This increase affects Clients’ Short-Term Disability (STD) plans where:

• the maximum benefit reflects the EI maximum weekly benefit ($638 for 2022)
• the EI maximum earnings amount ($60,300 for 2022) is used to work out the STD benefit amount.

What you should know

We’ve updated our systems so that STD payments show the increase in the EI maximum insurable earnings limit. Below are the effective dates.

• If your Clients don’t need to amend their contract, these updates will be effective January 1, 2022.

Note: Your Clients may not see changes until they get their February Notice of Payments. If that’s the case, their Notice will show backdated changes for January.

• If your Clients prepare their own statement, they must include these changes in their systems and processes.

Plan sponsors won’t need to amend their contract if their plan’s maximum disability benefit is based on the EI maximum weekly benefit or earnings. We’ll adjust their STD benefits for claims where the total disability started on or after January 1, 2022.

If a plan’s specific maximum benefits amount is less than the EI weekly maximum of $638, let us know if the sponsor would like to amend their plan. We can adjust their STD payments to reflect the new EI maximum weekly benefit amounts.

We’ll send this Focus Update to plan sponsors on December 9.

Questions? We’re here to help.

Please contact your Sun Life Group Benefits representative.