Income Assistance Manager 

This software provides complete case and financial management for Manitoba’s Income Assistance program

Summary of the Main Features

Operating System Compatibility

  • Convenient pull-down menu system for easy access to features
  • Compatible with all versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system.

Data Location and Access

  • Your data is stored in your office on your computer or on a file server.
  • You will never be locked out of your software or not have access to your own data.
  • Even if you no longer pay your annual software support fee, you will still have access to the software and to your data but you will no longer receive software support or software updates from us.

Security and User Access

  • The databases that contain your client information and reporting details are encrypted.
  • Each user has his/her own login ID and password for the software.
  • Income Assistance administrators (or other staff who have been granted administrator privileges) can update the user profiles for all staff members which includes indicating the features/menu items that each staff member has access to in the software. 
  • User access profiles can be updated at any time due to changes in staffing, security reasons, etc.

Case Management

  • Importing Client Data
    • We can help you to import the basic client information (client names, addresses, phone numbers, SIN and Health Card numbers) from your current software application into the Income Assistance Manager software.
    • Using the “clean-up” functions within the software will help verify that basic client information, street names, school names, etc. have been correctly entered to ensure that certain statistics such as those on the Tenant Profile Report can be reliably generated.
  • Accessing your Clients in the Software
    • You can search for a client by first and/or last name or by treaty number
    • You can filter your client list by any or all of the following parameters: age group, gender, active/inactive status, receiving assistance status and/or by social/not on social status
    • You can sort your client list by last and first name, address, treaty number, SIN, health card number and by hydro account number
  • The software will allow you to enter the following information for clients:
    • Name
    • Street Address
      • Easily move an entire family by changing the applicant’s street number and address and then by clicking the “Moved” button. Doing this will automatically update the street number and address for all family members who are part of the benefit unit.
    • Mailing Address (if different from the street address)
    • GPS Coordinates
    • Treaty Number
    • Birth Date and Deceased Date
    • Status Card Expiry Date
    • Gender
    • Receiving Assistance
    • On Social
    • Non-Treaty
    • Bill C-31
    • SIN, Health Card and PHIN
    • Marital Status, including a Date Effective
    • Disability Details, including an optional expiry date
    • Spouse Information
    • Dependent Information
    • Income Sources: Employment, Self-Employment, Training Allowance, Pension, etc.
    • Email Address
    • There are also tabs within a client’s file where you can enter specific SD01 and SD04 form details which will be used to populate these forms.
    • In addition, you have the ability to attach scanned images of the benefit unit members’ ID cards to their respective profiles and to attach PDF copies of documents, if needed.
  • Option to Use the Software to Keep Track of Band Members
    • If desired, the software can also be used as a means to track band members who aren’t in receipt of Income Assistance by setting up the individuals’ files as Not Receiving Assistance.
    • There is a field to indicate if an individual is living off-reserve.
  • Link Family Members
    • Link a client to his/her parents, his/her spouse, and to his/her children (including Children Out of Parental Home) once these individuals have been added to the software.
  • Add Family Wizard
    • If you are entering a new client who has a spouse and/or dependents, you can choose to enter the basic information for all benefit unit members on one window which will result in all of the benefit unit members being automatically linked together.
  • Types of Income Assistance Available
    • Location: North, South, or Isolated
    • Economic
    • Social: Single Parent or Other
    • Health
    • ASARET and WOP
  • Creation of Budgets/Calculations for Clients
    • The software will retain every budget calculation entered and/or changed.
    • Budgets can be edited up until the payment is issued. After this point, the budget will be available for viewing or printing, but it will be locked to prevent the budget from being modified.
    • The software will automatically calculate budgets based on the benefit unit size and according to other parameters you have specified, such as:
      •  Housing Type
        • CMHC, Private Housing, Band Housing, or Home Ownership
      • Therapeutic Diets
        • Choose one of the diet rates set by the government, or you can create custom diet descriptions to meet the needs of clients as per a health care provider’s directions and as per ISC’s approval.
        • You may enter a starting and an ending date for the diet, if required.
        • The system will automatically stop paying the diet allowance once the ending date you inputted has passed.
      • Advances and Vouchers
        • Advances are payments that are made prior to the main Income Assistance issuance. You can enter a fixed amount or give the client 50% of his/her monthly entitlement amount after pay directs.
        • Advances can be recovered in full from the client’s main income assistance issuance, or they can be gradually recovered based upon the recovery calculation guidelines.
        • Vouchers are given to vendors in exchange for goods.
        • Once used, the vendor will remit the voucher to your office for payment.
        • A voucher can be a one-time amount, an amount that occurs monthly, or an amount that occurs only for a specified period of time.
        • Both advances and vouchers are amounts that are deducted from a client’s entitlement so that the client receives what is remaining (if anything) once the amount for the advance or for the voucher has been deducted.
        • You can enter advances and vouchers under the appropriate tab on clients’ profiles or you can use the Bulk Advances/Vouchers function if you are going to be processing the same advance/voucher for a number of clients (e.g. all clients get a 50% advance, etc.).
      • Non-Variable Allowances 
        • These are calculated based on the allowable amount for the benefit unit size according to the guidelines for your province.
        • Can be paid directly to the client or to a vendor.
        • Examples of Non-Variable Allowances: Basic Needs, COPH, Disability, Special Care, Comfort Allowance, Infant Formula, Therapeutic Diets, Shelter (with an override option to modify the amount), Laundry, RRAP, User Fees, Work Clothing, Telephone Allowance, Exceptions, etc.
      • Variable Allowances
        • These are amounts that change from month to month.
        • Can be paid directly to the client or to a vendor.
        • Examples of Variable Allowances: Hydro, Oil for Heating, Wood Allowance (for wood purchased or cut by the client), Propane, Special Needs (Non-Insured Health Benefits or Other), Burials, and Exceptions.

