JD Financial Aid Policies
Make sure to check out the JD Financial Aid Program’s Policies so you can get a clear idea of how your funding is calculated
(PDF, version 1.0 May 2025)
Understanding Your Funding
Demonstrated need is defined as the difference between Educational Expenses and Personal Resources.
The following sections discuss our policies and the calculations behind your bursary.
Educational Expenses
Set by the Financial Aid Committee, the budget is based on 9 months (August-April) for first year students and 8 months (September-April) for upper year students. The budget includes:
- Projected tuition (in-province or out of province), finalized in July of each year
- Projected ancillary fees, finalized in July of each year
- Other expenses, depending on whether the student is residing with parents/guardians or independently
Year of Study
First Year Students*
Upper Year Students
Living Situation Living with Parents/Guardians
Living Independently
Living with Parents/Guardians
Living Independently
Province of Residence Ontario
Out of Province
Ontario
Out of Province
Ontario
Out of Province
Ontario
Out of Province
Tuition** $33,040
$39,380
$33,040
$39,380
$33,040
$39,380
$33,040
$39,380
Fees** $2,106
$2,106
$2,106
$2,106
$2,106
$2,106
$2,106
$2,106
Personal Expenses*** $4,807
$4,807
$4,807
$4,807
$4,383
$4,383
$4,383
$4,383
Room and Board**** $5,625
$5,625
$20,025
$20,025
$5,000
$5,000
$17,800
$17,800
Total $45,578
$51,918
$59,978
$66,318
$44,479
$50,819
$57,279
$63,619
* First year students: the budget reflects the fact that classes begin in mid-August rather than after Labour Day.
**Subject to provincial and university policies. We expect the university to post the official tuition and ancillary fees for the upcoming academic year in mid-July at https://studentaccount.utoronto.ca/
*** Personal Expenses include supplies, cell phone, transportation, entertainment, gifts, clothing, personal maintenance and routine medical and dental expenses.
****Room and Board amount includes groceries/food expenses, rent, and utilities.
Additional expenses may include the cost of a computer, moving, medical expenses, and dependent expenses.
These expenses are adjustments to student budgets, not reimbursements of the expense.
Receipts must be provided by August 18th (for first-year applicants) or September 8th (for upper-year applicants) to be included in the Financial Assessment budget issued on September 25th. Receipts after this date should be provided as early as possible so they can be included in the current year's budget and the bursary recalculated.
The deadline for submitting additional receipts for the current academic year is February 28th. Only receipts for unanticipated expenses will be accepted after this date, accompanied by an email explaining the situation to the Financial Aid Office.
All receipts must be in the student’s name with the student paying for the items.
Expense Type Description Amounts Not Eligible Computer Students are eligible to claim budget adjustments up to $1,500 in computer-related expenses (iPad, software, mouse, etc).
A total of $1,500 can be claimed over the student’s JD career. Transfer students must provide documentation supporting that computer expense was not covered through their previous law school.
$1,500 Moving Moving expenses will be considered on a one-time basis in any year (e.g., if a student is commuting from Hamilton as 1L but decides to move to Toronto the following year, the student can claim the moving expenses in the year they incurred). For incoming 1Ls and transfer students moving expenses are eligible only if the move to Toronto occurs after the date of offer of admission.
Eligible moving expenses include reasonable airfare expenses for the most direct route for the student to get to Toronto, gasoline expenses incurred while moving, moving truck rental, hiring of movers, and reasonable hotel accommodations for the student.
The maximum allowable amount permitted is based on the distance of the move from the student’s home to Toronto.
The student's budget may be adjusted to the lower of actual expenses or the following allowances:
Moving within the Greater Toronto area (GTA) – up to $250
Moving from Manitoba, Quebec or Ontario (outside GTA) – up to $750
Moving from other areas of Canada or abroad – up to $1,900
- Purchasing furniture and other housewares
- Transporting pets or other pet-related expenses
Travel Home Please note that these amounts are automatically added to your budget based on the information provided in your application.
Students who live outside the Greater Toronto area have an additional allowance for ONE trip per year from Toronto to their home. No receipts are necessary.- Ontario students living outside the GTA within a 500 km radius have a $250 once-a-year travel home allowance.
- Ontario students living outside a 500 km radius of the GTA have a $400 once-a-year travel home allowance.
- Students living outside Ontario have a $1,000 once-a-year travel home allowance.
Medical Students are automatically covered by the UTSU Student Health & Dental Plan. Any cost that is eligible under that plan should be claimed against the health plan first.
Medical certificate and proof that the medical expenses are not covered by the student health plan must be submitted for any extra medical costs for treatment and/or prescriptions that are not covered by an insurance plan.
Medical expenses considered for budget adjustments are substantial expenses (over and beyond an allowance of $50/month that is included in the basic budget for routine and/or over the counter medication).
