4. Figure out how much you can get

If you choose standard parental benefits, you'll get 55% of what you earned before getting Employment Insurance (EI), up to $668 a week. 

If you choose extended parental benefits, you'll get 33% of what you earned before getting EI, up to $401 a week.

EI benefits are taxable. This means that federal and provincial income tax is taken from your benefits.

Family supplement

The Family Supplement is an extra amount you get if:

• you, or your spouse or common-law partner who you live with, gets the Canada child benefit (CCB), and
• your annual family income after taxes is $25,921 or less.

This can increase your benefits to as much as 80% of what you earned before getting EI. But the most you can get is still $668 a week.

If you and your spouse or common-law partner both get EI benefits at the same time, only one of you can get the Family Supplement. Usually, it's better if the one who gets less EI gets the Family Supplement.

Earnings exemptions

If you work while getting parental benefits or maternity benefits, you can keep some of the money you earn. This is called an earnings exemption.

But half of what you earn each week is taken off your EI benefits.

This applies as long as you do not earn more than 90% of the average weekly earnings your benefit was based on. For every dollar you earn above the 90%, EI takes a dollar off your benefits.