Additional Budget Options

        • Ability to indicate that a client’s Basic Needs are provided by a third party. Checking this box means that the Basic Needs amount will not be included within the budget but allows all other allowances to be entered and calculated.
        • Ability to make a COPH-only calculation when the client is only eligible to receive funds for COPH members within the benefit unit. Variable allowances can also be included within the client’s budget.
        • Ability to enter an overpayment amount and to choose an automatic or a custom recovery amount

Client Payment Options

      • You have the option of issuing payments to clients by:
        • Standard Laser Cheque (stub-cheque-stub or cheque-stub-stub layouts)
        • Direct Bank Deposit (we do not charge you anything to issue payments via this method)
        • Reloadable Card Payment (e.g. Northern Store Benefits card or the Northern Store WE Visa card)

Active Measures

    • Track clients, spouses, and dependents who are participating in Active Measures.
    • Maintain a record of each individual’s activities, including a starting and an ending date, if needed.
    • Track expenses by entering an amount that was given to the individual for the activity.
    • The following items can all be tracked within the Active Measures section of the individual’s profile:
      • Education Level
      • Expected to Work Indicator
      • Various Activity Types
      • Various Support Types
      • Activity Results

Case Notes / Tasks 

    •  
    • You can add a note to supply additional details for any Active Measures entry:
      • Note Entry Types:
        • Action Plan
        • Carry Forward
        • Case Note
        • To Do
      • You can also add your own custom note types.
    • Add a date to track when the entry was inputted.
    • Include an optional goal to identify the expected outcome of the entry.
    • Add comments or details regarding the entry.
    • Include an optional Target Date to identify when this entry is due.
    • Enter a Completed Date field to identify when this entry was completed.
    • Any entry that does not have a Completed Date will appear on the To-Do List as an outstanding item.
    • Case Notes Reports Option
      • You can generate a Case Note Report that can be filtered by:
        • Specific entry types (e.g. Action Plan, To-Do, etc.)
        • Specific date range
        • Completed status:
          • Where the activity has not been completed but there is a Target Date
          • Overdue
          • Completed Notes/Tasks
      • Report Layout Options:
        • Case Note Summary for the client
        • Case Note Summary for a staff person for all clients
        • Case/Action Plan Sheet for the client

Verification Tools

    • Each individual’s file has its own verification flags to check for information such as:
      • Ensuring that first and last names match IDs.
      • Ensuring that various form-related details have been completed, such as whether or not forms have been signed and initialed, whether or not receipts are attached for benefits requested, etc.
      • Ensuring that identifications such as the Birth Certificate, Driver’s Licence, SIN, Health Card, and Status Card (including expiry dates, if applicable) are on file.
      • Ensuring that shelter-related information such as house and lot numbers, tenancy agreements, tenancy profile date, as well as hydro bill dates and amounts are on file.
      • Ensuring that bank account information and assessment details are on file.

Forms

  • The software generates various ISC (Indigenous Services Canada) forms:
    • SD01 – Application for Income Assistance
      • This is autopopulated with information from the case file and from the information entered under the SD01 tab.
    • SD03 – Declaration of Income
      • This is autopopulated with the amounts you entered under the Income tab within the client’s budget for a particular month.
      • This form lists income from Employment, Self-Employment, Insurance Payments, Pensions, Maintenance Agreements/Orders, Inheritances from Estates, Employment and Training Allowances, Education Funds, Income from Assets, etc.
    • SD04 – Budget and Decision Form
      • This is autopopulated with information from the current budget and from the SD04 tab.
    • SDSN – Special Needs Application
    • SDCOPH – Child Out of Parental Home
    • ROFE – Record of Funeral Expenses
      • The setup window for this form contains a button that takes you directly to the funeral rate table section within the current ISC policy manual.
  • The software can also generate any custom forms that are required such as:
    • Financial Needs Assessment Form
  • The software will retain a copy of each client-related form generated to provide you with a history of changes for each client.

