Workplace benefits belong to the employer’s group contract, so they usually stop soon after your job does. Canada has no general right to stay on a former employer’s health plan the way the US COBRA rules allow. What you can keep depends on the plan booklet: some cover converts to an individual policy within a short window, some can be replaced through a spouse’s plan, and the rest has to be bought new.
When cover ends
| How the job ends | What usually happens |
|---|---|
| You resign | Cover ends on your last day or at the end of that month, depending on the plan |
| Termination without cause | Ontario requires the employer to keep up benefit plan contributions through the statutory notice period, even when it pays termination pay instead of working notice; other provinces and contracts vary, and a negotiated package can extend cover further |
| Temporary layoff | Some plans continue cover for a set period; the plan terms decide |
| Retirement | Group life may convert; health and dental often end unless there is a retiree plan |
The minimum notice by province, and how pay in lieu works, are in the notice period guide. Benefit continuation is also one of the terms commonly negotiated in a severance package.
Conversion and portability
| Benefit | Typical option when you leave | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Group life insurance | Many plans let you convert to an individual policy without a medical exam, within a short window after cover ends | Ask the insurer for the conversion form and deadline |
| Optional or spousal life | Often the same conversion right as basic group life | Include it in the same request |
| Long-term disability | Rarely convertible; some plans offer a limited individual policy | Ask the insurer; otherwise compare individual disability cover |
| Extended health and dental | Usually no conversion right; some insurers sell individual plans aimed at people whose group cover has ended | Ask the plan’s insurer what it offers departing members, and compare individual quotes before cover ends |
The deadline is set by the plan booklet, and once a conversion window closes the right is usually gone, so the date is worth noting the day you leave. How group life compares with buying your own policy is covered in life insurance through your employer.
Use benefits before they end
| Before your last day | Why |
|---|---|
| Dental cleanings, exams and planned work | Claims after the end date aren’t covered |
| Eye exam and glasses or contacts | Use any remaining vision allowance |
| Physiotherapy, massage, chiropractic, counselling | Use remaining paramedical maximums |
| Prescription refills | Refills filled before the end date are covered under the plan’s rules |
| Outstanding receipts | Most plans set a deadline to submit claims after cover ends |
| Your benefits booklet | Has the conversion rights and deadlines |
Joining a spouse’s plan
Losing your own group cover is usually a life event that lets a spouse add you to their plan outside the normal enrolment period, as long as they apply within the plan’s deadline. Spousal cover under a group plan doesn’t normally require medical underwriting. If both of you keep group plans, coordination of benefits explains which plan pays first.
Buying individual cover
If there is no spouse’s plan, the replacement for extended health and dental is an individual plan. Plans that ask medical questions can exclude pre-existing conditions, so the timing of an application and the plan’s terms matter. Plan types, what they cover and how to compare them are in the guide to individual health insurance in Canada.
For life insurance, a healthy person can often buy new term cover for less than a converted group policy, while someone with a health condition may find the no-medical conversion is the only cover available. For income protection, the disability insurance guide covers individual policies, and whether group long-term disability payments are taxed is covered in whether LTD income is taxable.
Public programs that don’t depend on your job
| Program | Relevance after leaving a job |
|---|---|
| Provincial health insurance (OHIP, MSP, AHCIP and the others) | Continues regardless of employment |
| Provincial drug programs | Some provinces cover prescription costs for residents without private cover, often based on income |
| EI sickness benefits | Up to 26 weeks at 55% of insurable earnings, up to a weekly maximum, if illness or injury stops you from working and you qualify |
| CPP disability | For a severe and prolonged disability, separate from any group LTD |
Related reading
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them on September 23, 2026. How we check facts.
- Government of Canada: EI sickness benefits: What these benefits offer