What is a Record of Employment (ROE)?
The Record of Employment (ROE) refers to a form that employers need to complete for employees. These employees will typically be receiving insurable earnings. When these employees stop working and experience an interruption of earnings, they will require their employees to provide a Record of Employment (ROE). This Record of Employment (ROE) could be paper-based or in electronic form.
It is worth mentioning that the Record of Employment (ROE) is the single most important document in the Employment Insurance (EI) program. Every year, over one million Canadian employers fill out more than nine million Record of Employment (ROE) forms for their employees.
Employers would need to complete the Record of Employment (ROE) even if the employee does not intend to apply for Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. On the Record of Employment (ROE), the employer would need to enter details about the employee’s work history with the employer’s organisation. This would also include specifying the insurable earnings and the insurable hours.
There are two Record of Employment (ROE) formats available at present. Therefore, employers can transmit the Record of Employment (ROE) to the authorities electronically. Alternatively, employers can complete paper Record of Employment (ROE) forms as well.
What is an Electronic Record of Employment (ROE)?
Employers typically submit an electronic Record of Employment (ROE) to Service Canada electronically. For this, the employers would need to:
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Submit the Record of Employment (ROE) through the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web) by using compatible payroll software for uploading the Record of Employment (ROE) from their payroll systems
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Submit the Record of Employment (ROE) through the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web) by manually entering the data online through the website of Service Canada or,
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Submit the Record of Employment (ROE) through Secure Automated Transfer (SAT), which a payroll service provider will typically perform on the employer’s behalf via bulk transfer technology
There are two different kinds of electronic Records of Employment (ROEs). Employers can typically identify them based on their serial numbers. Their serial numbers will usually start with the following letters:
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W – Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web)
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S – Record of Employment Secure Automated Transfer (ROE SAT)
The Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web) is an efficient, reliable, secure, simple and easy-to-use way for issuing a Record of Employment (ROE) electronically. When they use the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web), employers will be able to create, submit, print and edit Records of Employment (ROEs) with the help of the internet. It is worth mentioning that the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web) gives employers the flexibility of issuing Records of Employment (ROEs) based on their pay cycles.
For more details on the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web), employers would need to visit the website of Service Canada. Or, they would need to call the Employer Contact Centre at 1-800-367-5693 (TTY: 1-855-881-9874).
What is a Paper Record of Employment (ROE)?
The paper Record of Employment (ROE) is a one-page form in triplicate. This means that there are three copies of the Record of Employment (ROE). As such, the first one is the original, with the second and third being carbon copies.
On completing the paper Record of Employment (ROE), employers would need to distribute the three copies of the paper Record of Employment (ROE) by:
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Giving the first copy (i.e. the original) to the employee as proof of insurable earnings for claiming Employment Insurance (EI) benefits
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Sending the second copy (i.e. the blue copy) to Service Canada as specified on the form and,
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Retaining the third copy (i.e. the white copy) in their files for six years
It is worth mentioning that there are different kinds of paper Records of Employment (ROEs). Therefore, people would need to identify each kind based on its serial numbers. The serial numbers of these Records of Employment (ROEs) will usually start with the following letters:
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A – English or French
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It is worth highlighting that the authorities have distributed all Records of Employment (ROEs) in this series
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Therefore, employers can no longer order these series
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However, Records of Employment (ROEs) with these series are still valid
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E – English
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K – French
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L – Laser
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It is worth highlighting that people no longer use this format
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This is because the authorities have replaced this format with the Record of Employment on the Web (ROE Web) and,
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Z – The Record of Employment (ROE) for fishers
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The instructions for completing this version of the Record of Employment (ROE) are different from other Records of Employment (ROEs)
- For details, the readers would need to go through the webpage titled ‘How to Complete the Record of Employment (ROE) Form for Self-Employed Fishers’ given on the website of Service Canada
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