Letters

  • Form letters can be generated for any individual with his/her information automatically inserted into the appropriate fields within the letter.
  • Some letters have customizable information that can be entered at the time of generating the letter.
  • The software will retain a copy of each letter generated so that the letter can be reprinted, if needed.
  • If you have your office’s letterhead image available, the software can be configured so that the letterhead will be automatically imprinted on the letters to save you from having to use preprinted letterhead.
  • The letter templates that you can generate are:
    • SF1 – Enrolment Letter
    • SF2 – Rejection Letter
    • SF3 – Benefit Adjustment Letter
    • SF4 – Cancellation / Suspension / Withdrawal Letter
    • SF5 – Overpayment Letter
    • SF6 – Residency Confirmation
    • SF7 – Redress Request
    • SF9 – Medical Request Letter
    • SF10 – Medical Release & Assessment for Disability Benefits
    • SF10 – Medical Release & Assessment for Infant Formula
    • SF10 – Medical Release & Assessment for Therapeutic Diets
    • SF11 – Estates Memo / Reimbursement For Funeral Expenses
    • SF12 – Lump Sum Payment Calculation Sheet
    • SF13 – Statutory Declaration
    • COPH Notification to CFS
    • COPH Notification to Applicant
    • Validity of Claim of Residency Letter
    • Legal Aid Confirmation Letter
    • Correctional Institution Release Form Letter

