Last reviewed in February 2023 by the Clicklaw Editors.

Employment insurance (EI) benefits include temporary payments to people who are between jobs. The number of weeks you can collect EI benefits is calculated when your EI claim starts, and it is based on the unemployment rate in your region and the number of insurable hours you worked in the qualifying period.

Good starting points include:

• Applying for Employment Insurance Benefits, from People's Law School, is a factsheet that provides a brief overview of EI.
• LSLAP Manual: Employment Insurance is a chapter from the manual used by law students handling cases at the UBC Law Students Legal Advice Program. Beginning in a section called "The Benefit Period," it provides details on how the benefits period is calculated, extension of the benefit period, and what ends (or terminates) the benefit period.

Need more help?

• For help with Employment Insurance, call Service Canada at 1-800-O-Canada (1-800-622-6232).
• Justice Access Centre, from the provincial government, can help assess what you need, provide information about your legal and related issues and refer you to the services that are available for your situation.
• Find an Advocate, from PovNet, is an online tool you can use to find legal advocates in your area.
• Find more help near you on Clicklaw HelpMap. 

See our related common questions:

• See all common questions about employment
• See all common questions about pensions, benefits & welfare

tags

employment insurance (EI), getting fired or laid off, job loss, EI benefit period