• Eligibility Conditions
• Choice of Benefit Plan
• Types of Benefits
• Benefits Amount
• Benefit Application Process
  • When to Apply for Benefits?
  • How to Apply for Benefits?
  • Required Information when Applying
  • How Do I Register for Online Services?
  • Filing Date for Your Application for Benefits
  • Processing Time
  • Payment of Benefits
  • Documents that may be required
• Specific events
• Forms
• Repayment of an Amount

When to apply for benefits

What you need to know:

Each parent must file an application for benefits.

You may not apply in advance. The earliest you can apply for benefits is during the calendar week (Sunday to Saturday) in which you wish to begin your benefit period.

Example:
You stopped working on Friday, June 15, 2007, and you wish to receive benefits as of the week of June 17, 2007. You may not file your application until Sunday, June 17, 2007.

You may file an application for benefits when you cease your income-generating activities.

You may file an application for benefits when you cease your business activities or as of the day you reduce the time spent on your business activities by 40% or more. If you are a person who receives remuneration as a family-type resource or an intermediate ressource , you are automatically deemed to have reduced your time spent on these activities by at least 40%.

Note that if you worked or received income during the week in which your benefit period begins, it will be taken into account and could reduce the amount of the first payment.

Barring exceptions, the income you must declare is considered for the week it was earned, not the week it was received.

Example:
If you choose the basic plan for 18 weeks of maternity benefits:

• Last day paid: Tuesday, March 20, 2007.
• Income for March 18, 19 and 20, 2007: $275.
• Date of your child’s birth: Wednesday, March 21, 2007.

If you decide to begin the maternity benefit period on Sunday, March 18, 2007:

You may file your application for benefits during the week of March 18. However, your income from March 18 to 20 will be taken into account when calculating the first benefit payment.

Therefore, if your benefit is $450 a week, you will receive a $175 benefit for the week of March 18 to 24 ($450 – $275 = $175).

For the next 17 weeks, your weekly benefit will be $450 if you have no additional income during your maternity benefit period.

If you decide to begin the maternity benefit period on Sunday, March 25, 2007:

You must file your application as of the week of March 25, 2007.

Your weekly benefit for the full 18 weeks will not be reduced if you have no income during your maternity benefit period.

You risk losing weeks of benefits if you delay in filing your application after your remuneration ends.

The date you file your application is very important. You may receive benefits for a period prior to the filing date. This period, however, cannot be more than three weeks earlier than the filing date.

Example:
You stopped working on June 15, 2007, and you wish to receive benefits as of the week of June 17, 2007. The date of your application must be no later than July 14, 2007.

Maternity Benefits

If you delay in filing your application following the birth of your child, you risk losing weeks of maternity benefits because you cannot receive maternity benefits more than 18 weeks after your child is born.

The type of benefits requested determines the application date and the end date of your benefit payments.

Types of benefits	The earliest the application for benefits can be filed is:	Benefit payments end at the latest (except in case of extension of the benefit period) :
Maternity (exclusively for the mother)	the 16th week before the expected week of delivery.	18 weeks after the week the child was born. Additional information about the maternity benefit period in the case of a birth (French only)
	when there is an interruption of pregnancy: the week the pregnancy is interrupted, if it occurs after the 19th week of pregnancy.	18 weeks after the week the pregnancy was interrupted. Additional information about the maternity benefit period in the case of an interruption of pregnancy (French only)
Paternity (exclusively for the father)	the week the child is born.	52 weeks after the birth week. Additional information about the paternity benefit period (French only)
Parental (may be shared between the parents)	the week the child is born.	52 weeks after the birth week. Additional information about the parental benefit period (French only)
Adoption (may be shared between the parents)	Adoption in Québec : the week the child comes into the care of one of the parents for adoption. The child’s arrival date for adoption depends on the type of adoption. For special (intrafamily) adoption, it is: the date the application for a placement order was filed with the court for the purposes of adoption. For “Banque mixte” (foster-to-adopt) adoption, it is: the date the child is physically placed in the family. For regular adoption it is: the date the child is physically placed in the family. For adoption of a child already placed in a foster family, it is: the date the application for a placement order was filed with the court for the purposes of adoption. For customary Inuit adoption, it is: the date the child is physically placed in the family.	52 weeks after the week the child arrives. Additional information about the adoption benefit period (French only)
	Adoption outside Québec : two weeks before the week the child comes into the care of one of the parents for adoption. The child’s arrival date for adoption is the date the child, physically entrusted to the parents by the competent authorities, arrived in Québec.	52 weeks after the week the child arrives. Additional information about the adoption benefit period (French only)

If you have had pregnancies or adoptions in quick succession, please contact the Centre de service à la clientèle for more information about your second application for benefits.

Last update: 2012-01-13