EI premiums: are rebates available?
By Human Resources Development Canada | January 22, 2012
Jenine asked:
Do we, as in employee, ever get that EI back when we quit? I work in Edmonton, Alberta and I have only worked for this company for five months and I cant seem to recall if the employer puts that in your last cheque. Given I wrote a letter four weeks prior to me quitting (my notice for leaving the company). I found on this web site (very useful by the way) that I get my vacation wage/pay when I leave but does that also include EI?
Human Resources Development Canada answered:
All workers employed in insurable employment are required to pay Employment Insurance (EI) premiums. The fact that a worker can or cannot qualify for EI benefits is not a criterion to determine whether EI premiums are payable as it is the employment and not the individual that is insured. As such, EI premiums are not refunded to employees who are engaged in insurable employment. The only exception is if the employee earns no more than $2,000 in a year. These employees can have their premiums refunded when they file their income tax return.
When in doubt as to whether an employment is insurable or not, a ruling can be requested from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), as they are responsible for making make such a determination. For more information, please refer to CRAs site: < a href="http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/hm/cppwrks-eng.html">http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/hm/cppwrks-eng.html.
Vacation pay paid by an employer in respect of insurable employment is subject to EI premiums. For more information on what is considered insurable earnings, please refer to CRA's site: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/hm/pnsnbl-eng.html.