Record of Employment (ROE)

Payroll

A Record of Employment is the form an employer must issue when an employee stops working, reporting insurable earnings and hours so the worker can claim EI.

Whenever an employee experiences an interruption of earnings, layoff, termination, quitting, or leave of seven or more days without pay, the employer must issue a Record of Employment. The ROE reports the employee's insurable hours and earnings and the reason for leaving, and Service Canada uses it to determine EI eligibility.

ROEs are typically filed electronically within a set number of days of the interruption. Errors or delays hold up an employee's EI claim, so accurate, timely ROEs are an important employer obligation, especially the reason-for-leaving code, which affects eligibility.

Example

An employer lays off a worker. Within the required timeframe it files an electronic ROE showing the insurable hours and earnings and a layoff code, allowing the worker to apply for EI benefits.

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Filing Record of Employment: Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions regarding our compliance workflows and service guarantees.

Whenever an employee has an interruption of earnings, such as termination, layoff, quitting, or unpaid leave of seven or more consecutive days.
Service Canada uses it to decide EI eligibility and benefit amounts. Errors or delays, especially in the reason-for-leaving code, can hold up or reduce a claim.
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Searched Questions About Record of Employment (ROE)

The questions Canadians actually search on this topic, answered plainly. Browse every question in the Canadian tax answers directory.

A tax return is the annual filing that reports your income, deductions and credits to the CRA so the final tax for the year can be settled. Payers withhold tax during the year and the return reconciles that against what you actually owe, producing either a refund or a balance to pay. For 2025 returns filed in 2026, refunds usually arrive in about two weeks for an online return, while a paper return runs on a considerably longer standard because it is handled manually.

Current and prior-year forms and publications are free to download from canada.ca, and tax software builds most of them for you as you enter your information. You can also order a paper package by phone or pick one up at participating postal and service outlets during filing season. Which forms apply depends on your situation: a T1 with your slips for employment income, T2125 for self-employment, a T2 for a corporation, T1-ADJ to change a return already filed.

Canada taxes residents on their worldwide income for the calendar year, reported by the taxpayer on a T1 return. Employers and other payers withhold tax through the year, and the return reconciles what was withheld against what is owed, producing a refund or a balance to pay. Rates are progressive and layered, federal plus provincial. Deductions lower taxable income and credits lower the tax itself. The 2025 return was due 30 April 2026.

Canada has no personal exemption in the American sense. The equivalent is the basic personal amount, a non-refundable credit every resident can claim, which cancels federal tax on a first slice of income, and each province has its own version at a different level. The federal amount is indexed annually and is reduced for taxpayers in the top bracket. It is applied automatically when you file, so there is nothing to elect or apply for.

Udit Gupta, founder of Tax Filings Canada

Reviewed and fact-checked by Udit Gupta

Ex Big 4 — Ernst & Young, Deloitte · International & cross-border tax specialist · CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program) · Chartered accountant, ICAI & MIA

Udit Gupta has over 15 years of experience helping corporations and business owners with corporate structuring, corporate tax filing, bookkeeping, payroll, GST/HST, cross-border tax and CRA representation. Big 4 trained at Ernst & Young and Deloitte, and qualified as a chartered accountant in India and again in Malaysia, he founded his accounting practice in 2014 to serve entrepreneurs, startups and non-resident business owners across Canada. View full member bio.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India — member 521458 · Malaysian Institute of Accountants — member CA 44667 · Ex Big 4: Ernst & Young, Deloitte · CPA Canada (In-Depth Tax Program), completed 19 Dec 2023 · In-Depth GST/HST Part I, 12 Jul 2022 · Part II, 5 Jul 2023

Editorial policy. Every page is researched against primary sources — the Income Tax Act, CRA publications and CPA Canada guidance — and every rate or threshold is stated with the tax year it applies to.

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