conditions:

• CCRW – Walking track usage is free with a Caledon Seniors Centre membership. Contact the Caledon Seniors Centre for more information at 905-951-6114.
• CECC – Walking track usage is free Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 2 to 8 p.m.
• To access the track outside of ‘free’ hours, paid admission or Walking Track membership is required.
• Patrons must check into Customer Service before accessing the track or rooms.
• Individuals are not permitted to store personal items at the facility.
• The Town is not responsible for the replacement of personal property.

Community room/lounge access is free, based on availability, Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. from September to June at the following facilities:

• CCRW – 14111 Regional Road 50, Bolton (map)
• CECC – 6215 Old Church Road, Caledon East (map)
• Southfields Community Centre – 225 Dougall Avenue, Caledon (map)

• Existing rental or programs in these spaces will take priority.
• Only vacant rooms will be offered.
• The purpose is for residents 55+ to congregate and socialize.
• All organized associations, clubs, service clubs, third-party, non-profits and teams must book space through the Town’s rental process.
• Patrons must check into Customer Service before accessing the track or rooms.
• Individuals are not permitted to store personal items at the facility.
• The Town is not responsible for the replacement of personal property.
• No food or drink is to be prepared on site.

The Town's Age-Friendly Advisory Committee have compiled a list of local shops, stores and services that offer discounts and/or benefits for patrons 55+. 

Click Here to View the 55+ Discount Directory

If you are a business that offers a discount or benefit for residents 55+ and would like to be included in the directory please email adult55@caledon.ca. 

Peel residents cannot specifically apply for housing subsidies. To find out if you’re eligible for a housing subsidy or other housing support, you must complete the housing services screening tool.

A housing subsidy is a payment to help you with your rent. The payment can be paid to the landlord or to you directly, depending on the subsidy type. If you do not have an urgent housing need, a housing subsidy may be an option.

Waiting list

The Centralized Waiting List is our list of applicants who are waiting for access to housing in Peel for which tenants will pay rent of no more than 30% of their total household income.

The way the list is managed is determined by the Housing Services Act. The housing subsidies available for people on the Centralized Waiting List are the Housing Services Act subsidies.

Subsidies are administered based on application date. The Housing Services Act gives priority access, based on application date, to applicants who are experiencing, or at risk, of family violence, or human trafficking. Peel Region also gives local priority to applicants for medical reasons (less than 2 years to live).

You may have to wait a long time for a subsidy through the Centralized Waiting List, and we can only give rough estimates of wait times.

While you are waiting, you can apply for housing assistance in other regions outside of Peel without losing your spot. You can also look for affordable housing on your own. We will still contact you when a housing subsidy is available; assuming you are eligible.

If you are only on the Centralized Waiting List and would like to be considered for any other housing subsidy, complete the housing screening if you have not already done so.

Click Here to Learn More about Housing Subsidy Options

GAINS Provides a monthly, non- taxable benefit to Low-income Ontario seniors.

Together, the total maximum benefits from OAS,GIS and GAINS is the guaranteed income level The province guarantees that eligible Ontario seniors will have at least this minimum level of income. This is called a guaranteed income and it’s updated every three months to reflect inflation.  

You qualify for GAINS payments if you:

• are 65 years or older; and
• have been a Canadian resident for 10 years or more; and
• have lived in Ontario for the past 12 months or for a total of 20 years since turning age 18
• receive the federal OAS pension and GIS payments; and
• have an annual private income of up to $4,176 if you are a single senior or up to $8,352 if you are a senior couple 

Private income may include money from a workplace pension, the Canada Pension Plan, bank interest, etc.

Click Here to Learn More about the GAINS Program and How to Apply

The Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program is a government- funded dental care program. It provides free, routine dental services for low-income seniors who are 65 years of age or older.

The Region of Peel ensures that seniors on the waiting list for the former Region of Peel Seniors' Dental Program will be provided treatment if they do not qualify for the OSDCP.

