Employment Insurance (EI) sickness benefits is a Canadian government-funded program designed to support Canadians who cannot work for medical reasons.
It provides you with 55% of your earnings up to a maximum of $650 per week if you cannot work and earn an income due to illness, injury or quarantine, or any medical condition that prevents you from working.
You could receive the benefits for 15 or 26 weeks, depending on the date your claim begins. This article will enlighten you on the EI sickness benefits, eligibility requirements, application, amounts, and how long you can receive them.
Who Qualifies for The Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits?
You must meet the following eligibility criteria to receive the EI sickness benefits.
- You are unable to work due to medical reasons;
- You have lost (or expected to lose) at least 40% of your usual pay.
- You have worked a minimum of 600 insurable hours in the year before the claim (600 hours is equivalent to 20 weeks of work at 30 hours a week)
If you are self-employed, you can qualify if the:
- The amount of time spent on your business reduced by more than 40% within the last week due to your medical condition;
- You must have earned at least $7,279 of self-employed earnings in 2019
However, you will wait at least 12 months after registering to make a claim.
How Much Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits Can You Get?
The EI sickness benefits have no fixed amount. The exact amount you can receive will be determined when your application is processed.
The amount you could receive depends on your insurable earnings before taxes in the past 52 weeks or since the start of your last claim, whichever is shorter. You could receive 55% of your total insurable earnings up to the maximum amount of $650 per week.
To calculate your benefit amount, the CRA uses a specific number of the best (highest-paid) weeks of employment. If your weekly earnings vary or your income changes, your best weeks can impact your benefit amount.
The CRA adds the insurable weekly earnings from your best weeks, divides that amount by the number of best weeks based on where you live, and multiplies it by 55%.
How To Apply For EI Sickness Benefits: A Step-by-Step Guide
It is important to apply for employment insurance sickness benefits as soon as you stop working. You may lose our benefits if you delay your application for more than four weeks after your last working day.
Follow these steps to complete your application:
Step 1: Gather the required information
You must provide all the necessary information and documents to Service Canada during your application process. Ensure you have these information and documents ready before you start your application.
- Your Social Insurance Number (SIN)
- Your mother’s maiden name
- Mailing and residential address
- Banking information, including financial institution, branch (transit) number, and account number, if you wish to use Direct Deposit for your benefit payments.
- Record of employment (ROE)
- Your work history for the past 52 weeks, including employer names, dates of work, reasons for stopping work, and dates/earnings of highest-paid weeks (if self-employed and registered in the EI Special Benefits programs, you will have to supply the dates worked and your net earnings)
- A completed medical certificate from your family doctor or oncologist stating that you cannot work and how long you will be unable to work.
Step 2: Complete the online application
You can start your application online at the Service Canada application page. It takes about one hour to complete the online application. If you cannot complete it at once, you can return to it later.
Your information is saved for 72 hours, and you can access it using the temporary password you received when you began your application.
However, if you fail to submit the application within 72 hours (3 days), your application will be deleted, and you will have to start a new application.
Step 3: Provide your documents
When you are done with your online application, you can submit your required documents to Service Canada. You can mail them or drop them off at any Service Canada Centre closest to you.
Step 4: Receive your benefit statement and access code by mail
When Service Canada receives your application, they will mail you a benefit statement that will include a 4-digit access code. This code and your SIN will be needed to follow up on your application.
However, receiving the benefit statement doesn’t mean a decision has been made about your claim.
Step 5: Check your application status
To check the status of your application, you can sign in to My Service Canada Account (MSCA) or contact Service Canada.
If you don’t have an MSCA account, you can create one when you receive your benefit statement and access code.
Latest Updates on EI Sickness Benefits
As stated in Budget 2021, the federal government is permanently extending the number of weeks under the EI sickness benefits from 15 to 26 weeks, effective from December 18, 2022.
Under these changes, any eligible insured worker who cannot work due to illness, injury or quarantine and who makes a new claim on or after December 18, 2022, will receive Employment Insurance sickness benefits for 26 weeks.
This extension only applies to EI sickness benefits. It has no immediate impact on the requirements that wage loss replacement plans must meet to be eligible for a premium reduction under the Premium Reduction Program (PRP).
What Are The Next Steps After You Apply?
After you apply, your claim is usually processed within 28 days. If your online application is approved, your benefits will start to be calculated one week after the start of your benefit period.
Your first payment should come within 28 days of Service Canada’s date of receiving your application, including all the required documents.
If your application is not approved, you will be notified by letter or telephone to explain why you are not eligible to receive the EI sickness benefits.
What is The One-Week Waiting Period?
Before you can receive EI sickness benefits, there is an EI sickness benefit waiting period of one week, during which you will not be paid.
The 1-week waiting period will start during the first week you should begin to receive benefits.
This waiting period is like the deductibles you pay for other types of insurance.
How To Submit Your EI Biweekly Reports
After you apply for EI sickness benefits and your application has been approved, you must complete and submit EI online reports to Service Canada for you to be able to continue getting the benefits you are entitled to receive.
You’ll have to submit reports every two weeks for as long as you receive benefits. These reports show your ongoing eligibility.
Once you submit, you’ll get the submission date for your next report. You have three weeks from that date to complete the following report.
If you work or earn money, your report should indicate it. You risk being overpaid and repaying benefits if it is not reported to Service Canada.
You can either use the EI Internet Reporting Service or call the EI Telephone Reporting Service at 1-800-531-7555 to submit your reports.
When Do Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits End
You will stop receiving your EI sickness benefits if:
- You have reached the end of your claim period
- You do not need to be away from work because of your medical condition
- You have received 15 weeks of sickness benefit payments
- You have received the maximum weeks of benefits payable to you when combining EI benefit types
FAQs on EI Sickness Benefits
Do I have to apply to receive Employment Insurance sickness benefits?
Yes. You must apply for employment insurance sickness benefits as there are no automatic payments. Service Canada needs to determine whether you are entitled to receive them.
When should I apply for the employment Insurance sickness benefits?
You have to apply as soon as possible after you stop working, even without receiving your ROE from your employer. If you delay your application later than four weeks after your last workday, you risk losing benefits.
Can I get regular EI benefits after Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits?
If you received EI regular benefits in the past 52 weeks, you might be unable to collect the sickness benefits up to the maximum number of weeks.
However, you may be eligible to start a new claim if you’ve worked enough hours since your last claim.
Do I pay income tax on Employment Insurance sickness benefits?
Yes. You have to pay your tax because your employment insurance benefits are taxable. Your federal, provincial or territorial taxes will be removed from your benefits.
Does receiving my Employment Insurance sickness benefit statement mean my application is approved?
No. Receiving a statement does not mean your application was approved. You will receive a statement mail shortly after you file your EI application. This statement provides you with your EI access code and instructions on completing your EI reports.
Can I leave Canada while receiving Employment Insurance sickness benefits?
Yes. You can leave Canada. However, you can only leave Canada to obtain medical treatment that is not offered or immediately available in a hospital, medical clinic, or equivalent health institution in Canada.
If you leave Canada for any of these reasons, you can continue receiving your benefits. If you choose to go to another country to rest or recuperate, you are not entitled to benefits.
