The benefit year is 2026. Every rate, maximum, and week limit on this page is a 2026 figure, checked against Service Canada's EI maternity and parental benefits pages at build time on November 9, 2026.
The weekly amounts. The basic rate for maternity and standard parental benefits is 55% of average insurable weekly earnings, up to a maximum of $729 a week in 2026. For extended parental benefits the rate is 33% of average insurable weekly earnings, up to a maximum of $437 a week in 2026. Both maximums rest on the 2026 maximum insurable earnings of $68,900 a year, which is $1,325 a week: 55% of $1,325 is $728.75, rounded to the $729 maximum, and 33% of $1,325 is $437.25, rounded to the $437 maximum. Your total weekly amount cannot exceed $729.
The weeks. Maternity benefits are paid for up to 15 weeks. Standard parental benefits run up to 35 weeks for one parent, or 40 weeks shared between two parents, within 52 weeks of the birth or placement. Extended parental benefits run up to 61 weeks for one parent, or 69 weeks shared, within 78 weeks. The extra weeks beyond 35 or 61 exist to encourage the other parent to take time off; if only one parent claims, those extra weeks go unused. A birth parent combining maternity and standard parental benefits can receive up to 50 weeks; under the extended option that stretches to 76 weeks.
The simplified estimate. Service Canada adds your insurable weekly earnings from your best weeks, divides by the number of best weeks, then multiplies by 55% or 33%. The number of best weeks is between 14 and 22, set by the unemployment rate where you live. This tool takes the average weekly earnings you enter as the stand-in for that best-weeks average, and it does not model the regional divisor, the Family Supplement, or tax deducted from payments. That is why the result is an estimate, not a claim decision.
The waiting period. The one-week waiting period is normally unpaid. A temporary waiver covered claims starting March 30, 2025 to October 10, 2026, and a new waiver under EI Pilot Project No. 25 covers claims starting October 11, 2026 to October 9, 2027, so a claim that starts inside that window is paid from the first week. The waiver does not change the number of weeks you can receive or speed up processing, and this tool does not add the extra paid week to its totals. Temporary measures change, so check the current rule on Service Canada's temporary EI measures page before you apply.
Quebec is excluded. The Province of Quebec is responsible for providing maternity, paternity, parental, and adoption benefits to its residents through the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan. Quebec residents do not use the federal EI maternity and parental benefits, and this tool does not calculate QPIP amounts from EI rates.
Worked examples. At $1,000 of average insurable weekly earnings, 15 maternity weeks, and 35 parental weeks: the standard weekly benefit is 55% of $1,000, which is $550, and the extended weekly benefit is 33% of $1,000, which is $330. Maternity totals $8,250. Standard parental totals $19,250, for a combined $27,500. Extended parental totals $11,550, for a combined $19,800. At $1,500 of average insurable weekly earnings, 15 maternity weeks, and 61 parental weeks: the standard weekly benefit is capped at $729 and the extended weekly benefit is capped at $437. Maternity totals $10,935. Standard parental is capped at 35 weeks, which is $25,515, for a combined $36,450. Extended parental is $26,657, for a combined $37,592.
What this estimator leaves out. The best-weeks divisor, which runs from 14 to 22 weeks by regional unemployment rate; the EI Family Supplement for families with a net family income of $25,921 or less; employer top-ups; tax deducted from EI payments; the 600 insurable hours needed to qualify; and any temporary EI measures in force on the day you apply.
Sources: Service Canada, EI maternity and parental benefits: How much you could receive (the 55% and 33% rates, the $729 and $437 weekly maximums for 2026, the 15-week maternity limit, the best-weeks rule of 14 to 22 weeks, the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan note, and the $25,921 Family Supplement threshold), opened at build time on November 9, 2026. The week limits for one parent and shared between parents, and the 52-week and 78-week windows, are Service Canada's published parental benefit rules. The waiting-period waiver to October 9, 2027 is under EI Pilot Project No. 25, announced August 25, 2026 and in force October 11, 2026 (Canada Employment Insurance Commission, Summary of the 2027 Actuarial Report on the Employment Insurance Premium Rate), re-checked November 10, 2026. No figure on this page comes from anywhere else.