Ontario residents are eligible for the program if they:

• Are 65 years or older.
• Are a resident of Ontario.
• Have an annual net income of $25,000 or less for a single person or a combined annual net income of $41,500 or less for a couple.
• Have no access to any other form of dental benefits, apart from the Canadian Dental Care Plan, like private insurance or other government program.

What you need

• Your date of birth.
• Valid Ontario address.
• Social Insurance Number or Temporary Taxation Number.
• To have filed your taxes last year.

If you do not have a Social Insurance Number or did not file taxes last year a guarantor must help you apply by mail. Learn more about applying with a guarantor.

Due to overwhelming demand, there’s currently a waitlist to receive routine dental care services in Peel. To add your name to the waitlist for the next available appointment, call Peel Public Health at 905-799-7700.

Tel: 416-916-0204
Toll-free: 1-833-207-4435
Toll-free TTY: 1-800-855-0511

Click Here to Learn More about the Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program

If you need help paying for food and shelter, financial help is available from the Ontario government called Ontario Works. This is also sometimes known as social assistance.

Emergency assistance is also available and offers short-term financial help for people in crisis or an emergency situation.

Ontario Works

Eligibility depends on your household income, what you own, and the number of people in your family. Only 1 application is needed for each family.

Applicants must also be:

• At least 16 years of age.
• An Ontario resident with status in Canada.
• Willing to make reasonable efforts to participate in activities leading toward employment.

Emergency assistance

Applicants must be:

• An Ontario resident with status in Canada.
• In crisis or emergency such as, affected by COVID-19, evicted from your home, in or leaving an abusive relationship, have emergency authorization to be in Canada for humanitarian reasons, affected by fire, flood, or another natural disaster, waiting for refugee status.
• Not currently receiving Ontario Works or Ontario Disability Support social assistance.
• Must have current ongoing income (if no current ongoing income, you must apply for Ontario Works.

If you are a Ukrainian or migrant with documentation confirming that you are in Ontario under the Canadian-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel and require emergency assistance, call 905-793-9200 or toll free at 1-800-327-5379.

Click Here to Learn More about Ontario Works

Financial assistance to help with essential living expenses; benefits, including prescription drugs and vision care; help finding and keeping a job, and career advancement.

Financial assistance provided each month to help with the costs of basic needs, such as food, clothing and shelter. Income support also includes benefits, such as drug coverage and vision care, for clients and their eligible family members Employment Supports: Services and supports to help clients with disabilities find and keep a job, and advance their careers.

ODSP rates are now tied to inflation. In any year that payments go up, you will receive the higher payment at the end of July of each year.

Eligibility: 

• Atleast18yearsold; and
• Ontario resident; and
• Be in financial need; and
• Meet the program’s definition of a person with a disability, or be a member of a prescribed class; and
• Have assets no greater than the limits set out in the program

Please note that eligible residents 65+ will receive Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) in place of ODSP.

Click Here to Learn More about the ODSP Program

Toll free: 1-888-999-1142

TTY: 1-800-387-5559

The Ontario Drug Benefit covers most of the cost of more than 5,000 prescription drugs. Persons 65 years or older qualify for the ODB. Lower income seniors can qualify for a reduced co-payment.

Eligibility: 

• A single senior(65orolder)with an income$22,200orless after taxes; or
• A senior couple(oneorboth65or older) with a combined annualincomeof$37,100orless after taxes.
• Seniors (people aged 65 and older) will be sent a letter about three months before their 65th birthday to let them know they will automatically join the ODB program.
• After paying the deductible, up to $6.11 for each prescription that is filled or refilled this amount is called co-payment. 
• If you are a single senior, with a yearly income of $22,000 or less after deductions, you pay up to $2 for each prescription drug filled or refilled - and you do not have to pay a deductible.

Click Here to Learn More about the ODB Program

The Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit (OEPTC) is designed to help low- to moderate-income Ontario residents with the sales tax on energy and with property taxes.

