C-222 (45-1) - Relieving Grieving Parents of an Administrative Burden Act (Evan's Law)
Chamber
commons
Stage
Cmte Reading
Introduced
Sep 18, 2025
Progress
This bill lets parents keep their parental leave and EI benefits if their newborn or adopted child dies during the leave period.
Key Changes
- Parents receiving EI parental or maternity benefits can continue receiving those benefits for the rest of the approved period even if their newborn or adopted child dies
- Federally regulated employees on maternity or parental leave keep their job-protected leave entitlement if their child dies during the leave period
- Self-employed people who have opted into EI are also covered by the same protections
- Grieving parents are not required to file new claims or extra paperwork to continue receiving benefits
- There is an exception: benefits are not protected if the child's death was caused by a criminal offence committed by the parent, and the parent is convicted of that offence
Gotchas
- The job-protected leave provisions in the Canada Labour Code only apply to federally regulated workplaces — most workers are provincially regulated and would not be covered by this specific change
- The EI benefit protections apply more broadly, since EI is a federal program covering most employed Canadians
- The exception clause removes protection if the parent is convicted of an offence that caused the child's death — this means benefits could be clawed back or denied after a conviction
- The bill does not create new benefits or extend the total leave period — it only ensures parents do not lose benefits they were already entitled to
Who's Affected
- Parents of newborns who die during the parental or maternity leave period
- Parents of newly adopted children who die during the parental leave period
- Self-employed people who have opted into the EI program
- Federally regulated employees (e.g., banks, airlines, telecommunications workers)
- Service Canada and EI administrators who process claims
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The job-protected leave provisions in the Canada Labour Code only apply to federally regulated workplaces — most workers are provincially regulated and would not be covered by this specific change
- The EI benefit protections apply more broadly, since EI is a federal program covering most employed Canadians
- The exception clause removes protection if the parent is convicted of an offence that caused the child's death — this means benefits could be clawed back or denied after a conviction
- The bill does not create new benefits or extend the total leave period — it only ensures parents do not lose benefits they were already entitled to
Summary
Right now, if a parent is on maternity or parental leave and their baby or newly adopted child dies, they can technically lose their entitlement to the remaining leave and Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. This bill changes that by saying the parent is treated as if the child is still alive for the rest of the approved leave period — so they don't lose their benefits or job-protected leave just because of the tragedy. The bill changes two laws: the Employment Insurance Act (which covers EI benefit payments) and the Canada Labour Code (which covers job-protected leave for federally regulated workers). It applies to both regular employees and self-employed people who have opted into the EI system. Parents also won't have to file new claims or extra paperwork to keep receiving their benefits during this time. The bill is named 'Evan's Law' after a specific child, suggesting it was inspired by a real family's experience. It was introduced as a private member's bill in September 2025 to remove what the bill calls an 'administrative burden' placed on grieving parents at an already devastating time.
Automatically generated from bill text using Claude
Vibes
0 responses
Recorded Votes
| Date | Description | Yeas | Nays | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 4, 2026 | 2nd reading of Bill C-222, An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code (death of a child) | 331 | 0 | Agreed To |