2. Find out who Ontario Works includes in your household

Beware of scams

People have been getting phone calls with a pre-recorded message telling them their Ontario Works account has been deleted.

This is a scam to trick you into sharing your personal information. If you get a call like that, hang up the phone. You can report these calls to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.

Ontario Works (OW) has rules about who they include in your . They call this your “benefit unit”.

They include the and of people in your household when they decide if you qualify financially for OW.

The amount of money you get from OW also depends on how many people are in your household.

The people they may include are:

Rules about spouses

OW includes your spouse in your household if the two of you live together. Your spouse can be any sex or gender. You could be married to one another or not.

OW has its own rules about how they decide if someone is your spouse.

Rules about children

A child under 18 who lives with you will usually be included in your household if you or your spouse is the child's parent. If OW says they're not including the child, contact a community legal clinic for help.

There are special rules about when a child who is 18 or older is included in your household.

Hide this website