To qualify, you must be a resident of Ontario on December 31, 2023, and at least one of the following at some time before June 1, 2025:

• 18 years of age or older
• currently or previously married or in a common-law relationship
• a parent who lives or previously lived with your child

and, in 2023, at least one of the following applied to you:

• you paid property tax for your main residence
• you rented, and your landlord was required to pay property tax for your main residence (if you lived in a subsidized housing unit, check with your landlord to find out if they were required to pay property tax for your unit)
• you lived on a reserve and paid for your home energy costs
• you lived in a public long-term care home (for example, a seniors' home) and paid an amount for your accommodation

Your eligibility also depends on where you live on the 1ST of each month. For example, if you move out of Ontario on November 10, you would be eligible for the November OEPTC payment, but you wouldn't be eligible for any subsequent payment.

You could get a maximum of:

• $1,248 if you are between 18 and 64 years old
• $1,421 if you are 65 or older
• $277 if you live on a reserve or in a public long-term care home
• $25 for the time you lived in a designated college, university or private school residence in 2023.

Click Here to Learn More about the OEPTC Program 

LEAP applicants no longer need to be in threat of disconnection or have been disconnected, but they still need to be in arrears and at or below the income thresholds. The limitation on receiving LEAP only once per year is waived, but the total amount received by a household may not exceed the maximum grant amount for the year.

Customers who meet income eligibility can get up to $650 in emergency assistance for their electricity bills ($780 if their home is heated electrically) and $650 for natural gas bills.

Assistance is only available if you are behind on your bill – or in arrears – and may face having your service disconnected. You cannot receive more money than you owe on your bill. Therefore, you may not receive the full amount of the grant.

Emergency financial assistance is for emergency situations only and is not meant to provide you with ongoing help to pay your bills. For ongoing, monthly bill assistance, visit our Ontario Electricity Support Program page.

Qualifying for a LEAP grant depends on two factors:

• How many people live in the home, and
• The combined annual household income.

For example, a home with four people and an annual after-tax income of $65,000 would be eligible for a LEAP Emergency Financial Assistance (EFA) grant. This chart shows if you are eligible.

Click Here to Learn More about the LEAP Program

The Ontario Senior Homeowners' Property Tax Grant helps low-to-moderate income seniors with the cost of their property taxes.

You qualify for this grant if you or your spouse/common-law partner, as of December 31 of the previous year:

• paid Ontario property tax for the year
• met either of the following income requirements:
  • you were single, divorced or widowed and earned less than $50,000
  • you were married or living common-law and you and your spouse/common-law partner earned a combined income of less than $60,000
• owned and occupied your principal residence
• were 64 years of age or older
• were a resident of Ontario.

If you file your personal income tax and benefit return annually and qualify for the grant, you could get up to $500 each year depending on your adjusted family net income.

Click Here to Learn More about the Senior Homeowners' Property Tax Grant 

The Ontario Seniors' Public Transit Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit to help seniors with public transit costs.

To qualify for the credit, you must:

• be 65 years old or older on the last day of the previous tax year that you're claiming the credit
• live in Ontario by the end of that year

For example, to qualify for the credit when you file your personal Income Tax and Benefit Return in 2024, you must be:

• 65 years or older on December 31st, 2022
• a resident of Ontario on December 31, 2023

If you moved outside of Ontario before December 31, 2023, you wouldn't qualify for the tax credit.

You can claim up to $3,000 in eligible public transit expenses and receive up to $450 each year.

Click Here to Learn More about the Seniors' Public Transit Tax Credit

This program provides financial support for home or vehicle modifications to eligible individuals and families to enable children and adults with disabilities that restrict mobility to continue living safely in their homes, avoid job loss and participate in their communities.

The program provides:

• Up to $15,000 lifetime maximum for home modifications, and/or
• Up to $15,000 every ten years for vehicle modifications
• Depending on your income, you may be asked to pay some of the cost of the modifications.

