Canadian Unemployment Insurance (Employment Insurance, EI)

Canada's unemployment safety net is essentially EI (Employment Insurance), run directly by the federal government. Unlike the US, it's not state-by-state — every province, including Quebec, uses the same EI system (Quebec only carves out maternity/parental, which goes through QPIP). EI isn't just unemployment pay — it's a multi-purpose insurance that also covers maternity, parental, sickness, and compassionate care leave.

EI enrolment and premiums

• Mandatory: if you earn employment income in Canada, you're almost certainly enrolled automatically. Premiums are split between you and your employer (self-employed see EI Special Benefits).
• Self-employed: not eligible for regular unemployment EI. You can opt in to special benefits (maternity, parental, sickness, etc.) — once you opt in, there's a waiting period before you can claim, and exit is restricted.
• Quebec: maternity and parental leave is covered by QPIP (Régime québécois d'assurance parentale), not EI, with separate premiums.

EI Regular Benefits

• Eligibility:
  • Lost your job through no fault of your own (layoff, end of contract, downsizing, etc.).
  • About 420–700 insured hours of work in the last 52 weeks (or since your last claim), depending on the unemployment rate in your region.
  • Ready, willing, and actively looking for work.
• Amount: roughly 55% of average earnings from your best weeks, with a weekly cap (adjusted annually).
• Duration: between 14 and 45 weeks, depending on your region's unemployment rate and your insured hours.
• One-week waiting period: the first week is unpaid; payments start after.

Special Benefits

EI also includes the following leave benefits beyond regular unemployment:

• Maternity benefits — birth parent, up to 15 weeks
• Parental benefits — Standard ~35 weeks at 55%, or Extended ~61 weeks at 33%
• Sickness benefits — your own illness or injury, up to 26 weeks
• Compassionate care / Family caregiver — caring for a critically ill family member
• For maternity and parental, see the dedicated parental entry.

Applying and the job-search obligation

• Apply through My Service Canada Account as soon as your employer issues your Record of Employment (ROE).
• File a bi-weekly report to declare your job-search activity and any earnings.
• Wrongful dismissal or quitting with just cause may still be eligible, but plain voluntary quits are almost always denied.
• Earning some income while on EI is fine within the Working While on Claim rules — a portion is offset, the rest paid alongside benefits.

From an immigrant perspective

• Work permit holders pay premiums and are insured, but actual payments require valid authorization to work. If your work permit lapses, payments may stop even if you're unemployed.
• PRs and citizens are treated like any other worker.
• Leaving Canada for Korea generally ends your EI claim (with limited exceptions for short overseas job searches).

Official guidance: Canada.ca: Employment Insurance, QPIP