Payments

  • You have the ability to process payments, advances, and vouchers.
  • Payments can be made to a client or to a vendor on behalf of one or more clients.
  • Customizable Options for Cheques:
    • Cheques can be digitally signed using our Signatures Management function by scanning in the signatures to use for each signature line.
    • You can choose to have only the recipient’s name printed on the cheques or you can have the recipient’s name and address.
    • Cheque stub payment breakdowns can be customized by removing $0.00 benefits and benefits that are paid directly to a vendor so that these item lines do not appear on the payment breakdowns.
  • Approving Clients’ Advances/Vouchers
    • You can easily approve advances/vouchers by checking off the advance/voucher for the clients on the Approval Listing screen. Alternatively, you may click the Approve All button to have the software automatically check all of the clients. You can then uncheck only the clients for whom you don’t want to process an advance/voucher.
    • The Approval Listing screen indicates how the advance will be issued (e.g. by cheque, reloadable card or by direct deposit).
    • Advances/Vouchers must be approved and processed before the monthly assistance payments are approved as they are recovered off the clients’ assistance payments.
    • Once the advances/vouchers have been processed for the clients, the software will automatically put a check mark in the Processed box and input a Process Date.
  • Processing Vouchers & Advances
    • After you have approved the advances/vouchers, you can process them independently as there are two separate processing options on the menu: one for Vouchers and one for Advances.
    • Vouchers are designed to be printed on blank paper with two perforations separating the three sections.
    • Advances are payments that can be issued by cheque, reloadable card or by direct bank deposit.
  • Approving Clients’ Monthly Payments
    • You can easily approve clients’ monthly payments by checking off clients’ names on the Approval Listing screen. Alternatively, you may click the Approve All button to have the software automatically check all of the clients. You can then uncheck only the clients for whom you don’t want to process a payment.
    • The Approval Listing screen indicates how the payment will be issued (e.g. by cheque, reloadable card or by direct deposit).
    • You may use the Approval Listing screen to approve clients’ payments at any time during the month. The software will also allow you to input a starting and an ending date within a client’s budget so that you may prorate the payment if the client applies for assistance after the start of the month.
    • Once the payments have been processed for the clients, the software will automatically put a check mark in the Processed box and input a Process Date.
  • Processing Clients’ Monthly Payments
    • You can process the client payments that you approved by using the Process Client Payments menu. You have the option of previewing the payments before you process them.
  • Exception Payments
    • You can make an Exception Payment for an item that was not included within a client’s budget calculation at the time that his/her Income Assistance payment was issued.
    • For example, a client may need to be reimbursed for a shelter expense that he/she paid out-of-pocket, or a client may need his/her hydro bill paid to a hydro supplier at any time throughout the month.
    • An Exception Payment can be paid to a client or to a vendor on behalf of a client or on behalf of multiple clients.
  • Vendor Listing
    • You can keep track of basic vendor information such as the company name, name of contact person, address, phone, fax, and the email address for the company/contact person.
    • Each vendor profile also contains a checkbox to indicate if the vendor is active or inactive, and a checkbox to indicate if the vendor is a hydro provider.
    • Checking the hydro provider box will then mean that clients’ hydro account numbers will appear on the vendor letter that accompanies the payment for this vendor.
  • Process Vendor Payments
    • When a client payment has been processed, any amounts that were paid to a vendor are put into a holding file until you choose to process the vendor payments.
  • Vendor Letters
    • The software can generate a letter to accompany each vendor payment:
      • The letter indicates the clients and their respective amounts that comprise the total payment being made to the vendor.
      • The letter will also include other details, such as the client’s account number if you chose to enter this information at the time that you set up the payment.
      • If you have your office’s letterhead image available, this file can be uploaded to the software so that the letterhead will be automatically imprinted on the vendor letters.
    • You can also generate an Excel spreadsheet containing the information from the letters to send to vendors.
  • Vendor Transaction History
    • The software retains the complete transaction history for all payments made to each vendor.
    • You can view the details of any payment.
    • You can also void any payment made to a vendor, if needed.
  • Card Payment Processing and File Submission
    • Once a payment has been processed for a client who has been set up to receive payments via a reloadable card payment (i.e. Northern Store Benefits or a Northern Store WE Visa card), his/her card payment will be placed by the software in a holding file until you initiate the process to generate the batch file.
    • The batch file can then be emailed to the card payment contact person that you set up in the software.
  • Direct Deposit Processing and File Submission
    • Once a payment has been processed for a client who has been set up to receive direct bank deposit payments, his/her payment will be placed by the software in a holding file until you initiate the process to generate the batch file.
    • You can preview the payments waiting to be included in the next generated batch file at any time.
    • When generating the batch file:
      • It will create the batch file in your financial institution’s required format. The default is to create a file with “.EFT” as the file extension, but you can choose your own file extension to use under the Software Settings option.
      • The software will automatically print a Direct Deposit Batch report and save a copy of it as a PDF file. The report shows the clients, their respective amounts and the client bank account information that was included in the batch. The batch report also has two signature lines on it for authorization purposes, if required.
      • If you have configured your email account settings and entered an email address within the Software Settings section under the Direct Deposits tab in the software, the software will automatically email the actual batch file and the report in a PDF format to that email address, such as the finance person responsible for uploading the batch to the financial institution. If these settings haven’t been configured, you will need to send the batch file to the appropriate person for uploading to your bank’s direct deposit portal.
    • We do not charge any fees to generate payments by direct deposit within the software. You will only have to pay whatever your financial institution charges you to issue payments by direct deposit.
  • Reprint Cheque Option
    • If you ever need to reprint a cheque (i.e. you accidentally printed the cheque on a piece of paper, etc.), you can easily reprint the cheque on the actual cheque using this option.
    • This is also useful for when you require another copy of a cheque on blank paper for verification, or if you lost the cheque stub, or if you need to request a stop payment, etc.
  • Export Payments
    • You can export the payment details made in our system to a Sage-specific file format for importing and/or processing by your Sage financial software. You can configure your Bank and Cash Account details as well as map our accounts to your Sage accounts within the Software Settings function.

