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Employment Insurance (EI) program statistics

  • First-time recipients
    5,260
  • Active recipients
    1,172,410
  • Gross benefit paid to recipients since April 1, 2025
    23.62 billion

All data is updated weekly and is current as of March 1, 2026

Notes
  • First-time recipients are individuals receiving an EI payment for the first time since April 1, 2025.
  • Active recipients are individuals currently receiving EI payments
  • Total gross benefit dollars are cumulative since April 1, 2025

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List of tables

Application processing statistics

Table 1: EI application processing statistics
Employment Insurance (EI) program Week starting on February 23, 2026 Cumulative from April 1, 2025
Registered applications 52,830 3,140,450
Processed applications 56,400 3,092,930
Claims established (approved applications) 34,010 2,309,460
Recipients Not applicable 2,684,370
Notes for table 1
  • A registered application removes unnecessary duplicate requests for EI benefits that some individuals submit. It represents actual requests for EI benefits and initiates the process of determining EI eligibility and entitlement
  • A processed application represents the adjudication of a registered application that results in an initial decision. Every registered application will be adjudicated; however, high volumes can cause a processing backlog where an application registered in one week may not be processed until a subsequent week
  • A claim established is a processed application with a decision to pay the claim as it met the criteria of the EI program. As not all processed applications meet the EI program criteria, the number of claims established will be less than the number of processed applications
  • A recipient is someone who receives at least one payment. To receive EI payments, a recipient must file their bi-weekly report. Each bi-weekly filing enables up to two weeks of EI payments in arrears depending on the content of the filing. An individual who never files their bi-weekly report will not receive a payment and therefore will not become a recipient. As payments are two weeks in arrears, the last completed EI week will never show any recipients
  • This data is operational in nature and will fluctuate over time. For any given week, the number of registered applications and processed applications will not be equal due to timing and volume
  • Cumulative totals are as of April 1, 2025
  • All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10

EI benefits statistics by type

Table 2: EI benefits – Number of recipients by benefit type
EI benefits Active recipients Cumulative recipients since April 1, 2025
Regular 813,860 1,831,780
Sickness 128,370 391,130
Fishing 16,530 22,050
Maternity and parental 205,270 429,550
Caregiving 7,920 29,030
Self employed 1,160 2,490
Total 1,172,410 2,684,370
Notes for table 2
  • A recipient is someone who receives at least one payment
  • Recipients can receive more than one type of benefit. For example, a recipient who is receiving EI maternity benefits can change to receive EI caregiving benefits. Regardless of which benefit type a recipient receives, they are only eligible to receive one benefit type per week
  • Active recipients represent individuals currently receiving EI payments
  • Cumulative recipients from April 1 represent individuals who started receiving EI payments since the beginning of the fiscal year
  • All values are rounded to the nearest 10 and are recalculated every week. Rounding may cause a small difference between the total and the sum of individual values
Table 3: EI benefits – Gross benefit paid to recipients by benefit type (millions)
EI benefits Gross benefit paid to active recipients Cumulative benefit paid to recipients since April 1, 2025
Regular 6,369.57 15,121.93
Sickness 937.95 2,675.09
Fishing 137.45 384.07
Maternity and parental 3,100.44 5,228.63
Caregiving 54.62 186.07
Self employed 12.07 22.15
Total 10,612.11 23,617.87
Notes for table 3
  • Gross benefit paid (millions) represents the amount paid, before tax. EI deducts tax at source for all EI benefits. Rounding may cause a small difference between the total and the sum of individual values
  • Active recipients represent individuals currently receiving EI payments and gross benefit paid to active recipients represent the total amount paid to them
  • Cumulative benefit paid to recipients since April 1 represent the amount of EI paid to recipients this fiscal year
  • A recipient is someone who receives at least one payment

EI recipients statistics

Active recipients by province or territory and age group

Table 4: EI active recipients by province or territory and age group – Number of active recipients
Provinces and territories Under 25 25 - 34 Years 35 - 44 Years 45 - 54 Years 55 - 64 Years 65 and Older Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 4,380 8,660 8,800 10,550 15,230 7,050 54,680
Prince Edward Island 2,330 3,290 2,590 2,450 3,100 2,060 15,820
Nova Scotia 4,060 12,240 9,370 7,680 9,260 4,130 46,730
New Brunswick 4,540 11,410 9,920 9,720 12,540 5,210 53,330
Quebec 20,220 59,320 61,590 52,440 56,860 22,350 272,780
Ontario 30,870 141,620 96,100 54,400 55,660 17,410 396,060
Manitoba 4,500 13,580 9,220 5,640 5,140 1,820 39,900
Saskatchewan 3,320 10,360 7,260 4,400 4,090 1,870 31,300
Alberta 12,580 45,810 32,850 18,110 15,320 5,200 129,880
British Columbia 9,480 43,970 33,090 17,240 17,460 6,410 127,650
Yukon 130 480 420 160 170 80 1,440
Northwest Territories 100 430 340 190 150 50 1,260
Nunavut 80 190 170 90 60 20 610
Not Applicable 70 520 300 60 20 20 990
Total 96,670 351,900 272,000 183,130 195,050 73,690 1,172,410

