Family caregiver leave in Ontario gives employees up to eight weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per calendar year for each qualifying family member with a serious medical condition.
There is no minimum length of employment before you can qualify. A qualified health practitioner must eventually provide a certificate confirming that your family member has a serious medical condition, but the certificate does not need to disclose the diagnosis.
If you qualify, your employer cannot simply refuse the leave because your absence is inconvenient. You must provide written notice and use the time to provide care or support to the family member.
On This Page:
- 1. How Long Is Family Caregiver Leave?
- 2. Who Qualifies?
- 3. Which Family Members Are Covered?
- 4. Medical Certificate & Notice
- 5. Is Family Caregiver Leave Paid?
- 6. Caregiver vs. Other Family Leaves
- 7. FAQs
How Long Is Family Caregiver Leave in Ontario?
You can take up to eight weeks of family caregiver leave per calendar year for each qualifying family member with a serious medical condition.
The eight weeks can be taken consecutively or separately.
For example, if both your parent and your sibling have qualifying serious medical conditions, you can potentially take:
- Up to eight weeks to care for your parent
- Up to eight separate weeks to care for your sibling
There is no overall limit on the number of qualifying family members for whom you can take family caregiver leave in a calendar year.
Do you have to take full weeks off?
No. You can take only the individual days you need within a week.
However, taking even part of a week counts as one full week against your eight-week entitlement for that family member.
For example, if you take only Wednesday off as family caregiver leave, you have used one week of your entitlement even if you work the rest of the week.
Can your employer force you to stay off for the entire week?
No. If you only need one or two days, your employer cannot require you to remain on leave for the rest of that week.
For ESA purposes, a family caregiver leave week runs from Sunday to Saturday.
Who Qualifies for Family Caregiver Leave in Ontario?
Any employee covered by Ontario’s Employment Standards Act can potentially qualify, with no minimum length-of-employment requirement.
The entitlement applies whether you are:
- Full-time
- Part-time
- Permanent
- Working under a term contract
There is also no minimum number of employees that your employer must have before the leave applies.
What counts as a serious medical condition?
The family member must have a medical condition that a qualified health practitioner certifies as serious.
Ontario expressly recognizes that a serious medical condition can be chronic or episodic. The family member does not need to be dying or critically ill.
That is an important distinction from some of Ontario’s other caregiving leaves.
What does providing “care or support” mean?
You do not have to personally provide medical treatment for the leave to apply.
Care or support can include:
- Providing psychological or emotional support
- Helping with household tasks such as shopping or laundry
- Arranging care from another provider
- Participating directly in the family member’s care
- Helping the family member manage affairs related to their condition
You are only entitled to family caregiver leave during periods when you are actually providing care or support.
Which Family Members Qualify for Family Caregiver Leave?
Ontario’s ESA provides family caregiver leave for a specific group of family members.
They include:
- Your spouse
- Your parent, step-parent or foster parent
- A parent, step-parent or foster parent of your spouse
- Your child, step-child or foster child
- A child, step-child or foster child of your spouse
- Your grandparent, step-grandparent, grandchild or step-grandchild
- A grandparent, step-grandparent, grandchild or step-grandchild of your spouse
- The spouse of your child
- Your brother or sister
- A relative who depends on you for care or assistance
The family member does not have to live in Ontario.
Can you take family caregiver leave for a parent?
Yes. Parents, step-parents and foster parents of both you and your spouse are covered.
Can you take it for your child?
Yes. Children, step-children and foster children of both you and your spouse are included.
Do aunts, uncles, nieces or nephews qualify?
Not automatically. Those relationships are not separately listed for family caregiver leave.
However, another relative can qualify if that person depends on you for care or assistance.
Do You Need a Medical Certificate for Family Caregiver Leave?
Yes. A qualified health practitioner must eventually issue a certificate stating that your family member has a serious medical condition.
The certificate must:
- Name the family member
- State that the person has a serious medical condition
Does the certificate have to disclose the diagnosis?
No. The health practitioner only needs to state that the condition is serious.
Your employer does not need to be told the specific diagnosis.
Who can issue the certificate?
A qualified health practitioner can include a physician, registered nurse or psychologist who is legally qualified to practise where the family member receives care or treatment.
In Ontario, that includes nurse practitioners and psychiatrists.
Do you need the certificate before taking leave?
No. You can start family caregiver leave before the certificate is issued if necessary.
However, a qualifying certificate must eventually be obtained. If one is never issued, the absence is not protected as family caregiver leave.
How long is the certificate valid?
If the certificate states a period when the family member will have the serious medical condition, it supports caregiver leave during that period.
If no period is stated, the certificate supports family caregiver leave from the date it was issued until the end of that calendar year.
