December 15, 2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO — The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, is pleased that Bill C-56, the Fairness for the Self-Employed Act, has received Royal Assent.  The legislation extends Employment Insurance (EI) maternity, parental, sickness and compassionate care benefits, collectively referred to as special benefits, to the self‑employed on a voluntary basis.

The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Member of Parliament for Cambridge-North Dumfries, commented on the new legislation today.

“Thanks to this new initiative, self-employed Canadians will no longer have to choose between their family and their business responsibilities,” said Minister Finley.  “It is good family policy, and it represents one of the most significant enhancements to the EI program in the last decade.”

“This government is pleased to be providing these Canadians with greater peace of mind with respect to their future financial security,” commented Minister Goodyear.  “The self‑employed have previously had little or no income protection to cope with major life events such as giving birth, caring for a newborn or newly adopted child, being sick or injured, or caring for a gravely ill family member.”

The new measure responds to the Government’s 2008 pledge to help provide improved economic security and support for all those who are self-employed.  The self-employed who choose to take advantage of the special benefits will be required to opt into the program at least one year prior to claiming benefits.  Subject to final approvals of regulations, they will be able to voluntarily opt into the EI program effective January 31, 2010, and, as a transitional measure, will be able to collect benefits as early as January 1, 2011, if they have registered on or before April 1, 2010.  Special benefits for self-employed individuals will mirror those currently available to salaried employees under the EI program.

Self-employed residents of Quebec will continue to receive maternity and parental benefits through the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan provided by the Government of Quebec.  In addition, they will be eligible to take advantage of sickness and compassionate care benefits now offered by the Government of Canada through EI.

This measure demonstrates that the Government continues to make responsive and responsible choices to support Canadians through the EI program.  It is just the latest in a series of improvements the Government has already made.




Backgrounder
Fairness for the Self-Employed Act

The Fairness for the Self-Employed Act has received Royal Assent.  Through this new legislation, self-employed Canadians who opt into the EI program will be eligible to receive the same special benefits currently available to salaried employees, specifically:

• maternity benefits (15 weeks maximum) are available to birth mothers and cover the period surrounding birth (a claim can start up to 8 weeks before the expected birth date); 
• parental/adoptive benefits (35 weeks maximum) are available to biological or adoptive parents while they are caring for a newborn or newly adopted child, and may be taken by either parent or shared between them (if parents opt to share these benefits, only one waiting period must be served);
• sickness benefits (15 weeks maximum), which may be paid to a person who is unable to work because of sickness, injury or quarantine; and
• compassionate care benefits (6 weeks maximum), which may be paid to persons who have to be away from work temporarily to provide care or support to a family member who is gravely ill with a significant risk of death. 

Under the new legislation, self-employed Canadians will be required to opt into the program at least one year prior to claiming benefits.  They will also be responsible for making premium payments starting with the tax year in which they apply to the program.  Self-employed individuals will be able to voluntarily opt into the EI program effective January 31, 2010 (subject to final approval of the regulations), and, as a transitional measure, will be able to collect benefits as early as January 1, 2011, if they register on or before April 1, 2010.

To access EI special benefits, self-employed individuals will need to have earned a minimum of $6,000 in self-employed earnings over the 2010 calendar year.

The self-employed can opt out of the EI program at the end of any tax year, as long as they have never claimed benefits.  If they have claimed benefits, they will have to contribute on self-employed earnings for as long as they are self-employed.

Self-employed Canadians who opt into the program will pay the same EI premium rate as salaried employees.  They will not be required to pay the employer portion of premiums, in recognition of the fact that they will not have access to EI regular benefits.

Through the Economic Action Plan, the Government of Canada has also implemented measures to support all unemployed Canadians.  These measures include temporarily providing 5 extra weeks of EI regular benefits, temporarily increasing the maximum duration of benefits from 45 to 50 weeks in regions of high unemployment, protecting jobs through the Work-Sharing program, and freezing EI premiums for 2010 at the same rate as 2009 to provide economic stimulus.  For more information on these measures, please visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.

Most recently, the Government temporarily extended EI regular benefits for unemployed long‑tenured workers, who are individuals that have paid EI premiums for years and made limited use of the program, and who now need additional support while they look for jobs in a recovering economy.  Further information on this measure is available at www.servicecanada.gc.ca.