Reports / Forms

  • Client Management Reports
    •  Client Listing
      • You can generate a listing of clients that matches various criteria:
        • Gender: Male, Female, or Both
        • Receiving Assistance: Yes, No, or All (all clients whether or not they are receiving Income Assistance)
        • Only Head Of Households
        • Caseworker: Select a caseworker or leave this field at All to show all caseworkers
        • Active/Inactive: Show clients who are active, inactive, or both
        • Payment Method: Show only clients who are receiving a payment via Cheque, Direct Deposit, Reloadable Card or by all options
        • Marital Status: Show only clients who match the marital status option(s) you selected
        • Age: Show only clients who are between a starting and an ending age range as of a particular date
        • Housing Type: Only show clients who have a specific housing type such as CMHC, Band Housing, etc.
        • Assistance Type: Health, Social-Single Parent, Social-Other, Economic, WOP, ASARET, etc.
    • Labels
      • You can print file folder labels or mailing address labels in various sizes.
      • When selecting which clients to print a label for, you can use many of the same filters/options as detailed above under the Client Listing report.
    • Envelopes
      • You can print your office’s logo, return address and the client’s mailing address directly onto envelopes from the software.
      • When selecting which clients to print an envelope for, you can use many of the same filters/options as detailed above under the Client Listing report.
    • Tenant Profile Report
      • This report shows which Income Assistance clients and other individuals reside at the same address and the percentage of the shelter costs that the Income Assistance clients are responsible for.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as under the Client Listing report.
    • Family Snapshot
      • This report gives you a detailed summary of the benefit unit including the applicant, spouse, mother, father, and the dependents linked to each individual’s file.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as in the Client Listing report.
    • Address History
      • This report gives you a history of address changes based on the SD01 application form.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as in the Client Listing report.
    • Marital Status History
      • This report gives you a history of the marital status changes for one client or for all clients based on clients’ SD01 application form data.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as under the Client Listing report.
    • Verification Spreadsheet
      • This generates an Excel spreadsheet that shows the verification details for each individual in the software, grouped by the benefit unit.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as under the Client Listing report.
    • Disability Status
      • This report provides you with information on disabled individuals as well as their Special Care Room & Board options, if applicable.
      • You can use the report to identify clients whose disability benefits will be expiring soon.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as in the Client Listing report
    • Therapeutic Diets
      • This report provides you with information on individuals that have a Therapeutic Diet, including the starting and ending dates.
      • You can filter the report to show active diets or diets expiring by a specific date.
      • You can use many of the same filters/options as in the Client Listing report
    • Age Demographics
      • This report provides you with information on the age demographics for active clients or only for those who received some form of assistance.
      • Standard Statistics Canada demographics and custom age ranges are shown.
      • The totals on the report are broken down by gender and include a grand total for all individuals.
      • In addition, you can generate an Excel spreadsheet that contains the report data. The spreadsheet also includes a tab containing the data expressed in pie chart format.
    • Identify Potential Problems
      • This report allows you to look for specific data entry issues and other problems such as:
        • Head Of Household with Hydro Account Issues
        • Social Insurance Numbers (Blank or Invalid)
        • Health Card Number Issues
        • Personal Health Identification Number (PHIN) Issues
        • Address Issues (House Number or Street Name is blank, etc.)
        • Date Of Birth Issues (Blank or Invalid)
        • Marital Status Issues (Blank or Invalid)
        • Individuals whose files are set as Receiving Assistance, but who do not have an Assistance Type set (e.g. Social, Health, Economic, etc.)
        • Individuals whose files are set as Receiving Assistance, but who do not have a Housing Type set (CMHC, Band, Private, etc.)
    • Custom Letters
      • Using our Letter Editor you can create your own custom letter templates with merge codes so that client, First Nation and other custom data will be automatically merged into your letters.
  • Accounting / Financial Reports
    • Transaction Listing
      • This report shows detailed information about any transaction/payment for a specified month/year, starting and ending date range, calendar or fiscal year based on the criteria you have selected.
      • You may choose to print a listing for any or for all of the following:
        • For Which Client: All clients or for an individual client
        • For Which Vendor: All vendors or for an individual vendor
        • You can also choose to generate a report for one client for one (or for all) vendors or for one vendor for all clients
        • For Treaty and/or Non-Treaty clients
        • Transaction Types To Include:
          • Assistance Payments
          • Vendor Pay Directs
          • Advances
          • Vouchers
          • Exception Items
          • Adjustments
        • Posted To A Specific Account: Choose all accounts or a specific account
        • Show Detailed Account Postings: selecting this option will show every account that was part of the transaction
    • Cheque Listing Report
          • You can generate a report based on the cheques that you issued from a specific bank account (if you have more than one) for a specified starting and ending date range, or by a starting and ending cheque number range.
          • Only Show Voids: selecting this option will show only cheques that have been voided.
    • Card Payment Report
      • This report will show a listing of clients who received payments via the card payment method.
      • The software supports the following card payment systems:
        • Northern Store Benefits cards and the WE Financial reloadable Visa prepaid debit cards
      • The report can be generated for a specific batch date, a specific date range, or for a specific client.
    • Direct Deposit Batch Report
      • This report will show a listing of clients who received payments via the Direct Deposit payment method.
      • The report can be generated for a specific batch date, a specific date range, or for a specific client.
    • Voucher Listing Report
      • This will list the vouchers you issued for a specified starting and ending date range or by a starting and ending voucher number range.
    • Claimant Signature Log Sheet
      • Allows you to print a signing sheet for a range of cheques to keep track of who picked up a payment. You can customize the sheet by choosing to show cheque numbers and/or treaty numbers.
    • Approval Listing Report for Client Payments
      • Allows you to preview/print the approval listing for the monthly assistance payments that you created for a particular month/year.
      • You can filter the report by:
        • Caseworker
        • Only those payments not yet processed
        • Approved payments
        • Not Approved payments
    • Approval Listing Report For Advances/Vouchers
      • Allows you to preview/print the approval listing for the advances/vouchers that you created for a particular month/year.
      • You can filter the report by:
        • Caseworker
        • Only those payments not yet processed
        • Approved advances/vouchers
        • Not Approved advances/vouchers
  • Administrative Reports
    • Income Assistance Report (DCI 455897A) – Quarterly
      • The software will generate the quarterly statistics and expenditures for ISC’s DCI 455897 report.
      • This report defaults to reporting for Treaty cases only, but it can also be generated for Non-Treaty only cases for submission for reimbursement.
    • Income Assistance Report (DCI 455897) – Monthly
      • The software will generate a monthly version of ISC’s DCI 455897 report.
      • This report defaults to reporting for Treaty cases only, but it can also be generated for Non-Treaty only cases for submission for reimbursement.
    • WSP / TASP (Formerly WOP and ASARET) Project Application Form
      • Allows you to enter the details for a WSP or a TASP project and to generate the application form. You can then either print, email, or save the application as a PDF.
      • The software will retain all applications entered.
    • T5007 (Canada Revenue Agency)
      • You can generate the following:
        • A report listing eligible T5007 clients and their amounts.
        • The official T5007 slips for clients containing three identical stubs.
        • The XML file for electronic submission of your T5007 data to the CRA.
      • The T5007 setup window contains a link to the CRA website for secure login and uploading of the XML file.
    • Monthly Reports
      • Detailed Summary Report – Variable
        • Shows the details for Variable expenditures along with the standard totals.
        • If desired, the report can be filtered for specific calculation types, i.e. Economic, Social, Health, WSP, TASP, etc.
      • Detailed Summary Report – Non-Variable
        • Shows the details for Non-Variable expenditures along with the standard totals.
        • If desired, the report can be filtered for specific calculation types, i.e. Economic, Social, Health, WSP, TASP, etc.
      • Compliance Detailed Summary Form
        • If desired, the report can be filtered for specific calculation types, i.e. Economic, Social, Health, WSP, TASP, etc.
    • Manage Reporting Periods
      • This allows you to “lock” a month/year when you are finished with it and this prevents anyone from posting a financial transaction to that period.
  • Bulk Forms
    • This option allows you to generate and print any or all of the standard forms SD01, SD03 and SD04 for multiple clients based on the information currently on their respective case files.
  • Blank Forms
    • This option allows you to print from an extensive list of blank forms from Manitoba Hydro, Indigenous Services Canada, Canada Revenue Agency, Service Canada, and Manitoba Health Seniors and Active Living (MHSAL). Some of the forms are fillable.
  • Bonus Feature:
    • All reports in the software may be saved as PDF documents and they may also be emailed directly from the software.
    • Some reports can also be generated in Excel spreadsheet format with the data in proper columns and rows.

