Guide · Updated September 2026
What the medical certificate for Employment Insurance sickness benefits has to say, who can sign it, whether you send it in, what the benefit pays in 2026, and how to get a certificate in Ontario if you have no family doctor or no OHIP.
The short version. To claim Employment Insurance (EI) sickness benefits you need a medical certificate showing that you are unable to work for medical reasons and for roughly how long. A medical doctor or another listed professional who treats you signs it. It does not have to state your diagnosis. You don't always send it with your application, but you must keep it for six years in case Service Canada asks for it. In 2026 the benefit pays 55% of your insurable earnings, up to $729 a week, for up to 26 weeks.
Key facts at a glance
In this guide
Yes. Service Canada, the federal department that runs Employment Insurance, states that you must get a medical certificate showing you are unable to work for medical reasons and for approximately how long.
EI sickness benefits are for people who cannot work because of illness, injury or quarantine. They replace part of your income while you are off. They are paid by the federal government, so the rules below are the same in Ontario as anywhere else in Canada.
Sickness benefits are not limited to physical illness. Psychologists are among the professionals who can sign the certificate, and our guide to stress and mental-health leave in Ontario covers that situation in more detail.
Your name, when your inability to work started, and how long it is expected to last. Service Canada lists these requirements. The certificate must:
The professional can use Service Canada's own form or their own certificate form. Either is accepted.
INS5140 is Service Canada's Medical certificate for Employment Insurance sickness benefits. It is one page with two parts:
| Section | Who fills it in | What it asks for |
|---|---|---|
| Section 1 | You | Name, Social Insurance Number, date of birth, address and telephone number |
| Section 2 | The medical professional | The dates you are unable to work for medical reasons ("from … up to and including …"), their name, speciality, licence or registration number, address, signature and the date |
Source: Service Canada form SC INS5140 (version 2025-01-007), read 16 September 2026.
The form does not ask for a diagnosis. The professional confirms only that you can't work, and for which dates. You fill in Section 1 yourself, so you don't need to give your Social Insurance Number to the clinic.
A medical professional who is treating you, within their area of practice. Service Canada accepts certificates from:
The professional must be in Canada or the United States. Service Canada adds that the professional may charge you a fee for completing the certificate.
Only if Service Canada asks. In Service Canada's words: "You may be asked to submit your medical certificate with your application. If not, keep it for 6 years in case we ask you to submit it later."
When you do need to send it, you have three options:
Keep a copy either way. A photo or scan saved somewhere safe is the simplest way to keep it for six years.
Service Canada sets four conditions. You must:
The last condition matters if you had other plans. Steps to Justice, a legal information service run by Community Legal Education Ontario, notes that commitments such as full-time school may affect whether you are considered available.
55% of your insurable earnings, up to $729 a week in 2026, for up to 26 weeks.
| Item | 2026 rule |
|---|---|
| Rate | 55% of your average insurable weekly earnings, worked out from your best-paid weeks (14 to 22 weeks, depending on where you live) |
| Maximum | $729 a week |
| Length | Up to 26 weeks, for claims started on or after 18 December 2022 (it was 15 weeks before) |
| Waiting period | One week with no payment before benefits start |
| Low-income families | A family supplement may be added if your family income is $25,921 or less and you have children, but the total still can't exceed $729 a week |
| Reporting | A report to Service Canada every two weeks, including any work or money you earned |
Sources: Service Canada, EI sickness benefits pages (amount page modified 31 December 2025; application pages modified 2 June 2026) and the 18 December 2022 extension notice. Figures current as of September 2026.
Insurable earnings include wages, tips, bonuses and commissions. Service Canada recommends its EI Benefits Estimator to check what you might receive before you apply. Some employers top up EI; ask yours.
If you work or earn money while on benefits, you must declare it on your report. Service Canada warns that if you don't, you risk being overpaid and having to pay it back.
Online, as soon as possible after you stop working. Service Canada warns that if you apply more than four weeks after your last day of work, you may lose benefits.
Not by EI itself. EI replaces part of your income. Whether your employer must hold your job depends on employment law, and in Ontario that is mainly the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA).
The 27 weeks of Ontario leave line up closely with the 26 weeks of EI. They are separate systems with separate paperwork, so one certificate may not cover both.
| What you're claiming | Run by | Medical document |
|---|---|---|
| EI sickness benefits (income) | Service Canada | Medical certificate showing you can't work and for roughly how long. No diagnosis needed |
| ESA sick leave, up to 3 days (job protection) | Your employer, under Ontario law | Your employer can't require one from a health practitioner |
| ESA long-term illness leave, up to 27 weeks (job protection) | Your employer, under Ontario law | If your employer asks: a certificate naming you, stating you have a serious medical condition, and giving the period you'll be off |
| Workplace short-term disability (income) | Your employer's insurer | The insurer's own forms, which set their own requirements |
Sources: Service Canada; Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, Your guide to the Employment Standards Act (sick leave page updated 5 February 2026; long-term illness leave page updated 9 January 2026); Employment and Social Development Canada, federal labour standards (modified 13 May 2026).
From any medical doctor who assesses and treats you. Service Canada doesn't require the certificate to come from a family doctor. It requires a listed professional who is treating you.
If you have no family doctor, or no OHIP, Doctor Fran offers phone consultations with physicians licensed in Ontario and registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO):
For a short absence where your employer only wants a note, our guide to doctor's notes for work explains what you need, and when your employer can't ask for one at all.
No. Service Canada says you must get a medical certificate showing that you are unable to work for medical reasons and for approximately how long. You may not have to send it with your application, but you must keep it for six years in case Service Canada asks for it.
No. Service Canada's form INS5140 asks the medical professional only for the dates you are unable to work for medical reasons, plus their name, speciality, licence number, address and signature. Service Canada's listed requirements for any certificate are your name, the start date and expected length of your incapacity, and the professional's signature.
Yes. Service Canada accepts certificates from nurse practitioners and psychologists, as well as medical doctors, chiropractors, podiatrists, optometrists, dentists and midwives, as long as they are treating you within their area of practice in Canada or the United States.
Up to 26 weeks, for claims started on or after 18 December 2022. Before that date the maximum was 15 weeks. The first week of a claim is an unpaid waiting period.
$729 a week. Service Canada pays 55% of your insurable earnings up to that maximum. A family supplement may apply to families with children and income of $25,921 or less, but the total weekly amount still can't exceed $729.
You should apply as soon as possible after you stop working. Service Canada warns that if you apply more than four weeks after your last day of work, you may lose benefits.
No. EI replaces part of your income only. In Ontario, job protection comes from the Employment Standards Act: up to 3 unpaid sick days a year, and, since 19 June 2025, up to 27 weeks of unpaid long-term illness leave in a 52-week period for a serious medical condition once you have worked for your employer for 13 consecutive weeks.
Yes, if a physician assesses you and finds that you are unable to work. Doctor Fran physicians are licensed in Ontario and assess patients by phone. The certificate is included in the flat $82 visit, with no health card needed. If your condition needs a physical examination, the physician will refer you to a clinic in person.
Related guides
The EI sickness rules, rates and certificate requirements were read on Service Canada's own pages and form INS5140, and the Ontario leave rules on the Ministry of Labour's guide to the Employment Standards Act, on 16 September 2026. Rates change each January; check Service Canada before you apply. This page is general information, not medical or legal advice. In an emergency, call 911.
Speak to a physician licensed in Ontario by phone. If you're unable to work, the certificate is included in the flat $82 visit, with no health card needed.
Download the appAvailable on iOS & Android · Ontario, Canada only