Canada EI Premium Calculator

EI is a smaller deduction than income tax or CPP, but it comes off every pay cheque up to an annual cap, and the employer pays more than the employee. This calculator estimates the Employment Insurance premiums on employment income for both.

What the EI premium calculator does

Enter your annual employment income, and tick the Quebec option if it applies. The tool returns your employee EI premium, the employer premium, the combined total and the effective rate on your income, which explains the EI line on a pay cheque and gives the full-year figure.

How the calculation works

EI applies one premium rate to your insurable earnings up to the annual maximum insurable earnings. The rate is quoted per $100 of earnings, and the calculator converts it before applying it. Below the maximum, EI applies to all your income; above it, only up to the cap.

The employer premium is 1.4 times the employee premium, so for every dollar of EI an employee pays, the employer pays $1.40. The tool shows the employer share and the combined total.

Why the employer pays more

The larger employer share is part of the program’s design. The amount on your pay cheque is only part of the EI cost of your job, and EI is one of the payroll costs that makes an employee cost an employer more than the salary.

A worked example

At $60,000 of income, below the 2026 maximum of $68,900, the employee premium is 1.63% of the full amount, $978. The employer pays 1.4 times that, $1,369.20, for a combined $2,347.20.

At $100,000, EI applies only to the first $68,900, so the employee premium is capped at about $1,123.07 and the employer pays about $1,572.30, a combined $2,695.37. The effective rate on the employee falls to about 1.12%, because income above the cap attracts no EI.

A Quebec worker earning $60,000 pays 1.30%, $780, and the employer $1,092, plus separate QPIP premiums.

Reading your pay cheque

EI comes off each pay until you reach the annual maximum, then stops, and take-home pay rises for the rest of the year. If you have more than one job, each employer deducts EI separately. With two jobs paying $60,000 each, each employer would withhold $978, about $1,956 in total, well above the annual employee maximum of about $1,123. The excess is refunded when you file your return; the employers do not get their share back.

EI premiums fund regular, sickness, maternity and parental benefits, so they work more like insurance than a tax.

Quebec and the rest of Canada

EI is federal, so the maximum insurable earnings are the same everywhere, but Quebec workers pay a lower rate because QPIP funds parental benefits there, with its own employee and employer premiums. Outside Quebec, the same rate and the same 1.4 multiplier apply in every province and territory. Your EI premium appears in box 18 of your T4 slip, and the insurable earnings it was charged on in box 24.

Common mistakes and planning tips

EI does not come off every cheque all year; once your insurable earnings reach the maximum, deductions stop. With several employers you may overpay, and the CRA reconciles that on your return. The premium is what you pay in, not what you would receive in benefits. If you are self-employed, EI is not deducted automatically, though you can opt into a program for certain special benefits through Service Canada. Check box 18 of your T4 against the annual figure here.

Assumptions and limits

The calculator uses the current EI premium rates, the maximum insurable earnings and the employer multiplier from maintained data. It does not model QPIP premiums, the optional self-employed program, multi-employer refunds or income tax, and it assumes standard insurable employment income. Rates and the maximum are reset each year, so revisit the estimate when they change. The result estimates premiums, not benefits.

This is general information only and not financial advice.

About This Tool: EI Calculator Canada

EI calculator Canada: use this tool to get an instant, accurate estimate. The figures follow official guidance and every rate and threshold is kept up to date for 2026. Adjust the inputs above to match your situation, or browse all our calculators to plan your next step.