Miscellaneous Features

  • Quick Entitlement Calculation
    • You can use this feature to determine what a client will receive under various scenarios or you can use it to determine basic eligibility for a new client.
    • The resulting budget can then be previewed, printed, saved as an Excel spreadsheet or as a PDF document.
  • Adjustments (Journal Entries)
    • You can add, edit, or delete entries such as deposits, adjustments, etc.
  • Bank Reconciliation Feature
    • Keep track of what payments have cleared the bank based on an ending date, as well as enter charges and deposits.
    • You can then generate a report showing what has cleared the bank and what remains outstanding.
  • Personal Care Services Calculator Tool
    • Helps you to determine the correct daily rate to pay as well as the total amount payable based on the starting and ending date for when the individual was receiving Personal Care Services.
    • You can choose the appropriate calculation year so that the tool will use the correct rates and guides.
    • For reference purposes, the “Guide to Services and Charges in Manitoba” and the “Residential Manual” are also available on the same window as the Calculator Tool.
    • You can then generate a printout of the calculation information, if desired.
  • Proration Calculation Tool
    • This tool can be used to calculate prorated amounts for clients’ benefits.
    • Enter the date range along with the full or monthly amount of the benefit(s) and the tool will calculate the prorated amount for each benefit.
    • You can then generate a printout of the calculation information, if desired.
  • Mass Emailing Tool
    • Allows you to select clients that you want to send an email to and it will copy all of their email addresses on your computer’s clipboard so that you can paste the addresses into your email application.
  • Third Party Account Verification Tool
    • Allows you to compare the hydro account numbers entered on case files in the software with the account numbers on file at Manitoba Hydro by importing a current Manitoba Hydro billing spreadsheet. Once you’ve imported the spreadsheet, the onscreen results will be colour-coded: green means a match was found while red means no match was found and you will likely need to correct the hydro account number that is on file for the client in the software.
    • The results can be previewed/printed.
  • Hydro Account Manager
    • Allows you to easily enter or update the hydro account numbers for clients on one window instead of going into each client’s file.
    • The list can be previewed/printed.
  • Monthly Variable Allowance Batch Entry
    • This feature will allow you to create a batch to pay a particular variable allowance benefit such as hydro, oil, wood purchased or wood cut by client, and propane for applicable clients.
    • The batch must be charged to an open/unlocked period.
    • You can enter amounts that will be either:
      • Automatically factored into clients’ monthly budget calculations, meaning that you have to enter the batch before approving the monthly assistance payments.
        OR
      • Processed as a separate batch payment which can be made at any time throughout the month whenever the bills are received. Once you process the batch, the payment entries are created and the batch is locked. You will no longer be able to modify the batch contents or to process it again.
    • Amounts can be entered all at the same time without having to go into each client’s file to update the amount or to make a new payment entry.
    • Or, in the case of Manitoba Hydro bills, you can import a Manitoba Hydro billing spreadsheet which will autopopulate the amount owing for each client for you.
    • You can preview/print the batch contents for record keeping or verification.

