Overview
Submitting a claim should be as painless as possible (unlike that one time the dental freezing didn’t take 😬)...but to keep everything in line with CRA guidelines, and make sure your claim is processed quickly and accurately, it's important to separate each expense when you enter it.
The details
The CRA cares...and so do we
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) requires that health and dental expenses are submitted individually by:
- Expense type (e.g., dental cleaning, physiotherapy, prescription)
- Person the expense is for
- Service date
This helps ensure Plans are used properly and continue to qualify as a non-taxable benefit.
In addition to the above, having expenses entered this way helps us review, process, and reimburse claims correctly. We need to ensure that expenses are eligible, were incurred in the correct benefit period and that we’re reimbursing the maximum amount possible.
What this means for you
When you’re submitting a claim, you'll need to break down each expense instead of grouping them together. Think of it like building a playlist: each song stands on its own (like an expense), but together they make the whole playlist (your claim).
Let’s break it down with an example:
You and your child both go to the dentist on the same day for a cleaning and the total cost is $300.
⏹️ Don't do this:
- Enter a single $300 expense and select just one person as the one who has incurred the expense.
▶️ Do this instead:
- Enter the first expense for yourself (e.g., $150 for a dental cleaning with Dr. Toothy on April 2).
- Click + Add New Expense
- Enter the second expense for your child (e.g., $150 for a dental cleaning with Dr. Toothy on April 2).
- Upload your supporting documentation.
- Click Submit Claim once all expenses are entered.
Even if the expense type is the same and it happened on the same day, each expense should be entered separately by person and amount.
Tips and tricks
- Have your supporting documentation handy! It’ll make separating the amounts and entering the dates way easier.
- Since you already have those documents in hand, take a picture of each one and add them during the claim submission process.
- Submitting multiple expenses at once? Enter them all individually before hitting “Submit Claim.” You don’t need to submit them one at a time as its own claim, just make sure each one gets its own entry as an individual expense!
Anything else?
Taking the time to separate expenses upfront means:
- Faster claim processing – get your reimbursement in your bank account as quickly as possible
- Fewer follow-ups from our team – fewer emails piling up in your inbox
- Less back-and-forth for you – less time following up on supporting documentation
And if you’re ever unsure how to enter something, just reach out via the handy dandy Support Form in your Member Centre.