The Province of BC announced today that starting Dec. 1st, 2025, couples who are both receiving Persons with Disabilities (PWD) Benefits, will receive the same support allowance as they would if they were two single people. Additionally, beginning Jan. 1, 2026, couples where one partner has the Persons with Disabilities designation will see an increase to their annual earnings exemptions, meaning they can keep more of the money they earn.

DABC commends the Province for these changes, which will benefit thousands of families in BC. At the same time, we will continue to advocate for the full removal of the PWD spousal cap. It can still have negative impacts, particularly in circumstances where one person in a couple has a disability and the other does not and has employment income.

As we noted in a post from July 2024, which also details some of our advocacy work on this issue, there are many negative impacts to restricting a person’s disability income because of a partner/spouse’s income:

• Creates unequal power dynamic between partners.
• In scenarios where a person on PWD is in a live-in relationship with a non-disabled person, it expects that the non-disabled partner is responsible for the disabled partner’s livelihood and well-being. This circles back to outdated, patriarchal laws of many decades prior.
• Particularly for people who identify as women/femmes, this can create a level of dependence on the non-disabled partner that may lead to spousal abuse.
• Creates a level of financial dependence on the disabled partner whereby they may feel they have no choice to end a relationship.
• In the context of dating/seeking relationships, being on PWD prevents people from entering into relationships on an equal footing, or even deters prospective partners because of the expectation that they become financially responsible.

Read the Province’s full news release here.