Parents can receive lengthy unpaid, job-protected leave after the death or crime-related disappearance of a child. Child-death leave can reach 104 weeks, while crime-related disappearance leave can provide 52–104 weeks. Federally regulated employees can receive up to 156 weeks in qualifying crime-related cases.
There is also a separate federal income program for parents whose child dies or disappears as the probable result of a crime. In 2026, the Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime pays eligible parents $500 per week for up to 35 weeks.
The most important distinction is whether the leave involves a child’s death or disappearance and whether a probable crime is involved. Long-term disappearance leave is aimed at crime-related disappearances. For child-death leave, the crime requirement differs between employment-law jurisdictions.
On This Page:
- 1. How Long Is the Leave?
- 2. Who Qualifies?
- 3. Is the Leave Paid?
- 4. What If a Missing Child Is Found?
- 5. Job Protection & Returning to Work
- 6. What If Your Employer Refuses or Fires You?
How Long Is Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave?
Provincial child-death leave can provide up to 104 weeks away from work, while crime-related disappearance leave generally provides 52–104 weeks. Federally regulated employees can receive up to 156 weeks for a qualifying crime-related death or disappearance.
How long can you take if your child dies?
Ontario and BC provide up to 104 weeks of unpaid, job-protected child-death leave.
In Ontario and BC, the child’s death does not need to have resulted from a crime for the 104-week child-death leave to apply.
Alberta also provides up to 104 weeks under its special death or disappearance leave, but that leave applies where the child’s death probably resulted from a Criminal Code offence.
Federally regulated employees can receive up to 156 weeks under the Canada Labour Code where the child’s death probably resulted from a crime.
How long can you take if your child disappears?
Long-term child-disappearance leave applies when it is probable that the child disappeared as a result of a crime.
The maximum is:
- 52 weeks in Alberta and British Columbia
- 104 weeks in Ontario
- 156 weeks for federally regulated employees
You do not need to wait for a criminal conviction before the leave can apply. The legislation looks at whether it is probable, considering the circumstances, that the disappearance resulted from a crime.
Who Qualifies for Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave?
Parents and certain other people who have legal care or responsibility for a child can qualify for protected leave.
Depending on the applicable employment law, this can include:
- A biological or adoptive parent
- A step-parent
- A foster parent
- A legal guardian
- A person with legal custody, care or responsibility for the child
The age definition also differs. Ontario and Alberta generally use children under 18 for these special leaves, BC uses children under 19, and the federal Canada Labour Code covers qualifying children under 25.
Do you need to work for your employer for a minimum period?
Some provincial laws require a short period of employment before this particular leave becomes available.
For example, Ontario requires six consecutive months of employment for child-death and crime-related child-disappearance leave, while Alberta generally requires 90 days.
Use the provincial leave rules that apply to your workplace for exact eligibility requirements.
What if no crime was involved?
A crime is not required for Ontario or BC’s 104-week child-death leave.
However, the special long-term Alberta and federal death-or-disappearance leaves are tied to a probable criminal offence.
Other protected leave can still be available even where the special crime-related leave does not apply. Bereavement leave, medical leave, disability accommodation and employer policies can all become relevant.
See our broader Leave of Absence Canada guide for other types of protected leave.
Is Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave Paid?
The statutory long-term leave is generally unpaid by the employer, but federal income support can be available when the death or disappearance probably resulted from a crime.
The Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime provides eligible parents or legal guardians with:
- $500 per week
- Up to 35 weeks of payments
- The ability to use those weeks within a three-year period after the incident
- The ability to share the benefit with another eligible parent
This benefit is not Employment Insurance. It is a separate federal income-support program.
Who qualifies for the federal benefit?
The federal benefit is aimed at parents or legal guardians who lose income because they take time away from work after a child under 25 dies or disappears as the probable result of a Criminal Code offence in Canada.
Current eligibility requirements include having earned at least $5,000 in the previous calendar year or 52 weeks before the incident and either being on leave or working no more than 50% of your regular work week, up to 20 hours per week.
For a missing child, the child must have been missing for more than a week before the benefit can apply.
Can you collect EI at the same time?
No. You can’t receive the Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime at the same time as EI benefits.
If you could qualify for more than one income-support program, confirm which benefit applies before submitting overlapping claims.
What if the child’s death was not crime-related?
The Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime does not apply to an ordinary non-criminal death.
That does not mean you have no employment protection. Ontario and B.C., for example, provide long child-death leave without requiring a crime.
What Happens If a Missing Child Is Found?
If a child is found alive, crime-related disappearance leave normally ends shortly afterward rather than continuing for the full original period.
Ontario, Alberta, BC and the federal Canada Labour Code all provide a period of up to 14 days after a missing child is found alive, subject to the applicable maximum leave period.
What if the child is found dead?
If a missing child is found dead, a child-death leave entitlement can replace or follow the disappearance leave.
