2. Decide when you want to take your leave

There are rules about when you can start getting Employment Insurance (EI) maternity and parental benefits and when they must end.

Maternity benefits

Only parents who were pregnant can get EI maternity benefits.

You cannot start your maternity benefits earlier than 12 weeks before your due date or the week your baby was born, whichever is earlier. And usually, you cannot continue to get them later than 17 weeks after your baby was due or was born, whichever is later.

Parental benefits

EI parental benefits are for all new parents, not just the parent who was pregnant.

You can choose to get standard or extended benefits. All parents must choose the same option.

Standard benefits

You can get parental benefits for up to 35 weeks. You'll get 55% of what you earned before getting EI, up to $695 a week.

If all of the parents have worked enough hours to get parental benefits, they can share these benefits. If you share, you can get an extra 5 weeks of benefits.  

You can share the 40 weeks any way you like, as long as no one gets more than 35 weeks.  

There's a deadline for when you can get parental benefits. You can take the benefits in the 12 months after the week that:  

  • your child is born, or  
  • your adopted child comes to live with you.  

Extended benefits

If you choose extended benefits, you can get parental benefits for up to 61 weeks. You'll get 33% of what you earned before getting EI, up to $417 a week. It was $407.

If all of the parents have worked enough hours to get EI parental benefits, they can share up to 69 weeks of benefits. 

You can share them any way you like, as long as no one takes more than 61 weeks.  

There's a deadline for when you can get parental benefits. You can take the benefits in the 18 months after the week that: 

  • your child is born, or 
  • your adopted child comes to live with you.

If your child is in the hospital

For standard and extended benefits, there are special rules if your child is in the hospital during the time when you must take your weeks of benefits 

It's important to tell Service Canada if your child is in hospital for a week or longer. 

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