Canadian reference

How much does EI parental leave pay in Canada?

Employment Insurance parental benefits pay 55% of your average insurable weekly earnings under the standard option, to a maximum of CA$729 per week, or 33% to a maximum of CA$437 per week under the extended option. These are federal rates and do not apply in Quebec, which runs its own parental insurance plan.

How much does EI parental leave pay in Canada?
Standard option, benefit rate	55%
Standard option, weekly maximum	CA$729
Extended option, benefit rate	33%
Extended option, weekly maximum	CA$437
Applies in Quebec	No. Quebec uses the QPIP instead.

What this means in practice

The rate applies to your average insurable weekly earnings, not to your gross salary, so the amount you receive is usually lower than the rate alone suggests.
The extended option pays a lower weekly amount over a longer period. It does not pay more in total than the standard option for the same shared weeks.
Quebec residents are covered by the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan, which has its own rates, weeks and rules. Nothing on this page applies there.

What this page does not decide

This page states the published federal rate. It does not determine your eligibility, your insurable earnings, the number of weeks you can claim, how weeks are shared, the effect of an employer top-up, or the outcome of an application. Those are decided by Service Canada on your actual record.

Source and review state

Rule CA-PLM-EI-2026-RATES version 1.0.0, in bundle 2026.08.12. Effective 2026-01-01, next review 2026-12-31.

Government of Canada: EI maternity and parental benefit amount

Why we show the review date

A rate published without a date is impossible to check. Every high-impact figure on this site carries its source, its version and the date it must be reviewed again, and it stops being presented as current when that date passes.