Social Security Tribunal Rules Amendments

Summary#

These are minor changes to the Social Security Tribunal Rules of Procedure, announced in SOR/2025-91 and published in the Canada Gazette on March 26, 2025. The amendments mainly clarify how appeals are handled (who decides what), tighten some filing and translation rules, and set a few specific deadlines. The new rules come into force on May 14, 2025.

What it does#

• Clarifies the Tribunal’s structure and which division handles which appeals:
  • the General Division hears appeals from reconsideration decisions under the Canada Pension Plan, the Old Age Security Act and the Employment Insurance Act.
  • the Appeal Division hears appeals from General Division decisions.
• Changes wording and numbering to simplify the Rules and remove some redundant paragraphs.
• Defines an “Income Security appeal” to mean appeals from reconsideration decisions under Canada Pension Plan or Old Age Security Act (and includes appeals from the General Division to the Appeal Division).
• Confirms the Tribunal will use “active adjudication” to help people participate (including asking questions at hearings and giving information about evidence).
• Lets the Tribunal require documents to be filed in a specific form and manner, and says the reconsideration file must be filed as a single organized file.
• Allows the Tribunal to ask an appellant to include an identifying number such as a social insurance number or a Canada Revenue Agency business number with their notice of appeal.
• Clarifies translation duties:
  • A party can ask for a translation of a document only when it was filed by the Minister or the Commission, is in English or French, and did not come from the party.
  • If those conditions are met, the Minister or Commission must file the translation.
• Tightens rules about late materials:
  • The Tribunal must not consider evidence or written arguments filed after a deadline unless it gives permission.
  • Factors to allow late filings include relevance, whether the material is new, whether it could have been filed earlier, and whether allowing it would cause unfairness or delay.
• Changes the automatic rescheduling rule for hearings: the Tribunal must reschedule when all these are met:
  • it’s the first reschedule request;
  • the original hearing was not scheduled to match the party’s or representative’s availability;
  • the request is made at least five business days before the hearing; and
  • the party is available within two weeks before or after the original hearing date.
• Limits filing deadlines so they generally cannot be more than 2 years after the date the notice of appeal was filed.
• Repeals Parts 10 and 11 of the Rules (technical sections removed).
• Confirms confidentiality for settlement conferences and explains how agreements reached can be filed for a Tribunal decision.

Who's affected#

• People appealing benefit decisions under Employment Insurance, the Canada Pension Plan, and the Old Age Security Act — especially those who represent themselves.
• Representatives and lawyers who act for appellants.
• The Social Security Tribunal and staff who run the appeal process.
• Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and the Commission, because they may have to file translations and organize reconsideration files as required.
• It is unclear whether any other groups are affected beyond the parties and government offices involved in SST appeals.

Why it matters#

• The changes are mostly about clarity and practical handling of appeals. That can make the process easier to follow for people without lawyers.
• Requiring translations from the Minister or Commission (in some cases) and allowing the Tribunal to demand specific filing formats may reduce confusion about documents and speed up cases.
• The rules about late filings and automatic rescheduling set clearer expectations for when late evidence or hearing changes will be accepted.
• Asking for identifying numbers like a social insurance number could help the Tribunal process files but may raise privacy questions for some appellants.
• These are procedural changes, not new benefit rules. They take effect on May 14, 2025.