For those who are self employed....

[domesticdiva]

I am self employed and have been for 3 years now. I have been finding as of lately the jobs I am getting are few and far between. My question is can I collect unemployment to help with the income I am not getting at this point? Before I was self employed I never collected unemployment or took maternity leave because it wasn't feasible for our family. I am unsure about what my options are and I am hoping that there is something out there to help me through this slow spell.
Any suggestions would be great

 

[minnie56]

DH is Self-Employed as well. I 'think' as long as you have continued to pay into UIC, you can claim it..but what would they base the amt on? WHy not call and ask? Bit of a grey area?

 

[sean-1966]

I work freelance. I can't collect UIC. I don't pay into it. Things are slow here too.

 

[dhluvsDisney]

I am self employed, and don't pay into EI. You don't pay into it, you cannot collect.

 

[mickeywho?]

If you have an incorporated business and set yourself up as an employee on payroll with UI deductions that your business then pays to the gov and when times are slow your business lays you off and provides you with the documentation to put in a claim based on the last # weeks pay.... feeling out of breath... too much long winded government talk...

My dh and I are both self-employed and have based our current years budgets (including salaries) on what we actually made in sales last year. We are constantly adjusting and as long as the slow times don't last more than a few months we're fine. If it goes much longer it gets pretty tight. So goes self-employment. The benefits are great but you really need to be constantly working on providing your own safety net just in case...

 

[misslissa]

From what I know (in Ontario), EI is based on what you have paid into it in the last 26 weeks. Generally, nothing from before that counts!

 

[dancin Disney style]

Even for those that do pay EI premiums, it is getting more and more difficult to collect. In the last several years they have cracked down on what situations qualify.

 

[canadianmom2three]

PP is correct, if you have not paid in recently, you can't collect, even though you didn't make use of your previous entitlements. 2 of my 3 maternity leaves, I was unable to collect, due to not paying in enough before hand....
My DH is self employed as well, and he does not choose to do as one of the pp's suggests, which is making himself an employee, paying self on payroll and paying the deductions along with his other employees and so on, but this is what would need to be done in order to be able to claim unemployment. All DH's other employees do this in the winter (since DH's business is seasonal) but DH is not able to do so, as he has not payed in. Winter is always tight for us, so I understand where you are coming from!

I know there are some great programs out there to help during start up of your own business, DH took part in a program that allowed him to claim unemployment for the entire first year of operation of his business, and also fully subsidized all our childcare costs for that year. It was AMAZING, and made all the difference in the world, as he could put any profits back into the business. I'm not sure if there are any programs similar to that beyond the first year. It would be worth looking into though!

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Red flags go up if you are the business owner (or a close relative) and attempting to collect EI.

 

[maggieb9975]

If you have an incorporated business and set yourself up as an employee on payroll with UI deductions that your business then pays to the gov and when times are slow your business lays you off and provides you with the documentation to put in a claim based on the last # weeks pay.... feeling out of breath... too much long winded government talk...

Red flags go up if you are the business owner (or a close relative) and attempting to collect EI.

As a, "please don't flame me", former EI employee believe me when I say that paying EI premiums as an employee if you are self-employed is:

1. waste of money as you can't collect.

2. If you do collect and then get caught you will be charged with fraud plus have to pay it all back.

3. EI has VERY stringent rules about owners of business and their relatives.

Sorry......to be the bearer of bad news......

 

[Diamondintheruff]

As a, "please don't flame me", former EI employee believe me when I say that paying EI premiums as an employee if you are self-employed is:

1. waste of money as you can't collect.

That's what I thought but it has been almost a decade since I looked into it. So it appears there are many pro's to owning your own business but the ability to collect EI is NOT one of them.