Emergency EI Response Benefit ($500/week)

Summary#

The Interim Order Amending the Employment Insurance Act (Employment Insurance Emergency Response Benefit) creates a temporary benefit under the Employment Insurance Act that pays $500 a week to eligible workers who stop working because of COVID‑19. The order was registered on April 1, 2020 and is treated as coming into force on March 15, 2020 (published April 15, 2020).

What it does#

• Adds a new Part (VIII.4) to the Employment Insurance Act that sets rules for an “employment insurance emergency response benefit.”
• Pays $500 per week for each week the benefit applies.
• Limits the benefit to a maximum of 16 weeks per claimant.
• Allows claims for any two‑week period that starts on a Sunday and falls between March 15, 2020 and October 3, 2020. Claims cannot be made after December 2, 2020.
• Sets a basic eligibility test: the claimant must
  • reside in Canada and be at least 15 years old,
  • have insurable earnings of at least $5,000 in 2019 or in the 52 weeks before the claim,
  • have stopped working (employed or self‑employed) for at least 7 consecutive days in the two‑week period and have no income from work for those days.
• Says provincial COVID‑19 payments do not reduce or cancel the $500 weekly amount.
• Excludes people who are receiving other Employment Insurance benefits, certain provincial pregnancy or parental allowances, or who receive an income support payment under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit Act.
• Authorizes the government to collect Social Insurance Numbers to administer the benefit.
• States that weeks paid under this emergency benefit are not counted when setting a regular EI benefit period.

Who's affected#

• Workers who had to stop working because of COVID‑19, including both employed and self‑employed people, who meet the earnings and residency tests.
• People who already receive regular Employment Insurance benefits are not eligible for this emergency benefit.
• People receiving provincial pregnancy or new‑parent supports, or who receive an income support payment under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit Act, are excluded.
• The rules also affect officials who administer EI, since they can collect Social Insurance Numbers and must treat these weeks differently when calculating other EI periods.

Why it matters#

• It gives fast, predictable cash help: $500 per week for up to 16 weeks to people who lost work because of COVID‑19 and meet the earnings test.
• The benefit is designed so receiving other provincial COVID‑19 money does not reduce what someone gets from this federal measure.
• The order took immediate effect back to March 15, 2020, so it covers earlier income losses in the stated period.
• For anyone unsure whether they qualify (for example, about the $5,000 earnings test or exclusions), the order’s rules are the deciding standard — and may require contact with the department that administers EI.