How can someone apply for Emergency Assistance?

Applications for Emergency Assistance can be made online or over the phone. To make an application, your client will need to provide:

• Their personal details and those of their family
• Their housing costs
• Their total income and available assets
• Their bank account information (if they have one)

Your client could also be asked to provide additional information to verify their application (e.g., copies of bills, financial statements, etc.)

Receiving a Decision: Your client should receive a decision about their application within four business days of when they submit it. If they are successful, payment could be provided to them in different ways:

• If they provided bank account information in their application, their payment will be provided within two business days of the decision.
• If they didn’t provide any bank account information, they can expect a cheque to arrive within seven business days of the decision.

How You Can Help:

• If your client is facing an emergency and not already receiving income support
  1. Step 1: Help them contact their local social assistance office to apply for Emergency Assistance.
  2. Step 2: If your client believes they’ll need ongoing assistance, help them complete an application for Ontario Works as soon as possible.
• If your client is facing an emergency and already receiving income support (e.g., Ontario Works, ODSP, etc.)
  1. Step 1: Help them reach out to their caseworker to ask about the availability of discretionary income support to help them deal with the emergency.