Eligibility
To qualify, you must:
- Have paid EI premiums
- Have accumulated enough insurable hours in the last 52 weeks or since your last claim
- Be ready, willing, and capable of working each day
When to Apply
- Apply as soon as you stop working, even if you haven’t received your Record of Employment (ROE)
- Delays of more than 4 weeks may result in loss of benefits
Benefit Amount
- You may receive up to 55% of your average weekly insurable earnings
- Maximum weekly amount: $695 (as of January 2025)
- Duration: 14 to 45 weeks, depending on your region’s unemployment rate and your insurable hours
How It's Calculated
- Based on your best weeks of earnings
- The number of weeks used in the calculation depends on your region’s unemployment rate (between 14 and 22 weeks)
Reactivating or Starting a New Claim
- If you’ve had a claim in the past 52 weeks, it may be reactivated
- You may choose to start a new claim if it increases your benefits, but this cancels the remaining weeks of the old claim
Documents Needed
- Social Insurance Number (SIN)
- Proof of immigration status (if SIN starts with 9)
- Banking info for direct deposit
- Details of employment in the past 52 weeks
- ROEs from all employers