Housing Module

  • The software also contains a module that allows you to import the name and address information for clients from the Income Assistance side of the program.
  • The clients are then organized by street and house number to allow you to view all occupants residing in a house.
  • You can select a house and enter the complete information for a work order for whatever repairs need to be made for the house. A target completion date as well as an actual date completed can be entered.
  • You can also select a house and create an inventory list of appliances and other items that are in the house. This is particularly useful for rental units.
  • There is even the option to upload a file – such as a photo of the repairs that need to be made for a house or a scanned copy of a contractor’s estimate, etc. – to keep this information in one central place.

System Functions

  • Change Your Password
    • Every user can change his/her own password whenever he/she likes. This ensures that access to the program and the software’s data is secure.
  • User Settings
    • Administrators and those with the ability to maintain software user profiles can use this function to update user profile details such as the username, display name, security settings, job title, phone, email, etc.
  • Software Settings: The software will allow you to configure a number of options:
    • Default Location Settings
      • You can enter a default street, city, province, and postal code if you want to save time entering this for new clients as the software will autopopulate this information into the appropriate fields every time you add a new client.
      • The information in the fields can be overwritten when adding a client if the client’s street, city, address, and/or postal code are different from what was autopopulated.
    • Administrator’s Name for Reports and Forms
      • You can enter the name of the Income Assistance administrator so that this will be automatically printed on the various forms and reports that require the name of the administrator.
    • Internet Connection Settings
      • You can enter the settings for your internet to indicate that you have internet access.
      • You can also enter your email server settings which are necessary if you intend to email reports directly from the software.
    • Cheque Layout Formats
      • You can customize how your cheques will be created:
        • Choice of Stub-Cheque-Stub or Cheque-Stub-Stub layouts.
        • You can adjust the position of where information is printed on the cheques, if needed.
        • You can choose whether or not to include $0.00 benefits and/or pay direct information on the cheque stub payment breakdown.
    • Card Payment Details
      • You can configure the card payment system with information it needs to function, such as the name and email address of the person to whom the electronic file of payments should be sent for processing so that you can email the file directly from the software.
    • Direct Bank Deposit Details
      • You can enter all of the information necessary for your bank, including the appropriate file format setting, so that the electronic file of payments can be emailed directly from the software.
    • General Ledger Accounts
      • All of the necessary accounts required for Income Assistance are already configured in the software, but you can also add as many General Ledger accounts as needed in order to cover administrative-type expenses.
    • Export Transaction Details To Sage, Adagio, or to AccPac-Compatible Systems
      • You can export the details of the transactions in file formats specific to Sage, Adagio, or to other AccPac-compatible systems.
      • In order to do this, you will need to map the accounts in the Income Assistance Manager software to their corresponding accounts in the accounting software program.
  • Street/Address Settings
    • When entering a client’s address, you must pick from a dropdown list of street names that you have entered in the software.
    • Having a preconfigured dropdown list prevents the possible misspelling of streets across different client files as it is the address entered on a client’s file that the software uses to generate the Tenant Profile report.
    • The Tenant Profile report shows the names of those who reside at the same address and it calculates the percentage of the total shelter costs that the Income Assistance client is responsible for. This is why it is very important that street names are entered correctly.
    • You can edit and add to your list of addresses on file, as needed.
  • Custom Diet Settings
    • Maintain your own list of approved custom diets over and above the default ISC diets.
  • Mass Replacement Tool
    • Allows you to mass change case information for multiple clients or for all clients at once instead of having to go into each client’s file. You can change information such as:
      • Staff person assigned
      • Active status
      • Receiving Assistance status
      • On Social Assistance status
      • Change location (North, South, Isolated)
      • Payment Method (Cheque or Direct Deposit)
      • Set a variable allowance such as Hydro, Oil, Wood (Purchased & Cut) and Propane to be paid to a vendor
      • Set a user fee to be paid to a vendor
      • Street Number and Address
      • And many other options.
  • Digital Signatures Management
    • Allows you to add/remove signatures used by the system to sign the different signature lines on cheques and the signature used by forms/letters/reports, if you would like these documents to be automatically signed.
  • Letter Editor
    • Allows you to create your own custom letter templates with various fonts, sizes and colors. You can use merge codes in your templates which will be substituted with actual client or administrative  information when generating the letters.

