Temporary EI changes and $909 earnings floor

Summary#

This is Interim Order No. 10 Amending the Employment Insurance Act (Employment Insurance Emergency Response Benefit). It changes how some COVID-era EI rules work as people move from the temporary Employment Insurance Emergency Response Benefit back to regular EI. The order sets a minimum insurable earnings floor ($909) that yields a minimum benefit of about $500 per week, suspends some paperwork and waiting rules for a time, and makes special rules for people in training and for fishers. The measures are temporary and stop no later than September 25, 2021.

What it does#

• Credits the Employment Insurance Operating Account for the government cost of the COVID-era emergency benefit so those costs are recorded against EI.
• Sets a minimum weekly insurable earnings amount of $909, which produces a minimum EI benefit of about $500 per week for affected claims.
• Suspends the one-week waiting period for certain EI claims (so some people don’t have to wait a week before benefits start).
• Allows the EI system to stop requiring medical certificates for sickness and, if needed, for some compassionate-care and family-care benefits. The Commission can also suspend the medical-certificate rule for other special benefits.
• Changes how availability for work is assessed for people doing courses or training they were not formally referred to: a claimant cannot be paid for any day they cannot prove they were available for work.
• Lets people who received an extra 300 hours of insurable employment make claims for regular benefits and, in some cases, switch to special benefits instead.
• Gives fishers new flexibility:
  • Benefit calculations can use the highest of current-season earnings or the earnings used to set the fishers’ claims in the same season from the two previous years.
  • Lowers the earnings threshold to $2,500 so some fishers can qualify for special benefits.
  • Allows a fisher to request fishing benefits even if they would otherwise qualify for regular benefits because of the hours credit.
• Confirms these emergency adaptations apply even if they differ from other parts of the Employment Insurance Act.
• Timing: the order is deemed in force at 00:00:08 on March 15, 2020, and most substantive sections came into force at 00:00:01 on September 27, 2020. The emergency provisions stop applying on the earlier of repeal and September 25, 2021.

Who's affected#

• People claiming or switching from the COVID-era emergency benefit to regular EI.
• Low‑income claimants and self-employed people whose weekly insurable earnings would otherwise be below $909 (they get a higher minimum).
• People claiming EI sickness, compassionate care, or family caregiver benefits who may no longer need a medical certificate.
• Claimants attending courses or training who were not formally referred to that training.
• Fishers who rely on seasonal earnings and those whose earnings vary year to year.
• The Canada Employment Insurance Commission and EI administrators who will apply these temporary rules.

If something in the order is unclear about who it covers, that is because the text uses some technical EI references; the main practical groups are listed above.

Why it matters#

• It guarantees a floor under EI payments for lower earners by deeming weekly earnings at $909, which improves income support for people with low or uneven pay.
• It speeds access to some benefits by removing the waiting week and by allowing the system to waive medical-certificate requirements, so people can get money sooner and with less paperwork.
• It helps seasonal workers and fishers by using past seasons’ earnings to calculate benefits, which can raise their benefit amounts in years with weaker earnings.
• The measures are temporary and tied to the COVID response. They are set to end no later than September 25, 2021, so people and employers should not assume they are permanent.