Medical expenses must be non-discretionary and considered necessary by a medical professional. A note from the doctor must be provided.
Medical expenses incurred during the academic year are added to student budget. Medical expenses incurred over the summer are subtracted from summer earnings before the expected summer savings calculation.
Home Ownership For those who own their homes Additional $500/year added to budget allowances Dependents For those with children
Allowable moving expenses will be adjusted by 25% for each child up to the actual cost of the move. For instance, a student with 2 children moving from Alberta may claim up to $1,900+($1,900*0.25*2)=$2,850 in budget adjustments
Additional $5,000/child added to budget allowances
Summer earning deeming formula is reduced by $2,000 per child
Daycare Students with children 12 years or younger can have reasonable daycare expenses added to their budget. Supporting documentation of expenses must be provided
Personal and Partner Resources
You must declare all assets in your JD Financial Aid Application, including those owned by a spouse or partner. If any of these assets have associated liabilities—like a car loan or mortgage—those should be reported as well.
We consider assets at 100% of their current or anticipated value as of September in the year of your initial application. If the value of your assets changes by more than $1,000, you’re required to notify the JD Financial Aid Office. Assets include, but are not limited to:
- chequing and savings accounts, TFSA, FHSA;
- investments such as GICs, bonds, mutual funds;
- RESPs;
- RRSPs - will be deemed up to $10,000/year for up to 2 years as per the Lifelong Learning Plan
- Vehicles, owned not leased
- Equity in a home/real estate investment
When calculating personal resources, students with existing educational loans may offset their assets—such as checking and savings accounts, TFSAs, and investments—by the amount of their student loans. Only Canadian government student loans, up to a maximum of $30,000, will be considered for this offset.
To qualify, you’ll need to provide documentation from the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) or your provincial loan provider (if not part of NSLSC), showing the dates and amounts of the loans issued.
You are expected to work full time during the summer months and contribute some of your savings to your academic expenses.
As part of the JD Financial Aid Application, students are required to submit their final summer pay statement showing their gross earnings (total earnings before taxes and other deductions) from all sources. If work began before the beginning of summer (May 1) or the student worked with the company/organization previously in the same calendar year, students are also asked to provide their end-of-April pay statement showing gross earnings to allow the JD Financial Aid Office to calculate earnings for summer months only.
The JD Financial Aid Office calculates students’ expected savings based on their gross earnings as well as their living situations during the summer. The following formula is applied:
Situations From May to August Calculations Living Arrangements Living with Parents/Guardians The first $4,692 of a student’s gross summer income is exempted.
Students are expected to save 50% of gross summer income between $4,692 and $12,000 and 70% of gross summer income over $12,000
Thus, a student living at home earning $15,000 will be expected to save $3,654+$2,100=$5,754
Living Independently The first $11,092 of a student’s gross summer income is exempted.
Students will be deemed to save 50% of gross summer income between $11,092 and $12,000 plus 70% of gross summer income over $12,000.
Thus, a student living independently earning $15,000 will be expected to save $454+$2,100=$2,554
Dependents Students with eligible dependent children will have $2,000 per dependent child subtracted from the summer income deeming formula above. Thus, a student living independently, earning $15,000 with one child, will be expected to save $554. Part-time Employment /Not working during the summer Not Working Full-Time Students not working full time (equivalent of 35 hours per week for 12 weeks) will be deemed to save the greater of the deeming formula above or the following amounts:
Year 1 - $2,000
Year 2 - $2,500
Year 3 - $4,000
Illness/Medical condition Students not working during the summer months due to a medical condition are required to provide medical documentation from attending medical professional and will not be deemed to save any money. Volunteer/Unpaid Employment Students who do volunteer work during the summer need to provide supporting documentation with the contact information for the volunteer organization's supervisor and a letter confirming that they worked 35 hours per week for a minimum of 12 weeks. These students will also not be deemed to save any money. You may choose to work during the academic term. The first $1,000 of employment income will be exempted for the purposes of Financial Aid contributions. Half of any income beyond $1,000 will be considered as available resource and your bursary will be recalculated.
Students are required to inform the JD Financial Aid Office of any income earned during the academic year so that their bursary is adjusted accordingly.
Parental/Guardian Income Information Requirement for Financial Aid Applicants
All applicants for financial aid are required to submit parental or guardian income information. This information is used as a proxy for a student’s socio-economic status to help assess financial need and ensure equitable access to education, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds. Even if parents or guardians do not provide direct financial support, students are assessed based on their family’s financial capacity.
Definition of Parental/Guardian Income
Parental or guardian income is defined as the combined gross income of both parents or guardians, as reported on line 15000 of the most recent Canadian Income Tax Return (Notice of Assessment), or the equivalent line on income tax returns from other jurisdictions. Eligible income includes, but is not limited to, employment income, social assistance, and retirement income.