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 5: EI active recipients by province or territory and age group – Percentage of active recipients
Provinces and territories Under 25 25 - 34 Years 35 - 44 Years 45 - 54 Years 55 - 64 Years 65 and Older Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 8.0% 15.8% 16.1% 19.3% 27.9% 12.9% 4.7%
Prince Edward Island 14.7% 20.8% 16.3% 15.5% 19.6% 13.0% 1.3%
Nova Scotia 8.7% 26.2% 20.0% 16.4% 19.8% 8.8% 4.0%
New Brunswick 8.5% 21.4% 18.6% 18.2% 23.5% 9.8% 4.5%
Quebec 7.4% 21.7% 22.6% 19.2% 20.8% 8.2% 23.3%
Ontario 7.8% 35.8% 24.3% 13.7% 14.1% 4.4% 33.8%
Manitoba 11.3% 34.0% 23.1% 14.1% 12.9% 4.6% 3.4%
Saskatchewan 10.6% 33.1% 23.2% 14.0% 13.1% 6.0% 2.7%
Alberta 9.7% 35.3% 25.3% 13.9% 11.8% 4.0% 11.1%
British Columbia 7.4% 34.4% 25.9% 13.5% 13.7% 5.0% 10.9%
Yukon 9.1% 33.3% 29.2% 11.0% 11.7% 5.7% 0.1%
Northwest Territories 8.1% 34.3% 26.6% 14.6% 12.1% 4.3% 0.1%
Nunavut 12.7% 31.4% 27.2% 15.5% 9.9% 3.3% 0.1%
Not Applicable 7.5% 53.0% 29.9% 5.6% 2.0% 2.0% 0.1%
Total 8.2% 30.0% 23.2% 15.6% 16.6% 6.3% 100.0%

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 6: EI gross benefit paid to active recipients by province or territory and age group – Gross benefit paid (millions)
Provinces and territories Under 25 25 - 34 Years 35 - 44 Years 45 - 54 Years 55 - 64 Years 65 and Older Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 35.80 87.11 77.62 86.93 124.89 61.45 473.81
Prince Edward Island 20.50 33.33 23.75 20.48 25.08 17.17 140.31
Nova Scotia 28.82 124.57 87.24 61.59 72.08 32.21 406.51
New Brunswick 34.53 112.70 84.05 75.04 96.99 42.35 445.65
Quebec 113.78 382.67 406.33 357.98 400.81 160.58 1,822.16
Ontario 223.13 1,633.79 1,025.23 457.97 459.25 136.97 3,936.35
Manitoba 33.20 145.92 88.54 43.92 39.40 14.66 365.64
Saskatchewan 27.71 122.30 73.43 37.26 34.93 15.44 311.07
Alberta 99.04 533.47 356.52 170.47 146.03 48.00 1,353.53
British Columbia 72.76 514.44 365.86 152.57 151.56 54.48 1,311.67
Yukon 1.19 5.91 4.87 1.56 1.76 0.74 16.03
Northwest Territories 1.03 5.50 4.31 2.07 1.69 0.61 15.20
Nunavut 0.85 2.48 1.99 0.99 0.62 0.16 7.08
Not Applicable 0.43 3.70 2.36 0.43 0.12 0.08 7.11
Total 692.77 3,707.90 2,602.10 1,469.25 1,555.21 584.89 10,612.11

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 7: EI gross benefit paid to active recipients by province or territory and age group – Percentage of gross benefit
Provinces and territories Under 25 25 - 34 Years 35 - 44 Years 45 - 54 Years 55 - 64 Years 65 and Older Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 7.6% 18.4% 16.4% 18.3% 26.4% 13.0% 4.5%
Prince Edward Island 14.6% 23.8% 16.9% 14.6% 17.9% 12.2% 1.3%
Nova Scotia 7.1% 30.6% 21.5% 15.2% 17.7% 7.9% 3.8%
New Brunswick 7.7% 25.3% 18.9% 16.8% 21.8% 9.5% 4.2%
Quebec 6.2% 21.0% 22.3% 19.6% 22.0% 8.8% 17.2%
Ontario 5.7% 41.5% 26.0% 11.6% 11.7% 3.5% 37.1%
Manitoba 9.1% 39.9% 24.2% 12.0% 10.8% 4.0% 3.4%
Saskatchewan 8.9% 39.3% 23.6% 12.0% 11.2% 5.0% 2.9%
Alberta 7.3% 39.4% 26.3% 12.6% 10.8% 3.5% 12.8%
British Columbia 5.5% 39.2% 27.9% 11.6% 11.6% 4.2% 12.4%
Yukon 7.4% 36.9% 30.4% 9.7% 11.0% 4.6% 0.2%
Northwest Territories 6.7% 36.2% 28.4% 13.6% 11.1% 4.0% 0.1%
Nunavut 12.0% 35.0% 28.1% 14.0% 8.7% 2.2% 0.1%
Not Applicable 6.0% 52.1% 33.2% 6.0% 1.6% 1.1% 0.1%
Total 6.5% 34.9% 24.5% 13.8% 14.7% 5.5% 100.0%