Getting Help

  • Our Help menu has numerous items that can provide you with information you need such as:
    • User Guide: Allows you to retrieve the latest Income Assistance Manager Software User Guide via the Internet for viewing or printing.
    • Instructional Guides: Various step-by-step guides to help you complete a task in the software. Some guides are provided by third parties such as Manitoba Hydro and relate to their processes.
    • Contact Information: Obtain names, addresses and contact details (email, website, location) for Indigenous Services Canada representatives, Manitoba Tribal Councils, the First Nations that belong to the same tribal council you do, and for A.D. Morrison staff. Contact information can also be printed.
    • Rate Tables: View/print the rates used by the system based on location (North, South or Isolated), and by the client type (Social, Health, Economic or ALL).
    • ISC Policy and Procedures Manuals: Allows you to view the current and previous versions of the Policy & Procedures manuals from Indigenous Services Canada.
    • Income Assistance-Related Websites & Resources: Links to useful online resources to assist with day-to-day operations and to provide assistance for your clients.
  • Using our Request a Call Back function, you can:
    • Send us a request via the internet to call you as soon as possible.
    • You can request a specific staff person (e.g. technical support person) or the “First Available Person”.
    • Before you send the request, the name, telephone and extension number associated with your software user profile will be displayed and you can change this information if needed.

Updating the Software

  • You can check for updates at any time via a menu option in the software. In order to obtain the update, you will need to have paid your annual software support fee.
  • If an update is available, all that you will need to do is to click to download it and the update will then be automatically installed.
  • If the software is used in a multi-user environment, you will only need to update the software from one computer and not on each computer!

Backing Up Your Data

  • With just one click within the software, it will back up the entire program’s databases and all of the files contained within the folders that the software creates/uses (e.g. spreadsheets, batch files, PDF reports, etc.).
  • You can choose to back up your data locally to any or all of the following:
    • A USB flash drive
    • An external hard drive
    • A network location
    • The program will remember the backup destination you last used for the next time you do a backup.
  • You can also choose to back up your data via the internet to our server with a subscription to our Data Backup Service:
    • This can be used as your only backup method or in addition to your current method as an added safeguard in the event your method ever malfunctions or if the drive that you’re using is misplaced or damaged.
  • The backup function can do both a local backup and a backup via the internet to our server with one click!
  • The system will remind you when it is time to do a backup based on your preferences (e.g. every 7 days, etc.).

Why Switch to Our Software?

  • Our Ontario social services software program is currently in use at well over 120 First Nation social services offices (including 3 DSSABs/Tribal Councils) and is highly rated by Ministry of Community and Social Services Program Supervisors.
  • Individual and group training sessions are available.
  • We offer superior customer service and comprehensive support.
  • We have over 29 years of experience in the field of social services software design and support!

Complimentary Demonstration

We would be happy to provide you with a complimentary online demonstration of the Income Assistance Manager software. Please contact us or complete the Software Demonstration Request form.

Sample Reports and Forms
Income Assistance Report (DCI 455897A)
Detailed Summary Report for a Month/Year – Variable
Detailed Summary Report for a Month/Year – Non-Variable
Bank Reconciliation
Sample Client Budget Calculation
Client Payment Approval Listing
Sample Client Cheque
Sample Vendor Cheque
Sample Vendor Letter
Direct Bank Deposit Batch File Details Report
Card Payment Batch File Report
Enrolment Letter
Rejection Letter
Tenant Profile
Transaction Listing
Transaction Listing – with Account Details
Family Snapshot
Marital Status History
Address History
Verification Spreadsheet
SD01 – Application for Income Assistance
SD03 – Declaration of Income
SD04 – Budget and Decision Form
SDCOPH – Children Out of the Parental Home
SDSN – Special Needs Application
ROFE – Record Of Funeral Expenses

Download the Income Assistance Manager information sheet.
Download the latest version of Adobe’s Acrobat Reader.
Description SKU Price
Income Assistance Manager
(Single User)		 IAMS-SU

 

$10,000.00

 
Each Additional User IAMS-AU $2,000.00
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