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How Do I Get Back CPP, QPP or EI Premiums That I Overpaid?

Sometimes, an employee may pay too much Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Quebec Pension Plan (QPP), or Employment Insurance (EI) premiums during the year.  Usually this is because the employee has changed jobs.  When a new job is started, CPP/QPP and EI premiums are calculated without regard to premiums paid at the old job, so it is possible to pay more than the maximum annual amount.

Schedule 8 will be completed to calculate your CPP or QPP contributions if either:

If the total was overpaid, then the overpayment will be refunded as part of the tax return (or deducted from taxes payable).  The employers will not get a refund.

If the total was underpaid, then the employee will have the option to pay additional contributions by completing form CPT20, Election to Pay Canada Pension Plan Contributions.

Form RC381 will be completed to calculate your CPP or QPP contributions if either:

The overpayment refund is automatically done by tax software when you enter amounts from your T4 slips or RL-1 slips.  The taxpayer will have to choose to complete the CPT20 in the tax software, in order to make additional contributions.

There may be a situation where the CPP or QPP contributions or EI premiums have been overpaid, even though the maximum amount for the year was not paid.  If you are filing your tax return manually, you will enter on lines 308 and 310 of schedule 1 the actual amounts of CPP or QPP and EI premiums paid.  It is not necessary to calculate the overpayment yourself.  When Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) receives your tax return, it automatically calculates any overpayment and refunds it to you.  If you use tax software to file your return, any overpayment should automatically be calculated, and entered on lines 448 for CPP and 450 for EI.

If there has been a ruling that your employment earnings were not insurable or pensionable, and you have paid premiums for prior taxation years for these earnings, your employer must issue a revised T4 showing zero insurable or pensionable earnings (if that is the case), but showing the actual EI premiums or CPP contributions paid .  You must then amend your previously filed tax returns based on the revised T4s, which will trigger a refund.  See our article for businesses on recovering overpaid EI premiums or CPP contributions.

CRA has a form on which you can calculate your overpayments, if desired.  It is form T2204 - Employee overpayments of CPP contributions and EI premiums.  This form would be submitted with your tax return.

For more information on and annual maximums for CPP, QPP and EI premiums, see our CPP and EI page.

Quebec residents - CPP/QPP overpayments

Quebec residents will claim any overpayment of CPP or QPP on line 452 of the Quebec tax return.  If CPP or QPP has been overpaid, even though the maximum amount of premium for the year was not paid, Revenue Quebec will calculate the overpayment.  To ensure that they calculate the overpayment properly, the total CPP and QPP paid must be entered on line 98 of the Quebec income tax return.

Income Tax Calculators

Our Detailed Income Tax & RRSP Savings Calculators will display the amount of CPP or EI that you should have paid in the year.  You can deduct this from what you actually paid to estimate your refund of CPP or EI from CRA.  There is no entry field at present to enter the amount of CPP or EI that you have paid.

TaxTips.ca Resources

Employers - Recovering EI and CPP overpayments

Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Resources

Line 30800 (Line 308 prior to 2019) CPP or QPP contributions through employment

Line 31200 (line 312 prior to 2019) – Employment insurance premiums through employment

Revised: January 24, 2024