What Form 8 is for
Form 8 tells WSIB about a patient who is claiming benefits for a work-related injury or illness, or whose injury you think was caused by workplace factors. WSIB asks for it after the initial visit in all cases where you treat a workplace injury or illness. It covers how the injury happened, the clinical picture, your diagnosis and treatment plan, and the worker’s functional abilities.
Occupational mental stress has its own first report, the CMS8. A progress report later in the claim goes on Form 26, and a Functional Abilities Form is completed only when the employer or worker asks for one.
Who completes it
The worker completes Section A with their details, social insurance number and employer. A physician, nurse practitioner (registered nurse in the extended class), chiropractor or physiotherapist completes Sections B to F. The worker signs Section G, which authorizes you to give the employer page two.
Section A usually gets filled in on paper at the front desk or scribbled in during the visit, and incomplete employer details are common because the worker doesn’t have them to hand. In Medulla, you send Section A to the worker over a secure link before or right after the visit. They enter their address, SIN, date of birth and employer from their phone, and their answers land on the PDF you complete the clinical sections on. WSIB gets one complete form.
How to fill in Sections B to F
B. Incident Dates and Details
Describe how the injury, reinjury or illness occurred at work in the worker’s words, with their occupation and the date of the incident or when symptoms started. Be specific about the mechanism: lifting what, falling from where.
C. Clinical Information
Tick the area of injury and side, the description of the injury and your examination findings, and record the pain rating. Answer whether you’re aware of pre-existing or other conditions that may affect recovery, and describe them. Give a clear diagnosis.
D. Treatment Plan
Describe the type and duration of treatment. Physicians list the work-injury medications with dose, frequency and duration. Tick investigations and referrals, and note whether the worker would benefit from referral to physiotherapy, a specialist, a psychologist or a Regional Evaluation Centre.
E. Billing Section
Tick your designation and enter your WSIB provider ID, HST details if they apply, invoice number and service date. The service code is preprinted.
F. Return To Work Information
This is page two, the page the employer sees. Say whether you discussed return to work, then tick regular duties, modified duties or unable to work, with start dates and any graduated hours. Mark the worker as able or not able for each functional ability, describe other limitations, and say how long they’ll apply and when you’ll see the worker again.
Common reasons it’s delayed or queried
- A vague description of how the injury happened.
- Section A left blank, or no employer name.
- A diagnosis missing, or only symptoms listed.
- Return-to-work section incomplete, so the employer can’t plan modified work.
- No signature in Section F, or no worker signature in Section G.
- Form 8 resubmitted as a progress report.
Submitting and who pays
Send pages one and two to WSIB, and give the worker a copy of page two only for their employer. You can submit electronically through the TELUS Health provider portal, upload at wsib.ca/submit, or fax it to the numbers on the form. WSIB pays the health professional for the report, more for electronic submission, so the worker isn’t billed.