Employment Insurance introduced a new benefit for caregivers in December 2017, called Family Caregiver Benefit for Adults. This benefit is available to help families care for an adult family member who is ill. If you make contributions to EI, you may be eligible to apply.
It will allow eligible caregivers to take up to 15 weeks off work to care for and support an adult family member who is ill. Caregivers are family members or individuals that patient considers to be like family. This benefit can be shared by eligible family members over a one-year period. EI benefits generally pay 55% of your average insurable weekly earnings, up to a maximum amount.
To access the benefit, the caregiver must submit a medical certificate signed by a Dr. or nurse practitioner saying that the patient requires care and support of one or more family members. The medical certificate and on line application is available at: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/family-caregiver-adults.html
If the family member’s health gets worse, caregivers could be eligible to combine this new caregiving benefit with the existing Compassionate Care benefit, which provides a maximum of 26 weeks of benefits.