Eligibility: 

• Live in Ontario; and
• Qualify financially, and have a substantial impairment caused by bodily injury, a birth defect or illness. It is ongoing and/or recurring and is expected to last one year or more. This impairment: Impedes mobility, and Results in substantial restriction in activities of daily living (e.g. your personal care, or your participation in the community).

Click Here to Learn More about the Home and Vehicle Modification Program

To apply, visit the Ontario March of Dimes website provided above or call 1- 877-369-4867.

The Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit is a refundable personal income tax credit to help low- to moderate-income seniors with eligible medical expenses, including expenses that support aging at home or one’s place of residence. For example, a house, an apartment, a retirement home or any other establishment providing residence and care for people with special needs.

The credit provides up to 25% of claimable medical expenses up to $6,000, for a maximum credit of $1,500. This amount is reduced by 5% of family net income over $35,000 and fully phased out by at most $65,000.

You are eligible to claim the credit if you:

• turned 70 years of age or older in the year, or have a spouse or common‐law partner who turned 70 years of age or older in the year
• are resident in Ontario at the end of the tax year

You can be eligible regardless of the type of dwelling you live in (for example, a house, an apartment, a retirement home, a long-term care home)

Click Here to Learn More about the Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit

Through the Assistive Devices Program (ADP), people with long-term physical disabilities receive assistance in paying for customized equipment, like wheelchairs and hearing aids. 

Your income is not considered when determining eligibility, 75% of the cost for most equipment is covered, The supplier bills the program directly and you pay 25% when you purchase the item.

To qualify for assistance from ADP you must: 

• Be an Ontario resident; and
• Have a valid Ontario health card; and
• Have a disability requiring the equipment or supplies for six months or longer.

The ADP office is accepting new applications for funding assistance by:

email: assistivedevicesprogram@opddp.ca

Click Here to Learn More about the Assistive Devices Program

The Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) provides a monthly non-taxable benefit to Old Age Security (OAS) pension recipients who have a low-income and are living in Canada.

In many cases Service Canada will let you know by letter when you could start receiving your first payment, however, if not enough information is available to enroll you automatically, you may need to apply.

• You get a letter from Service Canada asking you to apply
• The information in the letter Service Canada sends you is incorrect
• You are already receiving an Old Age Security pension and have never received the Guaranteed Income Supplement

If you did not receive a letter about the Guaranteed Income Supplement the month after you turned 64, contact Service Canada to find out if you need to apply. 

To qualify for the GIS program you need to be: 

• In receipt of an Old Age Security pension; and
• Be 65 or older; and
• Live in Canada; and
• Annual income (or in the case of a couple, combined income) is lower than the maximum annual threshold.

Click Here to Learn More about the Guaranteed Income Supplement

The Allowance for the Survivor is a benefit available for people aged 60 to 64 who have a low-income, who are living in Canada, and whose spouse or common-law partner as died. 

The amount of the Allowance for the Survivor you receive depends on their previous year’s income. Maximum monthly payment amount is $1,581.51

You may be able to get the Allowance for the Survivor benefit if: 

• Aged 60 - 64; and
• Canadian citizen or legal resident; and
• Reside in Canada and have resided in Canada for at least 10 years since the age of 18
• Your spouse or common-law partner has died and the applicant has not remarried or entered into a common-law relationship; and
• Annual income is less than $27,240

Click Here to Learn More about the Allowance for the Survivor benefit

The Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) is helping make the cost of dental care more affordable for eligible Canadian residents.

To qualify, you must: 

• Not have access to dental insurance; and
• Have an adjusted net income of less than $90,000; and
• Be a Canadian resident for tax purposes; and
• have filed your tax return in the previous year.

Click Here to Learn More about the Canadian Dental Care Plan

For General Questions please call  1-833-537-4342 during the hours of 8:30 am to 4:30 pm local time, Monday to Friday or visit your local Service Canada Centre.

If you don’t already have an oral health care provider, you can talk to a provider in your community or consult Sun Life's CDCP Provider Search.

You can also call the Sun Life CDCP Contact Centre at 1-888-888-8110 for help.