If you receive a disability benefit from Ottawa, December has two dates worth circling — and January has one number worth watching. The Canada Disability Benefit lands on Thursday, December 17, the last payment of 2026, while CPP disability is paid on December 22. Then, in January, every CPP benefit in payment rises by the annual cost-of-living increase — and on the inflation figures published so far, that rise works out to about 2.6%.
That 2.6% is not official yet, and it matters that you know why. The increase is set by a formula in the Canada Pension Plan Act: the average consumer price index from November 2025 to October 2026, divided by the same 12 months a year earlier. Eleven of those twelve months are published, and they give 2.6%. The final month — October’s inflation — comes out on November 16, and Service Canada posts the official figure in late December. So treat the new amounts in this article as estimates, not as the number that will land in your bank account.
The December dates to circle
The Canada Disability Benefit is paid on the third Thursday of every month. That puts the next payment on Thursday, November 19, and the final one of the year on Thursday, December 17. The January payment should fall on Thursday, January 21, 2027, following the same pattern — though Service Canada has not yet published its 2027 calendar, so that date is expected rather than confirmed.
CPP disability follows a different rhythm, landing with the rest of the CPP and OAS payments near the end of the month. The next deposit is Thursday, November 26, and the December payment is Tuesday, December 22. January’s CPP payment is estimated for Wednesday, January 27, again by the usual pattern rather than a published calendar.
What CPP disability pays now — and what January could add
For 2026, the maximum CPP disability benefit is $1,741.20 a month. Almost nobody gets the maximum: the average for new beneficiaries was $1,236.32 a month as of July 2026. Your amount has two parts — a flat basic amount of $610.46 a month, the same for everyone, plus an earnings-related amount built from your own contribution record.
Apply the 2.6% estimate and the maximum would rise to about $1,786 a month in January, roughly $45 more. The average new beneficiary’s payment would move to about $1,268. The same percentage lifts the maximum CPP retirement pension at 65 from $1,507.65 to about $1,547. For scale, the 2026 increase was 2.0% and 2025’s was 2.6% — so January’s rise, if it holds, would match last year’s and beat this year’s.
One thing the increase does not change: the rules. CPP disability is for contributors under 65 whose disability is severe and prolonged — it stops them working regularly at any job. Service Canada aims to decide within 120 days, and payments begin in the fourth month after the date it decides you became disabled. If you work while receiving it, you must report earnings over $7,400 in 2026, and a job paying $20,971.45 or more counts as substantially gainful work. And unlike the CDB, CPP disability is taxable income.
The Canada Disability Benefit: $204.20, and who gets the full amount
The CDB is the newer, smaller benefit — and it works very differently. For the benefit year running July 2026 to June 2027, the maximum is $204.20 a month, or $2,450.40 over the year. That is up from $200 after a 2.1% indexation in July, the program’s first annual increase since it launched in mid-2025.
It is income-tested, which is where people get tripped up. The amount is worked out from your adjusted family net income on your 2025 tax return. A single person gets the full $204.20 if that income — after setting aside up to $10,210 of working income — is about $23,483 or less. Above that threshold, the benefit falls by 20 cents for every extra dollar, until it reaches zero. For couples, the working-income exemption is $14,294 combined. Two things soften the test: the benefit is tax-free, and if your total yearly entitlement works out to $240 or less, Service Canada pays it as one lump sum instead of monthly.
You need to be 18 to 64, approved for the Disability Tax Credit, a resident for tax purposes, and to have filed a tax return. Service Canada reviews eligibility each benefit year — that review turns on your DTC approval and your filed return, not on a new application, so the practical step is making sure both are in order.
Don’t add the two benefits together
Here is the trap that caught readers last year, and it is worth repeating plainly: $1,741.20 plus $204.20 is $1,945.40, and that is not a number anyone receives. The two benefits are separate programs with separate tests, and CPP disability income counts in the CDB’s income test — so a CPP disability payment shrinks the CDB amount. Most people receive less than the maximum of each. If a headline or a social-media post promises $1,945.40 a month, it is adding two maximums that were never meant to be added.
The $150 supplement is already paid — don’t expect it again
Some recipients saw a bigger deposit in September: up to $354.20, the regular $204.20 plus a one-time $150 supplement to help with the cost of getting Disability Tax Credit certification. The first wave landed September 17, 2026. It was a one-off. December’s payment goes back to the regular amount — up to $204.20, and only that.
What to do before the year ends
Three small jobs before December 17. First, check your Disability Tax Credit status in My Service Canada Account — a lapsed DTC is the most common reason a CDB payment stops. Second, if you have not filed your 2026 tax return by next spring, file it: the July 2027 recalculation runs on that return, and a missing return means a missing benefit. Third, if you are on CPP disability and your health or work situation has changed, tell Service Canada before the earnings limits catch up with you — the $7,400 reporting threshold is easy to cross with part-time work.
The number that decides January’s increase lands on November 16. When it does, this story’s estimate becomes either the official figure or a near miss — and the January deposit will simply arrive larger, with no application needed.
FAQ: CPP disability January 2027
Q: When is the next Canada Disability Benefit payment?
A: Thursday, November 19, 2026, then Thursday, December 17, 2026 — the last payment of the year. The January payment is expected Thursday, January 21, 2027, following the third-Thursday pattern; Service Canada has not yet published its 2027 calendar.
Q: How much will CPP disability rise in January 2027?
A: On the inflation figures published so far, about 2.6% — which would take the maximum from $1,741.20 to about $1,786 a month. The final figure depends on October 2026 inflation, released November 16, and Service Canada posts the official number in late December.
Q: Can I get both CPP disability and the Canada Disability Benefit?
A: Yes, they are separate programs — but CPP disability income counts in the CDB’s income test, so it reduces the CDB amount. Do not add the two maximums together ($1,945.40) as if that were a real payment.
Q: What is the maximum Canada Disability Benefit for 2026-27?
A: $204.20 a month (July 2026 to June 2027), based on your 2025 tax return. The full amount goes to single people whose adjusted family net income, after the $10,210 working-income exemption, is about $23,483 or less.
Q: Will the $150 CDB supplement be paid again?
A: No. It was a one-time payment, first deposited September 17, 2026, to help with Disability Tax Credit certification costs. December’s payment is the regular amount, up to $204.20.
Sources
- Government of Canada, Canada Disability Benefit: How much you could receive — https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/disability/canada-disability-benefit/amount.html
- Government of Canada, Canada Pension Plan disability benefits — https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/publicpensions/cpp-disability-benefit.html
- RetireSmarter, CPP Increase January 2027 (2.6% on 11 of 12 CPI months, reviewed November 9, 2026) — https://www.retiresmarter.ca/guides/cpp-increase-2027/