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Active recipients by province or territory and gender

Table 8: EI active recipients by province or territory and gender – Number of active recipients
Provinces and territories Female gender Male gender Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 21,730 32,950 54,680
Prince Edward Island 6,620 9,200 15,820
Nova Scotia 19,190 27,540 46,730
New Brunswick 20,830 32,500 53,330
Quebec 84,880 187,900 272,780
Ontario 197,250 198,810 396,060
Manitoba 17,810 22,090 39,900
Saskatchewan 14,830 16,480 31,300
Alberta 61,850 68,030 129,880
British Columbia 67,150 60,500 127,650
Yukon 700 740 1,440
Northwest Territories 570 700 1,260
Nunavut 290 310 600
Not Applicable 160 810 970
Total 513,850 658,560 1,172,410

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 9: EI active recipients by province or territory and gender – Percentage of active recipients
Provinces and territories Female gender Male gender Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 39.7% 60.3% 4.7%
Prince Edward Island 41.9% 58.1% 1.3%
Nova Scotia 41.1% 58.9% 4.0%
New Brunswick 39.1% 60.9% 4.5%
Quebec 31.1% 68.9% 23.3%
Ontario 49.8% 50.2% 33.8%
Manitoba 44.6% 55.4% 3.4%
Saskatchewan 47.4% 52.6% 2.7%
Alberta 47.6% 52.4% 11.1%
British Columbia 52.6% 47.4% 10.9%
Yukon 48.6% 51.4% 0.1%
Northwest Territories 44.8% 55.2% 0.1%
Nunavut 48.8% 51.2% 0.1%
Not Applicable 16.0% 84.0% 0.1%
Total 43.8% 56.2% 100.0%

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 10: EI gross benefit paid to active recipients by province or territory and gender – Gross benefit paid (millions)
Provinces and territories Female gender Male gender Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 201.84 271.96 473.81
Prince Edward Island 62.72 77.59 140.31
Nova Scotia 193.16 213.35 406.51
New Brunswick 190.96 254.69 445.65
Quebec 611.62 1,210.54 1,822.16
Ontario 2,386.76 1,549.59 3,936.35
Manitoba 203.48 162.15 365.64
Saskatchewan 174.43 136.64 311.07
Alberta 763.67 589.86 1,353.53
British Columbia 807.00 504.67 1,311.67
Yukon 9.55 6.48 16.03
Northwest Territories 8.07 7.13 15.20
Nunavut 4.25 2.83 7.08
Not Applicable 2.27 4.84 7.11
Total 5,619.78 4,992.32 10,612.11

Notes for tables 4 to 11

Table 11: EI gross benefit paid to active recipients by province or territory and gender – Percentage of gross benefit
Provinces and territories Female gender Male gender Total
Newfoundland and Labrador 42.6% 57.4% 4.5%
Prince Edward Island 44.7% 55.3% 1.3%
Nova Scotia 47.5% 52.5% 3.8%
New Brunswick 42.8% 57.2% 4.2%
Quebec 33.6% 66.4% 17.2%
Ontario 60.6% 39.4% 37.1%
Manitoba 55.7% 44.3% 3.4%
Saskatchewan 56.1% 43.9% 2.9%
Alberta 56.4% 43.6% 12.8%
British Columbia 61.5% 38.5% 12.4%
Yukon 59.6% 40.4% 0.2%
Northwest Territories 53.1% 46.9% 0.1%
Nunavut 60.0% 40.0% 0.1%
Not Applicable 31.9% 68.1% 0.1%
Total 53.0% 47.0% 100.0%
Notes for tables 4 to 11
  • A recipient is someone who receives at least one payment
  • All values for number of recipients are rounded to the nearest 10. Rounding may cause a small difference between the total and the sum of the active recipient values
  • Gross benefit paid (millions) represents the gross amount of benefits paid, before tax. EI deducts tax at source for all EI benefits. Rounding may cause a small difference between the total and the sum of individual values
  • Not applicable is used when a recipient provides an address outside of Canada. While the EI program requires individuals to reside inside Canada to qualify, some individuals may be currently out of the country on a temporary basis, or working in Canada on a temporary basis. For example:
    • a student who is temporarily abroad
    • someone temporarily working abroad, or
    • temporary worker who has fallen ill but their home address is in another country

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2026-01-29