Transferable Skills Analysis in Disability Claims: What Canadians Need to Know

When you’re receiving long-term disability (LTD) benefits, your insurance company may order something called a transferable skills analysis (TSA). This assessment can have a major impact on your claim — especially around the two-year mark, when insurers look for reasons to cut off benefits.

Below is a clear and simple guide that helps Canadians understand what a TSA is, why insurers use it, and what to do if the results threaten your disability payments.

What Is a Transferable Skills Analysis?

A transferable skills analysis is an assessment that reviews your past work experience, education, training, and abilities to determine whether you can perform any other job in the labour market.

Insurance companies use TSAs to argue that:

• You’re not “totally disabled” anymore
• You can work in another occupation
• They can stop or reduce your LTD payments

A TSA often becomes the insurer’s main justification for cutting someone off benefits at the change of definition in LTD (the switch from “own occupation” to “any occupation”).

Why Do Insurance Companies Use Transferable Skills Analyses?

Insurers rely on TSAs because they help them claim you can perform:

• A less demanding job
• A sedentary or modified role
• A job that requires minimal physical duties
• A role that uses “skills” you previously had but can no longer perform safely

The problem? These assessments rarely take your real medical limitations, energy levels, pain, or cognitive issues into account.

Are Transferable Skills Analyses Accurate?

Often — no. Many TSAs suffer from serious problems, such as:

• Listing unrealistic jobs you could never manage
• Relying on outdated labour-market data
• Ignoring your fatigue, chronic pain, or mental health limitations
• Overlooking medical evidence from your treating doctors
• Selecting jobs without confirming whether you’re physically or cognitively capable of doing them consistently

Insurers use these flawed assessments to create a paper trail that justifies a denial.

How TSAs Affect LTD Claims at the 2-Year Mark

At around 24 months, insurers switch to the tougher “any occupation” test. This is when TSAs appear most often.

A TSA can lead to:

• Cut-off or denial of your LTD benefits in Canada
• A demand that you return to work
• Pressure to start a “retraining” or “vocational rehabilitation” program
• A claim that you can do high-skill office work even if your condition prevents sustained focus

If you receive a TSA just before the two-year mark, it’s a sign your benefits may be at risk.

What a Proper TSA Should Consider (But Often Doesn’t)

A legitimate transferable skills analysis should include:

• Your current medical restrictions
• Your functional capacity
• Cognitive limitations (memory, concentration, processing speed)
• Side effects from medication
• Whether you can maintain regular attendance
• Whether you can sustain work full-time
• Your age, career background, and realistic employability
• Impact of chronic pain or fatigue on your ability to work consistently

When insurers ignore these, their TSA becomes unreliable — and challengeable.

What to Do if a Transferable Skills Analysis Is Used Against You

If the insurance company sends you a TSA or uses one to threaten your benefits:

1. Get your doctor’s opinion immediately

Ask your treating physicians to confirm whether you can realistically perform the jobs listed.

2. Keep written records

Save every letter, email, phone note, and assessment.

3. Don’t agree to return to work if it’s unsafe

Insurers often push people into premature return-to-work attempts that backfire.

4. Contact a disability lawyer before responding

You may be dealing with the early stages of a wrongful LTD denial.

Our team has overturned hundreds of decisions based on flawed TSAs.

When a TSA Can Actually Help Your Case

A TSA can be helpful if:

• You have supportive medical documentation
• The assessment shows you cannot sustain any type of employment
• The insurer’s conclusions contradict your doctor’s findings
• It reveals significant functional limitations that strengthen your disability claim

In these situations, your lawyer can use the TSA to reinforce your eligibility for benefits.

When to Contact a Disability Lawyer

If you’ve received:

• A transferable skills analysis
• A warning letter about “any occupation”
• A request to start vocational rehab
• A notice that your LTD benefits will stop

You should speak to a disability lawyer in Canada before responding to the insurer.

At Samfiru Tumarkin LLP, our team across Canada has helped thousands of people challenge unfair denials based on TSAs and other vocational assessments. We know the strategies insurers use — and how to stop them.

There are no upfront fees, and you don’t pay unless we win.

📞 Call us at 1-855-821-5900, email help@disabilityrights.ca, or use our online form for a FREE consultation.