The exact calculation differs by jurisdiction, but employees should not assume their job protection ends simply because the disappearance leave has changed into a death situation.
Notify your employer promptly and get the new leave arrangement confirmed in writing.
What if it no longer appears that a crime was involved?
Crime-related disappearance leave can end if the circumstances change and it is no longer probable that the child’s disappearance resulted from a crime.
If you remain unable to work after that point, determine whether another protected leave, medical leave or accommodation right applies before resigning.
Is Your Job Protected During the Leave?
Yes. If you qualify for statutory child-death or disappearance leave, your employer can’t punish you because you take it.
Your employer can’t simply deny qualifying leave because:
- Your absence will be lengthy
- The employer is short-staffed
- The employer would prefer you use vacation instead
- The timing creates operational problems
This is job-protected statutory leave, not a request for an extended vacation.
Do you have to give advance notice?
No one reasonably expects advance notice of an unexpected death or disappearance, but you should notify your employer in writing as soon as you can.
The employer can also be entitled to reasonable evidence that you qualify for the leave, such as information confirming the death or circumstances surrounding a disappearance.
Keep your leave notice and the employer’s response.
Do you get your job back?
Protected leave normally includes important reinstatement rights.
Depending on the applicable legislation, your employer must return you to your previous job or an equivalent or comparable position when the leave ends.
For federally regulated employees, reinstatement is to the former position or a comparable position in the same location with the same wages and benefits.
Can You Be Fired During Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave?
Your employer can’t fire, discipline or otherwise penalize you because you requested or took protected leave after the death or disappearance of your child.
Get advice immediately if your employer:
- Refuses to recognize a qualifying leave
- Pressures you to return before your protected leave ends
- Threatens to replace you permanently
- Cuts your pay, hours or position because you were away
- Terminates you during or shortly after the leave
Can a legitimate termination still happen?
Protected leave prevents termination because of the leave; it does not necessarily prevent every termination for a completely unrelated reason.
Some jurisdictions also impose additional restrictions on termination while an employee is actively on job-protected leave.
If your employment ends, do not assume the termination is valid simply because the employer calls it a restructuring.
Are you owed severance?
If your employment is terminated, your full severance and protected-leave rights need to be assessed separately.
A dismissal connected to statutory leave can involve employment-standards remedies in addition to ordinary termination compensation.
If you are terminated, don’t sign a release before having your full severance package reviewed—you may be owed as much as 24 months’ pay.
Death or Disappearance Leave by Province
The broad protection is lengthy job-protected time away, but the death and disappearance rules differ enough that the provincial details matter.
- Ontario: Up to 104 weeks after the death of a child under 18 and up to 104 weeks for the probable crime-related disappearance of a child under 18. Ontario’s child-death leave does not require a crime.
- Alberta: Up to 104 weeks after a child under 18 dies as the probable result of a crime and up to 52 weeks after a probable crime-related disappearance.
- British Columbia: Up to 104 weeks after the death of a child under 19 and up to 52 weeks after a probable crime-related disappearance. B.C.’s child-death leave does not require a crime.
- Federally Regulated Employees — up to 156 weeks after the probable crime-related death or disappearance of a child under 25.
Death or Disappearance of a Child Leave FAQs
How much leave can you take after your child dies?
Long-term child-death leave can provide up to 104 weeks provincially and up to 156 weeks for federally regulated employees in qualifying crime-related cases.
Does your child’s death have to result from a crime?
Not everywhere. Ontario and B.C. provide their 104-week child-death leave without requiring the death to be crime-related. Alberta’s special leave and the federal 156-week leave require a probable criminal offence.
How long can you take off if your child is missing?
Crime-related disappearance leave ranges from 52 weeks in Alberta and B.C. to 104 weeks in Ontario and 156 weeks for federally regulated employees.
Is the leave the same as bereavement leave?
No. Ordinary bereavement leave is usually much shorter. Child-death leave is a separate, much longer statutory entitlement where the applicable requirements are met.
Is the $500 federal payment EI?
No. The Canadian Benefit for Parents of Young Victims of Crime is a separate federal program. It currently pays eligible parents $500 per week for up to 35 weeks within three years of the incident.
Can both parents take leave?
Yes, more than one eligible parent can take protected leave, but some laws cap the combined amount available in relation to the same death or disappearance. The $500 federal benefit can also be shared between eligible recipients.
Get Help With a Child Death or Disappearance Leave Problem
Employment law provides substantial time away from work because no parent should be forced to immediately choose between keeping their job and coping with the death or disappearance of a child.
Samfiru Tumarkin LLP helps non-unionized employees deal with denied job-protected leave, pressure to return early, failed reinstatement and termination during or after protected leave.
If your employer has refused your leave, changed your job or ended your employment, our employment lawyers can protect your rights and secure the full severance pay and compensation you are legally entitled to receive.