Leave policy in Canada: Employer’s guide in 2026

Leave policy in Canada is governed by the federal Canada Labour Code and the Employment Standards Act in each province. Employees are entitled to 21 days of annual leave, but the days might vary according to the respective provincial law and for federally regulated employees. Paid medical leave is granted for up to 10 days for serious illness. Nationwide, there are 5 public holidays, but they vary according to the province. Apart from these, there are 17 weeks of unpaid maternity leave and 63 weeks of unpaid parental leave. 10 days of bereavement leave can be paid or unpaid. 

Before hiring employees in Canada, businesses must understand the leave policy in Canada and what paid time off (PTO) employees are entitled to. While most paid leave laws are standardized, they can sometimes vary between provinces. 

Employers might find it difficult to navigate the leave policy in Canada because of the federal and provincial regulations. Partnering with an Employer of Record, such as Payoneer Workforce Management, helps employers stay compliant and supports in mitigating compliance risks. 

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What is vacation or annual leave in Canada? 

Vacation or annual leave in Canada mostly depends on the jurisdiction. 21 days is the general annual leave in the country. However, for federally regulated employees, the annual/vacation leave increases with years of employment. They start with 2 weeks of vacation after completing 1 year of employment, increasing to 3 weeks of vacation after 5 consecutive years of employment with the same employer, and 4 weeks of vacation after 10 consecutive years of employment. Provincial Employment Standards Acts follow similar tiers, though exact thresholds vary. 

Let’s take a closer look at the vacation leave policy in Canada for different regions in Canada:

Region	Vacation leave policy in Canada
Federal	2 weeks after 1 year 3 weeks after 5 years 4 weeks after 10 years
Alberta	Minimum 10 paid vacation days (<5 yrs) 15 paid vacation days (5+ yrs)
British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario	2 weeks after 1 year3 weeks after 5 years
Saskatchewan	3 weeks after 1 year 4 weeks after 10 years
Quebec	1 day per month in the first year (up to 2 weeks)  2 weeks after 1 year, though employees can request 1 additional unpaid week 3 weeks after 3 years
New Brunswick	1 day/month or 2 weeks/year for the first 8 years 1.25 days/month or 3 weeks/year after 8 years
Nova Scotia	2 weeks after 1 year 3 weeks after 8 years

What are the public holidays in Canada?

There are federal as well as provincial public holidays in Canada. While the 5 federal public holidays are observed uniformly across Canada, the provinces observe holidays at their own discretion. Again, federally regulated employees are entitled to 9-10 general holidays under the Canada Labour Code. It is mandatory to determine the public holidays for the employee, depending on the work location and employment type (federally regulated or otherwise).  

Canadian employees are entitled to time off on public holidays. If they’re required to work on one of these holidays, they must be given an additional day’s leave in lieu or receive a premium pay rate. 

Here is a list of federal holidays in Canada for the year 2026:

Event	Date in 2026
New Year’s Day	1st January
Canada Day	1st July
Labor Day	7th September
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation	30th September
Christmas Day	25th December

Other provincial holidays are listed below:

Event	Date	Observed in
Islander Day	3rd Monday in February	Prince Edward Island
Louis Riel Day	3rd Monday in February	Manitoba
Family Day	3rd Monday in February	Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Saskatchewan
Good Friday	Friday before Easter	Nationwide (except Quebec, where it’s not statutory)
Saint George’s Day	April 26th	Newfoundland and Labrador
National Patriots’ Day	3rd Monday in May	Quebec
Victoria Day	3rd Monday in May	Nationwide (except Quebec)
National Aboriginal Day	June 21st	Northwest Territories, Yukon
Discovery Day	June (varies)	Yukon
National Holiday (Fête nationale)	June 24th	Quebec
Orangemen’s Day	July 12st	Newfoundland and Labrador
Civic Holiday	First Monday in August	Most provinces (not statutory everywhere)
British Columbia Day	First Monday in August	British Columbia
Heritage Day	First Monday in August	Alberta, Nova Scotia
New Brunswick Day	First Monday in August	New Brunswick
Natal Day	First Monday in August	Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island
Saskatchewan Day	First Monday in August	Saskatchewan
Gold Cup Parade Day	Third Friday in August	Prince Edward Island
Thanksgiving	Second Monday in October	Most provinces
Armistice Day (Remembrance Day)	November 11th	Nationwide (except Ontario, Quebec, and Manitoba)
Boxing Day (Saint Stephen’s Day)	December 26th	Ontario and federally regulated employers only

What is the maternity and parental leave policy in Canada?

