Employment Insurance (EI)

Decision

[1] I find that the Claimant is not entitled to receive Employment Insurance (EI) regular benefits from April 20, 2020, to July 14, 2020, because she was outside Canada. The reason she was outside Canada does not fall within the list of exceptions under the law.

Overview

[2] The Claimant left Canada on December 27, 2019, because her mother was became very ill and was hospitalized overseas. The Claimant says her plan was to return to Canada in March 2020, but her mother passed away on March 9, 2020, and all flights were cancelled shortly afterwards due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She could not return until July 14, 2020.

[3] The Claimant says she got EI compassionate care benefits for the first part of her absence until her mother died. She made a renewal claim for regular benefits on April 24, 2020, because she could not get home. She wants to receive benefits from April 20, 2020, to July 14, 2020.

[4] The Claimant says she should be able to receive benefits since, through no fault of her own, she could not return to Canada. The Commission says she cannot receive benefits because you can only get regular benefits during absences from Canada in specific circumstances.  

Issue

[5] I must decide whether the Claimant can get EI regular benefits while she was outside Canada from April 20, 2020, until July 14, 2020.

Analysis

[6] Usually, you cannot receive EI regular benefits if you are outside Canada.^{Footnote 1} There are some exceptions that allow you to claim benefits.^{Footnote 2} If you are outside Canada for one of the following reasons, you might be able to get benefits:

• to get medical treatment that is not readily or immediately available in Canada;
• to travel with a family member who is getting medical treatment outside Canada;
• to visit a seriously ill or injured family member;
• to attend the funeral of a family member; 
• to attend a job interview; or
• to conduct a job search.

[7] It is up to you to prove that you meet all the requirements to receive regular benefits. This means you have to prove that one of the above exceptions applied to you while you were outside Canada.^{Footnote 3}

Why was the Claimant outside Canada after her mother passed away?

[8] I find that the Claimant was outside Canada after her mother passed away because the COVID-19 pandemic led to mass flights cancellations. I accept that she would have returned to Canada earlier if these travel restrictions had not been in place.

[9] The Claimant says she had a return flight home but her mother got sicker, so she delayed her return. She says she tried to rebook her flight after her mother’s death on March 9, 2020, and the funeral on March 21, 2020, but all flights to Canada were cancelled due to the pandemic. She argues that she could not return until July 14, 2020, because this was the first available flight.

Can the Claimant receive regular benefits while outside Canada?

[10] The Claimant says that she should get regular benefits after her compassionate care benefits ended because the situation was out of her control. She argues that her circumstances were exceptional because the COVID-19 pandemic prevented her from returning to Canada.

[11] The Commission says the Claimant can only receive benefits if she proves that one of the exceptions listed in the law applies to her situation.

[12] I agree that the COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation, but you cannot receive benefits while outside Canada unless you meet one of the listed exceptions.^{Footnote 4}

[13] The Claimant was outside Canada from April 20, 2020, to July 14, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed her return. However, she has not proved that she is entitled to regular benefits during this period because being stranded outside Canada due to a pandemic is not one of the exceptions listed in the law.

[14] While I am extremely sympathetic to the Claimant’s situation, I do not have the power to add other circumstances to the list of exceptions, even in special circumstances. I cannot interpret the law in any other way than its plain meaning.^{Footnote 5}  As is the case with other insurance plans, EI benefits are subject to the plan’s conditions.^{Footnote 6} The EI plan says claimants have to be in Canada to receive benefits.

Conclusion

[15] The appeal is dismissed.