Employment Insurance (EI) benefits on behalf of a deceased person

Authorization of payment
Legal representative
Was the deceased person receiving benefits?
What to do if...
Cancellation of Social Insurance Number and the card
Compassionate care benefits

More Information is available on Employment Insurance...

Authorization of payment

When a person dies, benefits payable to that person up to and including the day of the death may be paid to the legal representative, or to a person authorized by the Act to inherit property of the deceased person.

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Legal representative

One of the following persons may be considered as a legal representative:

• If the deceased person left a court-approved will — testamentary estate — the executor appointed in the will is considered as the legal representative. Please note that in Quebec, a notarized will does not have to be court-approved.
   
• If the deceased person did not leave a will — intestate estate — but the court appointed an administrator of the estate by way of letters of administration, the administrator is considered as the legal representative.
   
• If the total value of the estate is not large enough to justify obtaining an order or probate of the will, one of the persons authorized by the Act to inherit property of the deceased person may ask for the payment of benefits in the name of the deceased person.

Was the deceased person receiving benefits?

If the deceased person was receiving benefits before the death, the legal representative is only required to complete the form "Request for payment of benefit on behalf of a deceased person".

If the deceased person had not applied for benefits, here is what the legal representative should do, in the name of the deceased person, before benefits can be paid:

• Apply for benefits in the name of the deceased person; 
   
• Complete the form "Request for payment of benefit on behalf of a deceased person;
   
• Provide a death certificate issued by the province, a certificate from the director of a funeral home or an administrator of a hospital or clinic, or a letter from a physician, graduate nurse or member of the clergy.

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What to do if...

If EI benefits are paid after the death of someone in your family, the legal representative must repay the overpayment by making a cheque or money order to the "Receiver General for Canada" and send it to the nearest overpament recovery office.

To cancel benefits from Old Age Security and the Canada Pension Plan...

If the deceased was receiving benefits from the Quebec Pension Plan, contact the Régie des Rentes du Québec... 

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Cancellation of Social Insurance Number (SIN) and the card

The legal representative or the person reporting the death must:

• Provide the SIN card or a copy of the death certificate or indicate the SIN on the death certificate if the card is not available; and
   
• Send or bring in person these documents to your Service Canada Centre or mail them to:

  Social Insurance Registration
  P.O. Box 7000
  Bathurst, New Brunswick
  E2A 4T1

Note: The Social Insurance Number can still be used for estate purposes.

Compassionate care benefits

If you have to take time off from work to provide care or support to a gravely ill family member who is at risk of dying, compassionate care benefits may be payable. For more information…