Beginning in January 2011, Small Business Owners across the country will be entitled to EI special benefits such as maternity, parental, sickness and compassionate care. How will this affect you and your business? Are the benefits the same everywhere? What are the conditions? How do you apply? CFIB lobbied to have a fair program but one that is self-sustaining and offers you, the entrepreneur, protection in a variety of circumstances.
The 2011 federal budget announced the Hiring Credit for Small Business to stimulate employment. If your EI premiums in 2010 were $10,000 or less, you may be eligible for a credit of up to $1,000 when filing your T4 information return for 2011. If you qualify, the credit will be issued automatically to your payroll account without the need to submit extra paperwork.
If you have relatives working in your business, you may be paying EI premiums for them needlessly. In order to determine if they are insurable you need to request a ruling as to their insurability.
The Premium Reduction Program allows employers to pay EI premiums at a reduced rate if their
employees are covered by a short-term disability plan that meets certain criteria set by Service Canada.
The Record of Employment (ROE) can be completed online. Now that ROE Web has been improved, it is even more likely to save members a huge amount of time and money by greatly reducing the paper burden involved and the potential for mistakes in filling out the forms," said CFIB's executive vice-president.
