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EI Payment Dates: When Employment Insurance Is Paid

Updated

Employment Insurance (EI) doesn’t have a payment calendar that everyone shares. You’re paid every 2 weeks, after you file your report, and the money is deposited 2 to 3 business days after you complete it. Your dates depend on your report schedule: after you submit a report, you are given the date your next one is due.

How the cycle works

  1. You file a report every 2 weeks, online through the Internet Reporting Service or by phone at 1-800-531-7555. The report covers the 2 weeks you are reporting on.
  2. After each report, Service Canada tells you when the next one is due.
  3. Payment is deposited 2 to 3 business days after you complete your report, if you use direct deposit.
  4. If you miss a report, payment waits until you file it; you have 3 weeks from its date.

Source: Service Canada, EI reporting; after you apply.

Example schedule

This is an example, not a calendar that applies to you: it shows the 2-week cycle for someone whose reports happen to be due on the first Saturday of the year. Your claim and payment details are in My Service Canada Account, and each report tells you when the next one is due.

Example 2026 cycle (if your first report happened to fall on 2026's first Saturday):

Report Due (Saturday)Direct Deposit (Est.)Report Due (Saturday)Direct Deposit (Est.)
January 3, 2026January 6-7July 4, 2026July 7-8
January 17, 2026January 20-21July 18, 2026July 21-22
January 31, 2026February 3-4August 1, 2026August 4-5
February 14, 2026February 17-18August 15, 2026August 18-19
February 28, 2026March 3-4August 29, 2026September 1-2
March 14, 2026March 17-18September 12, 2026September 15-16
March 28, 2026March 31-April 1September 26, 2026September 29-30
April 11, 2026April 14-15October 10, 2026October 13-14
April 25, 2026April 28-29October 24, 2026October 27-28
May 9, 2026May 12-13November 7, 2026November 10-11
May 23, 2026May 26-27November 21, 2026November 24-25
June 6, 2026June 9-10December 5, 2026December 8-9
June 20, 2026June 23-24December 19, 2026December 22-23

Example 2027 cycle (if your first report happened to fall on 2027's first Saturday):

Report Due (Saturday)Direct Deposit (Est.)Report Due (Saturday)Direct Deposit (Est.)
January 2, 2027January 5-6July 3, 2027July 6-7
January 16, 2027January 19-20July 17, 2027July 20-21
January 30, 2027February 2-3July 31, 2027August 3-4
February 13, 2027February 16-17August 14, 2027August 17-18
February 27, 2027March 2-3August 28, 2027August 31-September 1
March 13, 2027March 16-17September 11, 2027September 14-15
March 27, 2027March 30-31September 25, 2027September 28-29
April 10, 2027April 13-14October 9, 2027October 12-13
April 24, 2027April 27-28October 23, 2027October 26-27
May 8, 2027May 11-12November 6, 2027November 9-10
May 22, 2027May 25-26November 20, 2027November 23-24
June 5, 2027June 8-9December 4, 2027December 7-8
June 19, 2027June 22-23December 18, 2027December 21-22

How much each payment is

Each payment follows a report that covers 2 weeks. EI pays 55% of your average weekly insurable earnings, up to $729 a week for claims that start in 2026 and $749 for claims that start in 2027. Tax is withheld from each payment. The first week of most claims is unpaid; that waiting week was waived for claims that start between March 30, 2025 and October 9, 2027. See maximum EI payment and the EI calculator.

Direct deposit

To set up or change direct deposit, call 1-800-206-7218 (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), ask for a call back with an eServiceCanada form, or go to a Service Canada office; My Service Canada Account can’t be used to change EI information at this time.

If a payment is late

  1. Check that your last report was filed and accepted in My Service Canada Account.
  2. Check for messages asking for information, and that your banking details are current.
  3. Allow for a statutory holiday.
  4. Then call 1-800-206-7218.

If payments have stopped rather than just been delayed, see why did my EI payment stop.

Tax: the T4E slip

EI is taxable. Service Canada withholds tax from each payment and sends you a T4E slip showing what you were paid and the tax withheld. The tax withheld may not cover what you owe when you file, and you can ask Service Canada to withhold more from each payment. If your net income is above $86,125 (2026), you may also have to repay part of your regular benefits when you file; see EI repayment at tax time.

Sources

The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 23, 2026 and October 7, 2026. How we check facts.