Oh brother

In a case that officials called “unprecedented,” a brother and sister complained to us about difficulties in applying to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) – one to attend college, the other university. It turned out that the federal government had accidentally issued them identical social insurance numbers, which was not discovered until the brother’s OSAP application was denied. This resulted in delays and questions regarding the sister’s file, affecting her funding as well. We spoke with OSAP officials, who explained the sister would have to fill out a form, provide supporting documentation, and contact the National Student Loan Service Centre to have her file updated before OSAP could process the brother’s application. They confirmed that he would be able to receive funding retroactive to the previous academic year, when he had first applied.

Read about how we helped other people in our Selected cases.