

If you are caught up in a wrongful dismissal case, you may not know the amount of your severance when you apply for EI benefits. Normally, severance pay will impact your EI benefits start date. These include wages, salary or commissions, vacation pay, retirement pension and severance in lieu of notice. In addition, you must report any earnings you receive while on EI. Self-employed workers who received benefits through Service Canada need to reapply, along with individuals who received CERB through the Canadian Revenue Agency and those who filed a CERB report declaring they have returned to full-time employment. This includes anyone with a 900-series social insurance number, such as foreign-trained workers or international students. However, some individuals must submit a new application for EI. The transition between CERB and EI was automatic for most recipients. If you are proactively reaching out to employers, applying for job postings, or conducting job bank searches, keep a record of these efforts in the event of an audit. However, unlike CERB, the government now expects you to continue making reasonable and ongoing job search efforts while receiving EI. Just like CERB, Service Canada requires workers to complete bi-weekly reports to determine your continued eligibility. To assist with a swift transition, ensure that your employer(s) have submitted ROEs for each job you held in the 52-week period before you went on CERB. In addition, you must meet other qualification criteria. You will only qualify for the new EI benefits if Service Canada has your Record of Employment (ROE) on file. To plan your cash flow and determine how much money you stand to receive, consult the Government’s Website.Īlso, CERB recipients should make note of important changes with this transition. However, unlike CERB, Service Canada has and will tax these benefits at the source. If you received CERB, the 52-week period to accumulate insured hours will be extended. Workers registered for the unemployed program need to have made at least $5,000 in net earnings in 2020 to be eligible for benefits in 2021.

Workers now only need 120 insured hours to qualify for benefits. Eligible recipients receive at least $500 per week before taxes for a maximum of 50 weeks of benefits. The program was modified to make it easier for affected workers to receive benefits. On September 27, 2020, the Government transitioned CERB recipients to a redesigned Employment Insurance (EI) benefits program. Consulting with an accountant will allow you to plan for any taxes you might owe on this income. You will have declared this taxable income when you filed your tax returns. Early in 2021, the Government issued T4A tax slips to all CERB recipients. The Government of Canada (“Government”) did not deduct taxes before sending you these benefits. Canadians can no longer apply for this benefit. CERB retroactive applications were closed effective December 2, 2020.
Eligible workers received $2,000 for a 4-week period between March 15 and September 26, 2020. CERB was set up to provide employed and self-employed Canadians who were affected by COVID-19 with financial support in the form of temporary income replacement. At the beginning of the pandemic, a multitude of job losses following the emergency lockdown prompted the federal government to implement the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).