How do you notify your employer?
You must tell your employer in writing that you are taking family caregiver leave.
If an emergency prevents advance notice, give written notice as soon as possible after the leave begins.
If you take the eight weeks in separate periods, you must provide notice for each part of the leave. One written notice can list several planned dates.
Is Family Caregiver Leave Paid in Ontario?
No. Ontario’s ESA does not require your employer to pay wages while you are on family caregiver leave.
Your employer can provide a greater benefit through a contract or workplace policy, including paid caregiver days or another form of paid leave.
Can you get EI family caregiver benefits?
Possibly, but qualifying for Ontario family caregiver leave does not automatically qualify you for EI caregiver benefits.
The tests are different:
- Ontario family caregiver leave requires a serious medical condition.
- Federal EI family caregiver benefits require the person to be critically ill or injured, meaning their life is at risk following a significant change in their health.
When the federal requirements are met, EI can provide up to:
- 35 weeks for a critically ill or injured child under 18
- 15 weeks for a critically ill or injured adult
In 2026, EI caregiving benefits generally pay 55% of earnings up to a maximum of $729 per week.
How Is Family Caregiver Leave Different From Other Ontario Family Leaves?
Family caregiver leave is designed for longer care needs involving a serious medical condition, but it does not require the family member to be critically ill or at significant risk of death.
| Ontario Leave | Maximum | Main Medical or Family Test |
|---|---|---|
| Family Responsibility Leave | 3 days per year | Family illness, injury, medical emergency or urgent matter |
| Family Caregiver Leave | 8 weeks per family member per year | Serious medical condition |
| Family Medical Leave | 28 weeks in 52 weeks | Serious condition with significant risk of death within 26 weeks |
| Critical Illness Leave | 17 weeks for an adult or 37 weeks for a child | Significant change in baseline health and life at risk |
Family caregiver leave vs. family responsibility leave
Family responsibility leave is generally for short-term illnesses, emergencies or urgent family matters and provides up to three unpaid days per year.
Family caregiver leave provides much more time but requires a medical certificate confirming a serious condition.
Family caregiver leave vs. family medical leave
Family medical leave requires a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death occurring within 26 weeks.
Family caregiver leave does not require a significant risk of death.
Family caregiver leave vs. critical illness leave
Critical illness leave applies when the family member’s baseline state of health has changed significantly and their life is at risk because of illness or injury.
Family caregiver leave has the lower medical threshold of a serious medical condition.
Can more than one Ontario leave apply?
Yes. You can qualify for more than one ESA leave arising from the same family member’s medical situation if each leave’s requirements are met.
Each leave is a separate legal entitlement. The same period of absence cannot simply be deducted from multiple ESA leaves at once.
For the full framework, see our Leave of Absence Ontario guide.
Is your job protected while you are on family caregiver leave?
Yes. Your employer cannot threaten, fire or penalize you because you take, plan to take or qualify for family caregiver leave.
Employees on protected ESA leave also generally continue to receive credit for seniority and length of service and have rights to continued benefit-plan participation and reinstatement when the leave ends.
Family Caregiver Leave Ontario FAQs
How many weeks of family caregiver leave do you get?
Up to eight unpaid weeks per calendar year for each qualifying family member with a serious medical condition.
How long do you need to work before qualifying?
There is no minimum length-of-employment requirement for Ontario family caregiver leave.
Is family caregiver leave paid?
No. The ESA leave is unpaid, although employer benefits or federal EI may provide income in qualifying circumstances.
Does the family member have to be critically ill?
No. A qualified health practitioner only needs to certify that the person has a serious medical condition.
Can a chronic illness qualify?
Yes. Ontario expressly recognizes that a serious medical condition can be chronic or episodic.
Do I need a doctor’s note?
You need a certificate from a qualified health practitioner, but it does not have to disclose the family member’s diagnosis.
Can I take one day instead of a full week?
Yes. However, even one day of leave within a Sunday-to-Saturday week counts as one week against the eight-week ESA entitlement.
Can my employer refuse family caregiver leave?
Not if you satisfy the ESA requirements. Your employer can require the written notice and medical certificate permitted by law.
Can I be fired for taking family caregiver leave?
No. Your employer cannot punish or terminate you because you properly exercise this ESA-protected right.
Family caregiver leave gives Ontario employees meaningful time to support a loved one with a serious medical condition without giving up their job. The key is to identify the correct leave, obtain the required certificate and provide proper written notice.
Samfiru Tumarkin LLP advises non-unionized Ontario employees dealing with denied caregiver leave, workplace reprisals, reinstatement problems and termination connected to protected family-care obligations.