Documentation Requirements
First-time applicants to the Financial Aid program must submit Notices of Assessment for the past three (3) years for each parent or guardian. The average of these three years’ incomes will be used to assess financial need throughout the student’s time at the law school.
Student Socio-Economic Index Calculations
Types of Households For one-household families (parents/guardians are living in one household) For two-household families (i.e. students with separated or divorced parents/guardians) Student Socio-Economic Index Rate Determined using the eligible family income, which is calculated as the average gross income of both parents or guardians, minus an allowance for dependent children. Determined using the eligible family income, which is calculated as the average gross income of both parents or guardians, minus an allowance for dependent children. Dependent Child Allowance - A deduction of $4,000 is applied for each dependent child under the age of 18.
- In rare and exceptional cases, other dependents may be considered with appropriate documentation submitted to the JD Financial Aid Committee.
- A deduction of $4,000 is applied for each dependent child under the age of 18.
- In rare and exceptional cases, other dependents may be considered if sufficient documentation is provided to the JD Financial Aid Committee.
Index Rate Calculation The economic index is calculated based on the adjusted eligible family income as follows:
Income ≤ $88,141
Index Rate: $0
Income between $88,141 and $214,107
Index Rate:
(Eligible Income − 88,141) * 15%Income > $214,107
Index Rate:
(Eligible Income − 214,107) * 25% + 18,895This index is used to assess financial need and ensure fair distribution of aid based on a student’s socio-economic background.
The economic index is calculated based on the adjusted eligible family income as follows:
Income ≤ $129,404
Index Rate: $0
Income between $129,404 and $214,107
Index Rate:
(Eligible Income − 129,404) * 15%Income > $214,107
Index Rate:
(Eligible Income − 214,107) * 25% + 12,705This index is used to assess financial need and ensure fair and equitable distribution of financial aid.
Example 1 Family has a combined income of $90,000 and no children under 18 at home. The formula used to calculate student economic index is
($90,000 - $88,141) * 0.15= $279
Family has a combined income of $150,000 and no children under 18 at home. The formula used to calculate student economic index is
($150,000 - $129,404) * 0.15 = $3,089
Example 2: Family has a combined income of $290,000 and two children under 18 at home. The formula used to calculate student economic index is
$290,000 - ($4,000 * 2) = $282,000
$282,000 - $214,107 = $67,893
$67,893 * 0.25 = $16,973.25
$16,973.25 + $18,895 = $35,868.25
Family has a combined income of $290,000 and two children under 18 at home. The formula used to calculate student economic index is
$290,000 - ($4,000 * 2) = $282,000
$282,000 - $214,107 = $67,893
$67,893 * 0.25 = $16,973.25
$16,973.25 + $12,705 = $29,678.25
Age Inclusion Index
In recognition that older students are likely to be more independent, we use the following age inclusion index to adjust expected parental/guardian contribution:
Age of Student % of Student Socio-Economic Index Example Under 30 100% Family has a combined income of $150,000, live in the same household and no children under 18 at home. The applicant is 32 years old.
The formula used to calculate student economic index is
($150,000-$88,141) = $61,859
$61,859 *0.15 = $9,278.85 (socio-economic index)
$9,278.85*0.75=$6,959.14 (age inclusion index) - assessed support amount
30-34 75% 35-39 50% 40 and above 25% Special Provision for Material Decreases in Parental/Guardian Income During Law School
If a student’s parental/guardian income falls by 25% or more from the average of the three notices of assessment (“NOAs”) submitted prior to beginning law school, the financial aid program will make an adjustment to their student socio-economic index with the provision of appropriate documentation.
Example
Let’s say you started law school in Fall 2023 and submitted Notices of Assessment (NOAs) for your parents or guardians for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 tax years. In this case, your default parental/guardian income during law school would be the average of those three years.If there’s a significant drop in parental/guardian income—specifically, more than 25% compared to the 2020–2022 average, and you want this change considered for Fall 2024 financial aid, you can submit NOAs for the 2023 tax year.
Your socio-economic index for Fall 2024 will then be based on the average income across four years: 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Note: If you choose to use this option, you’ll need to provide additional Notices of Assessment (NOAs) in future years—such as for the 2025 tax year—when applying for financial aid. At that point, parental/guardian income will be averaged across all available years (e.g., 2020–2025).
For this program, a spouse/partner is either:
- a person to whom the student is married or
- with whom the student has cohabited in a conjugal relationship for a period of three or more years or
- are in a relationship of some permanence and are the natural or adoptive parents of a child.
Filing joint income tax returns is proof of common–law relationship even if the period of cohabitation is less than three years.
Students are required to disclose partner’s assets and provide a Notice of Assessment for Partner’s income tax. The Notice of Assessment must be provided each year with the Financial Aid application.
