Social Security Tribunal rules updated to integrate Employment Insurance Board of Appeal into the appeal process

Plain-language summary · AI-assisted · not legal advice

The Social Security Tribunal Rules of Procedure have been updated to formally incorporate the Employment Insurance Board of Appeal (Board of Appeal) as a body whose decisions can be appealed directly to the Tribunal's Appeal Division. A new separate appeals pathway (section 26.1) now exists for appealing Board of Appeal decisions to the Appeal Division, with its own filing requirements, deadlines, and rules for when a decision is considered received. Key definitions — including 'appeal', 'appellant', 'Employment Insurance appeal', and 'party' — have been revised to reflect this two-track structure (Board of Appeal track and General Division track). The old requirement for the Tribunal to notify an employer about an Employment Insurance appeal at the General Division (former section 25) has been removed. New procedural rules require the Board of Appeal to send the Tribunal the full appeal record within seven business days of being notified of an appeal, and the Appeal Division must send a copy of its final decision back to the Board of Appeal in relevant Employment Insurance cases. Employment Insurance appellants at the Appeal Division may now also call witnesses in appeals involving constitutional law questions.

Who this affects: Employment Insurance claimants appealing a Board of Appeal decision · Income Security appellants (CPP, OAS, Canada Disability Benefit) · Employers or former employers previously notified of EI appeals · Legal representatives and advocates filing appeals at the Social Security Tribunal · Employment Insurance Board of Appeal administrators