Applying for the caregiver Employment Insurance claims shouldn't be very difficult to understand and process by anyone. However the website does make it complicated to understand because of way the sentences are created.
You can simply follow the few steps below to quickly apply for your Caregiver Employment Insurance:-
1. Go to the My Service Canada Account (MSCA) website and register an account with them.
Do this 2 weeks before the date you intend to stop working. This is done so that you can "View the status" of your EI application at a later stage of your application.
Select the "GCkey Username and Password".
Click on "Sign up" and create a "Username" , "Password" , and "Security Questions".
In 5 business day, you will receive a "Personal Access Code" in your physical mail address once you are done with signup.
Use this "Personal Access Code (PAC)" and your SIN card number to complete the registration.
2. Contact your employer and tell them that you need to take a "Leave of absence" from work and they will provide you with 2 forms to fill out.
1st form will need the start date of your leave of absence and the last day after which you will return to work.
2nd form, you will need to bring it to the Doctor in the hospital who is treating your child currently. Usually these works are done by "Social Workers" in the hospital. Go ask for them at the hospital and they will help you get the forms filled out for you by the doctors, to give it to your employer.
Also don't forget to ask your employer for a "Record of employment (ROE)". Your employer will either give you a hard copy of the document or they will submit it electronically to the Employment Insurance office on your behalf.
3. At the same time, you will also need the hospital doctor to fill out 2 forms for you to apply directly to the Employment Insurance office. Again you will need the help of the hospital "social worker" to help you get the doctor to fill out the forms.
1st form is called the "Authorization to release a medical certificate" and the 2nd form is called the "Medical certificate".
Remember you are allowed to claim for employment insurance only up to the time duration mentioned by the doctors in the forms. Employment insurance will cover you only upto 35 weeks as caregiver for children even though the doctor may mention a longer time duration.
4. On the date that you actually stopped working is the day, you will go online to "Application for Caregiver Employment Insurance online" and complete the online forms.
You cannot start your online application "before" your actual day of stopping to work for your employer.
If you apply more than 4 weeks after you stopped working, you could potentially lose your benefits. So don't forget to apply as soon as you stop working for your employer.
Upload those two documents "Authorization to release a medical certificate" and "Medical certificate" to your online application.
You can also choose the option "Exception for reporting to Employment Insurance every 2 weeks" in the online form. This is because of easier convenience later on, when you are receiving payment already, you won't need to give your report to them every two weeks.
5. After 1 week, you will receive a physical mail containing your "Benefit statement" and 4 digit "Access code". You will need this 4 digit code and your SIN card, only if you are required by them to report every 2 weeks about any change in the status of your employment.
6. Go to the My Service Canada Account (MSCA) website, Login and click on "View the status of your claim" to receive updates on your application.
Keep in mind that the Employment Insurance office will take about 28 days to process and complete your application. They will also "Not" pay you for the 1st week after your application is approved.
This according to them is like a "Deduction" for your Employment Insurance which you will forfeit as 1 week payment. They compare it to the deductible amount for your car insurance.
You will be receiving upto 55% of your earnings and upto a maximum of $668 a week. Taxes are deducted from this amount, leaving you with reduced net earnings.
During your online application you would have mentioned the date at which you will return back to work.
When you are getting close to the "end" of your leave of absence and employment insurance claim, you will have to call their office and inform them that you intend to go back to work on the exact date as mentioned in your application.
