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Home  ->  Personal Tax   ->   Business   ->   Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Quebec Pension Plan (QPP)  and Employment Insurance (EI)  -> EI rates

Employment Insurance (EI) Premium Rates

Employment Insurance Rates Canada Except Quebec

EI Basic Exemption

Maximum Insurable Earnings (MIE) Calculation

EI Break-Even Rate

EI for Self-Employed

Not Everyone Pays EI Premiums

EI Premium Reduction Program for Employers

Historical EI Premium Rates

EI Clawback

EI Premium Tables for Payroll Deductions

Quebec Employment Insurance Rates

Small Business Job Credit - 2015/2016 Only

Employment Insurance Rates Canada Except Quebec

See Quebec EI Rates below.

The EI premium rate was frozen at $1.58 per $100 of insurable earnings for 2021 and 2022, as announced by the government on August 20, 2020, in conjunction with the announcement of 3 new benefits to replace Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).  This was so that workers and businesses would not face increased costs due to the additional expenses resulting from the pandemic.  If not for these temporary measures, the 2022 rate would have been $1.81, according to the EI Senior Actuary.

Maximum Insurable Earnings (MIE)

Maximum insurable earnings (MIE) for 2024 is $63,200, up 2.76% from $61,500 in 2023.  The maximums payable by employers and employees for 2024 is up 4.66% from 2023.

Year Maximum
Insurable
Earnings
(MIE)
Employee
Rate
Employee
Maximum
Employer
Rate
Employer
Maximum
Self-
Employed
Rate
Self-
Employed
Minimum
Earnings
(1)
EI
Clawback
Threshold

(2)
2024 $63,200 1.66% $1,049.12 2.320% $1,468.77 1.66% $8,492 $79,000
2023 61,500 1.63% 1,002.45 2.282% 1,403.43 1.63% 8,255 76,875
2022 60,300 1.58% 952.74 2.212% 1,333.84 1.58% 8,092 75,375
2021 56,300 1.58% 889.54 2.212% 1,245.36 1.58% 7,555 70,375
2020 54,200 1.58% 856.36 2.212% 1,198.90 1.58% 7,279 67,750
2019 53,100 1.62% 860.22 2.268% 1,204.31 1.62% 7,121 66,375
2018 51,700 1.66% 858.22 2.324% 1,201.51 1.63% 6,947 64,625
2017 51,300 1.63% 836.19 2.282% 1,170.67 1.63% 6,888 64,125
2016 50,800 1.88% 955.04 2.632% 1,337.06 1.88% 6,820 63,500
2015 49,500 1.88% 930.60 2.632% 1,302.84 1.88% 6,645 61,875
2014 48,600 1.88% 913.68 2.632% 1,279.15 1.88% 6,515 60,750
2013 47,400 1.88% 891.12 2.632% 1,247.57 1.88% 6,342 59,250
2012 45,900 1.83% 839.97 2.562% 1,175.96 1.83% 6,222 57,375
2011 44,200 1.78% 786.76 2.492% 1,101.46 1.78% 6,000 55,250
2010 43,200 1.73% 747.36 2.422% 1,046.30 1.73% n/a 54,000
2009 42,300 1.73% 731.79 2.422% 1,024.51 n/a n/a 52,875
2008 41,100 1.73% 711.03 2.422% 995.44 n/a n/a 51,375
2007 40,000 1.80% 720.00 2.520% 1,008.00 n/a n/a 50,000
2006 39,000 1.87% 729.30 2.618% 1,021.02 n/a n/a 48,750
2005 39,000 1.95% 760.50 2.730% 1,064.70 n/a n/a 48,750
2004 39,000 1.98% 772.20 2.772% 1,081.08 n/a n/a 48,750

(1) This is the minimum net self-employment earnings that must have been earned in the previous year in order to claim benefits.

However, special temporary measures lowered this amount to $5,289 for claims established between September 26, 2021 and September 24, 2022.

The amount of net earnings in 2020 was set at $5,000 effective January 3, 2021, to be eligible for benefits under the self-employed program in 2021, until September 2021.  See EI benefits for self-employed people on the Canada.ca website.

(2) EI clawback threshold is 1.25 x maximum insurable earnings

See our article on EI for the Self-Employed.

The 2024 rates are outlined on the 2024 Employment Insurance Premium Rate page.

