“This reporting requirement is mandatory beginning with the 2023 tax year, and will continue to be required on an annual basis,” said the notice, as first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter.
“Failing to report this information may result in financial penalties.”
The measure is being taken to track whether companies are dropping private coverage with the introduction of a public dental care program. Its notice said information related to “a payee or any of their family members” with regard to their eligibility to access dental benefits must be reported—be it from their current or previous employment.
The Liberal government had said it would roll out an interim measure by the end of 2023 and planned to fully implement the Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) by 2025.
‘Potential Concern’
In October 2022, the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association (CDHA) testified that offloading of private plans by employers was a concern.Lynn Tomkins, then-president of the Canadian Dental Association (CDA), estimated that two-thirds of Canadians are covered through workplace insurance.
“That is something we wouldn’t want to see disrupted by any program that’s brought in,” Dr. Tomkins told the committee. “If employers were to start dropping their plans because there is some new federal plan, that is a potential concern.”
She noted at the time that T4 slips could possibly be a means to monitor private dental plans.
“The levers that exist in provinces—we’ve seen them used in Quebec, and in other places, where they can legislate and regulate the coverage that employers need to provide. That includes provincial and territorial jurisdiction,” Ms. VanAmburg said.
“So those levers won’t be available for a federally delivered plan, but it is something that we are concerned about, and looking at carefully as we finalize the design of the plan.”