Getting a Mortgage on Maternity or Parental Leave in Canada

Being on maternity or parental leave doesn’t have to stop a mortgage. Most lenders can qualify you on your pre-leave salary rather than your EI benefits, as long as your employer confirms in writing that you are coming back. The harder part is often the months of reduced income after closing. This page covers both: qualifying while on leave, and keeping up with the payments until you return. It is one of our guides to lenders, brokers and special situations.

How lenders treat income on leave

Lender policies differ on how close your return date must be to closing and on contract or recently hired employees, so it’s worth asking before you apply; a broker can steer the file to a lender whose policy fits (see what a mortgage broker does).

The return-to-work letter

This letter from your employer is what lets a lender use your full salary. It usually needs:

A letter that says you “intend” or “may” return usually isn’t enough. The broader employment letter page has a template for the standard letter lenders ask for.

Why leave applications get declined

What you’ll receive while on leave

EI maternity benefits replace 55% of insurable earnings for up to 15 weeks. Standard parental benefits pay the same rate for up to 40 weeks shared between parents (one parent can take up to 35), and extended parental benefits pay 33% for up to 69 weeks shared (up to 61 for one parent). In 2026 the weekly maximum is $729, or $437 on extended parental. Eligibility, the waiting period and sharing rules are in the EI maternity and parental benefits guide.

Extended leave spreads its total over many more weeks, so each month’s income is much lower. EI benefits are taxable.

In Quebec, the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan replaces EI. Under its Basic Plan, maternity benefits pay 70% for 18 weeks, up to $1,386.54 a week in 2026; the plans are compared in the EI benefits guide.

Employer top-ups

Many employers top up EI to a share of your salary for part or all of the leave; the level and length depend on the employer, the collective agreement and your tenure. If you have one, include the top-up letter with the application, since some lenders will count it for the period it’s paid.

Two qualification examples

The limits behind those numbers: For an insured mortgage, CMHC caps your housing costs at 39% of gross income (GDS) and your housing costs plus other debt payments at 44% (TDS); lenders set their own limits for uninsured mortgages. You qualify at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%. Both are explained in GDS and TDS ratios and the stress test.

Self-employed and on leave

Self-employed parents can get EI special benefits only by registering in advance: you must wait 12 months after registering before you can claim. With no employer, there is no return-to-work letter, so lenders lean on your last two years of notices of assessment and on evidence that the business will resume (contracts, clients, continued activity during the leave). The rest of the self-employed approval process is in getting a mortgage when self-employed.

Affording the payments during leave

Qualifying on your full salary doesn’t change what arrives in your account while you’re on leave. A simple plan, made six to twelve months before the due date, keeps the mortgage on track.

1. Work out the gap

2. Build a leave fund

Dividing the total gap by the months left before the leave gives the monthly saving needed. A TFSA savings account keeps the fund accessible, with withdrawals tax-free and the room restored the following January.

3. Look at your mortgage options before the leave starts

Lenders assess these changes on your current income, so arranging them before the leave, while you’re on full pay, is usually easier. Lengthening the amortization is covered in extending your mortgage amortization, and the trade-off between a cash cushion and prepaying in emergency fund vs mortgage paydown.

4. Count the Canada Child Benefit

The Canada Child Benefit starts after the birth once you apply, and it is based on the previous year’s family net income, so a drop in income during the leave raises the benefit only from the following July. Amounts are in Canada Child Benefit amounts.

5. Plan the return

Childcare is a new monthly cost once you go back, and licensed spaces can have long waitlists, so checking availability and cost three to six months before your return keeps the budget realistic. Once you’re back on full pay, restoring your payment schedule and rebuilding the leave fund come first.

If you fall behind

Calling the lender before a payment is missed gives you the most options (a deferral, a temporary reduction, or adding the missed amount to the balance). What a missed payment costs and what lenders can offer is in missing a mortgage payment; free, non-profit credit counselling is described in credit counselling in Canada.

Step by step

1. Get the return-to-work letter, with a specific return date and salary.
2. Gather two years of T4s or notices of assessment, recent pre-leave pay stubs and your EI benefit statement (see the mortgage document checklist).
3. Work out the gap during the leave and how you’ll cover it.
4. Talk to a lender or broker about its leave policy before a formal application.
5. Get a pre-approval from the lender that fits.
6. Build the leave fund before closing.

Other ways to qualify on non-standard income are in commission income and disability income.