Partner’s Assets Students who are married or are in common-law relationship are considered to have access to partner’s assets and income.
100% of partner’s assets are treated as student’s assets.
Partner’s Student Loans If partner is repaying student loans, their gross income is reduced by the amount of annual student loan payments. Partner’s Income In terms of income contributions, for 2025-2026:
- The first $44,071* of gross partner income is exempt from deeming
- Gross incomes between $44,071 and $107,054* are expected to contribute 15%
- Incomes over $107,054 are expected to contribute $9,447 plus 25% of amounts over $107,054
- These amounts are subject to inflation adjustments.
For example, a partner whose line 15000 on the NOA states $60,000 and who is repaying a student loan of $500/month will be expected to contribute $1,489 towards student’s expenses.
$60,000-(500*12) =$54,000
$54,000-44,071 (exemption)=$9,929
$9,929*0.15=$1,489
All students must apply for Canadian Government Grants and Loans to be eligible to obtain Financial Aid from the Faculty. JD Financial Aid assistance is issued in addition to government financial assistance.
All grants will be considered as resources in the calculation of student government financial aid. Exception: grants received due to disability or Indigenous student status (when identified as such) will not be included.
All federal interest-free loans will be considered as student resources.
In cases where a student chooses to take a "grant only" option, the amount of grant and federal interest-free loan available to most students will be deemed.
In cases where a student has been issued a lower amount of federal loans, only the lower amount will be deemed.
Provincial loans will not be considered as resources for the purposes of bursary calculation. However, they are considered as an available debt resource and will be applied against authorized Professional Line of Credit calculation.All students are encouraged to apply for funding from other organizations during their law school years. For instance, some students may be eligible for tuition support from their employers or their partner or parents’ /guardians' employers. Indigenous students can apply to their bands for funding. Students in combined programs may also be eligible for Ontario Graduate Scholarships or Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) fellowships.
Students applying to the JD Financial Aid program must declare all scholarships, awards, and bursaries as part of their resources. Some awards are excluded from the resource contribution calculations. Students are required to submit documentation showing the bursary and/or scholarship amounts.
Calculations of Award Contributions for the purposes of the Financial Aid calculations
Awards of $15,000 or less - 50% of the award will be included as student's resource
Awards over $15,000 - $7,500 plus 70% of the amount over $15,000 will be included in the resource calculation
For example, a student receiving an award of $20,000 will be deemed $11,000 as available resource
$3,500 = (20,000-15,000)*0.7
$7,500 plus $3,500
Awards Excluded from Resource ContributionsThe following awards are NOT included in student resource calculations:
- Indigenous students’ external funding received due to Indigenous status
- Government grants due to disability
- Centre for International Experience - CIE bursaries
- JD/MBA student Rotman awards
Internal (JD) merit scholarships
Note: Salary bonuses and articling bonuses are treated as income, not awards.
Requests for Reconsideration
You can request a reconsideration of your Financial Aid assessment if you’ve experienced exceptional or changing circumstances, or if there are unique factors that weren’t captured in your original application. The reconsideration process offers a way for students to have their situation reviewed by the Financial Aid Committee in light of extenuating circumstances.
You can request a reconsideration of your financial aid assessment within thirty days of receiving the notice of assessment from the Financial Aid Office. Requests for reconsideration may also be submitted any time during the academic year if your financial situation has changed.
You should start the process by contacting financialaid.law@utoronto.ca. A staff member of the JD Financial Aid Office will discuss your circumstances and answer your questions.
If your situation requires a hearing by the JD Financial Aid Committee, staff of the JD Financial Aid Office will guide you on preparing a reconsideration request letter in which you will need to outline the basis for the request and the specific relief sought. Specifically in this letter, you will need to explain why a departure from the financial aid policy is warranted. Citing specific aspects of the financial aid policy, including references to the rationales for these policies, will provide the strongest grounds for a reconsideration.
Once submitted, the committee will consider the request for reconsideration. The Committee is co-chaired by a faculty member and by the Assistant Dean, J.D. Program; other members include three faculty members, the staff of the JD Financial Aid Office and three Students’ Law Society (SLS) student representatives. Faculty and student members of the committee have regular voting rights. The Assistant Dean, J.D. Program holds a tie-breaking vote.
Request for reconsideration letters are anonymized and redacted before being presented to the committee. Voting committee members will recuse themselves from the discussion of requests for reconsideration that pose a conflict of interest or where they know or have identified the requesting student. The committee meets monthly during the academic year and reviews reconsiderations on an ongoing basis. The committee makes a special effort to meet in September to consider requests for reconsideration as early as possible in the school year.
Are you a current student with questions about financial aid?
Contact the JD Financial Aid Office at financialaid.law@utoronto.ca or call (416) 978-3716.