Temporary EI Emergency Response Benefit

Summary#

This notice is an erratum (correction) to the interim order SOR/2020-61 that changes parts of the explanatory material about the order. The interim order temporarily creates an Employment Insurance Emergency Response Benefit tied to the Employment Insurance Act to simplify and speed up support for workers during the COVID-19 crisis for claims established between March 15, 2020 and October 3, 2020. The Canada Gazette entry was published on July 8, 2020.

What it does#

• Replaces the original Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement with a new explanatory note about the interim order.
• Says the Minister of Employment and Social Development can make interim orders to respond to the economic effects of COVID-19.
• Creates a temporary Employment Insurance Emergency Response Benefit that:
  • Treats EI regular benefit and EI sickness benefit claims established between March 15, 2020 and October 3, 2020 as applications for the Emergency Response Benefit.
  • Aligns this temporary EI response with payments under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit Act to make processing faster and allow automation.
• Makes clear it does not change EI maternity, parental, compassionate care, family caregiving, or fishing benefits.
• States the measure is temporary and will end when repealed or it expires.

Who's affected#

• Workers who filed or would file Employment Insurance (EI) regular or sickness claims with a claim established between March 15, 2020 and October 3, 2020.
• Employment and Social Development and other government staff who process EI claims (because the rules for processing were simplified).
• Employers may be indirectly affected because some employee claims are handled differently during this period.
• It is unclear from the notice whether any other groups beyond these will be affected.

Why it matters#

• The change was meant to speed up income support during the early months of the pandemic by simplifying EI rules and letting more claims be handled quickly and automatically.
• For eligible workers, this could mean faster access to support and fewer paperwork hurdles between EI and the federal emergency benefits introduced for COVID-19.
• Because the order is temporary and tied to specific dates, people need to check whether their claim falls in the covered period to know if the rules applied to them.