EI Basic Exemption

Although there is no basic exemption for employment insurance, if an employee's insurable earnings are $2,000 or less during any year, their EI premiums are refunded in whole.

Maximum Insurable Earnings (MIE) Calculation

Employment Insurance Act s. 4

The MIE is indexed to the annual percentage increase in the average weekly earnings of the industrial aggregate in Canada, as published by Statistics Canada.  The 2024 % increase is calculated as:

the average for the 12-month period ending April 30, 2023

divided by

the average for the 12-month period ending April 30, 2022

This % increase is then multiplied by the prior year MIE calculated before rounding, and is then rounded down to the nearest multiple of one hundred dollars.

EI Break-Even Rate

EI rates were previously set by the Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board (CEIFB), which was dissolved.  A new rate-setting mechanism, which sets the EI premium rate annually at a seven-year break-even rate, took effect in 2017.  The break-even rate for 2024 is 1.66% (1.74% for 2023), and the premium rate is also 1.66% (1.63% for 2023).

EI for Self-Employed

Self-employed persons who opt into the Employment Insurance program will pay the employee rate, and are eligible only for special benefits.  The annual self-employment income required to qualify for special benefits increases annually, as shown in the above table.  See our article on employment insurance for the self-employed.

Not Everyone Pays EI

EI premiums are not payable in some employment situations.  See our article Who has to pay EI premiums?

EI Premium Reduction Program for Employers

Employers who provide their employees with a short-term disability plan may be able to pay less than the 1.4 x employee rate that most employers pay.  See EI Premium Reduction Program - For Employers.

Historical EI Premium Rates

Premium rates for current and earlier years can be found on the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) web page EI premium rates and maximums.

EI Clawback

For more information on the EI clawback, see our article EI benefit repayment (EI clawback).

EI Premium Tables for Payroll Deductions

For EI premium tables for calculating payroll deductions, see the CRA publication T4032 Payroll Deduction Tables.  See the Government of Canada web  page Annual Reports on the EI Premium Rate and Maximum Insurable Earnings for more information on how the rates and insurable earnings levels are calculated.

See also our article on Take Home Pay Calculators.

Quebec Employment Insurance Rates

Year Maximum
Insurable
Earnings (MIE)
Employee
Rate
Employee
Maximum
Employer
Rate
Employer
Maximum
2024 $63,200 1.32% $834.24 1.850% $1,167.94
2023 61,500 1.27% 781.05 1.778% 1,093.47
2022 60,300 1.20% 723.60 1.680% 1,013.04
2021 56,300 1.18% 664.34 1.652% 930.08
2020 54,200 1.20% 650.40 1.680% 910.56
2019 53,100 1.25% 663.75 1.750% 929.25
2018 51,700 1.30% 672.10 1.820% 940.94
2017 51,300 1.27% 651.51 1.778% 912.11
2016 50,800 1.52% 772.16 2.128% 1,081.02
2015 49,500 1.54% 762.30 2.156% 1,067.22
2014 48,600 1.53% 743.58 2.140% 1,041.01
2013 47,400 1.52% 720.48 2.130% 1,008.67
2012 45,900 1.47% 674.73 2.060% 944.62
2011 44,200 1.41% 623.22 1.970% 872.51
2010 43,200 1.36% 587.52 1.900% 822.53
2009 42,300 1.38% 583.74 1.930% 817.24
2008 41,100 1.39% 571.29 1.950% 799.81
2007 40,000 1.46% 584.00 2.040% 817.60
2006 39,000 1.53% 596.70 2.140% 835.38

Note:   Quebec started providing their own parental benefits beginning January 1, 2006, so their EI rates are lower.  See the article on the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan.

The 2024 rates are outlined on the 2024 Employment Insurance Premium Rate page.

Small Business Job Credit - 2015/2016 Only

A September 2014 Department of Finance announcement announced the introduction of a Small Business Job Credit.  This credit applied to small businesses with total EI premiums of less than $15,000 in 2015 or 2016.  The employer premium for these firms was $1.60 (x 1.4) per $100 of insurable earnings, reduced from $1.88 (x 1.4).  This works out to 2.24%, reduced from 2.632%, or a difference of $0.39 per $100 of insurable earnings.  The premium reduction was in addition to the premium reduction related to Quebec's Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP).  Employee premiums remain unchanged.

Revised: November 08, 2023

 

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