Maternity and parental leave in Canada combine job-protected time off with Employment Insurance (EI) income support. New parents in Canada are entitled to 69 weeks of shared parental leave (61 for a single parent) in addition to the 15 weeks of maternity leave available to female employees as birth mothers. 

Interestingly, the province of Quebec provides maternity, paternity, parental, and adoption benefits to residents. 

Here are the details of the maternity and parental leave in Canada:

Name of the benefit	Duration	Benefit rate
Maternity	Up to 15 weeks	55%
Standard parental	Up to 40 weeks. The leave can be shared between parents, but one parent cannot get more than 35 weeks of standard benefits	55%
Extended parental	Up to 69 weeks can be shared between parents One parent cannot get more than 61 weeks of extended benefits	33%

How many days of sick leave in Canada?

Sick leave in Canada is a combination of federal programs and provincial employment standards. 3 to 5 days of sick leave is common, though it varies from one province to another. The provinces offer job-protected sick leave, from short-term paid sick leave of 10 days to long-term unpaid sick leave for 27 weeks. Employers must always meet at least their province’s minimum standard. 

Here are the details of the sick leave in Canada:

• EI sickness benefits provide financial assistance for up to 26 weeks when employees cannot work for medical reasons. Employees can receive 55% of their earnings. 
• Employees are entitled to unpaid medical leave for 27 weeks for injury or illness, attending medical appointments, organ or tissue donation, etc. 
• Employees are also entitled to up to 10 days of paid medical leave per year for the same reasons mentioned above. 

What are the bereavement leave policies in Canada?

Employees in Canada are entitled to up to 10 days of bereavement leave in case of the death of an immediate family member. The bereavement leave can be taken in 1 or 2 periods, beginning from the day of the death and ending 6 weeks after the date. 

In case of the death of the employee’s child, or the spouse’s or common-law partner’s child, the employee is entitled to 8 weeks of bereavement leave. 

What are the other types of leave in Canada?

Canada’s leave framework extends well past vacation and sick days. There are other kinds of leave, like compassionate care leave, critical illness leave, family responsibility leave, and leave for victims of family violence. 

Type of leave	Details
Compassionate care leave (unpaid)	Up to 28 weeks a year within 52 weeks to care for a family member with a serious medical condition and a significant risk of death.
Leave related to critical illness (unpaid)	Up to 37 weeks a year to care for or support a child under 18, and up to 17 weeks to provide care for or support an adult.
Leave related to the death or disappearance of a child (unpaid)	156 weeks of leave on the death or disappearance of a child
Personal leave (paid and unpaid)	Up to 5 days per year.
Leave for victims of family violence (paid and unpaid)	Up to 10 days per year if you are a victim of family violence, or the parent of a child who is a victim of family violence.
Leave for traditional Aboriginal practices (unpaid)	Depending on the province.
Leave for court or jury duty (unpaid)	For the time necessary for completion of the judicial proceeding.
Leave of absence for members of the reserve force (unpaid)	24 months leave in 60 months, except in the event of a national emergency.

What would happen if the leave policy in Canada is not handled by an EOR?

Without an EOR, businesses have to directly track and comply with Canada’s fragmented leave laws across federal and 13 provincial/territorial jurisdictions themselves. This would increase the risks of miscalculated entitlements, missed statutory updates, and compliance penalties. In-house HR would need to manage vacation accrual, medical leave, parental benefits coordination with EI, and jurisdiction-specific rules manually. This increases administrative burden, legal exposure, and the risk of employee disputes over incorrect leave calculations or denied entitlements. 

Here is a table showing the differences in handling leave policy in Canada with and without an EOR:

Aspects	Without an EOR	With an EOR
Leave calculation	HR/payroll team calculates entitlements, risking errors	Handled by EOR based on the employee’s jurisdiction and tenure
Compliance tracking	The company must track updates across all applicable jurisdictions manually	EOR monitors federal and provincial law and helps navigate changes
EI coordination	The company must independently handle EI applications and coordination	EOR manages paperwork and coordination
Multi-province hiring	Complex, requiring separate policies per province/territory	Simplified, since EOR standardizes processes across provinces
Legal risk	The company bears full legal and financial risk of non-compliance with the leave policy	EOR helps navigate leave policy compliance
Employee experience	Prone to inconsistencies or disputes over entitlements	Consistent, accurate leave administration

Are you ready to explore Payoneer Workforce Management in Canada?

Exploring and understanding the leave policy in Canada requires patience. Both employers and employees must be aware of the federal laws and the provincial laws and regulations for leave entitlements. This is also mandatory for leave law compliance in the country. 

Payoneer Workforce Management offers EOR services in Canada and helps navigate the leave policy in the country. The platform streamlines the services to onboard, pay, and manage talent in Canada, including time-off management.

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