RQAP: Quebec Parental Insurance Plan Eligibility, Benefit Weeks, and Amounts (2026)

Quebec's Régime québécois d'assurance parentale (RQAP) pays maternity, paternity, parental, and adoption benefits to eligible Quebec parents whose insurable earnings reach at least $2,000 during their reference period, with a choice, irrevocable except in exceptional circumstances, between a basic plan offering more weeks and a special plan offering higher weekly benefits over a shorter period.

Information last verified on 2026-09-24. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

This article covers RQAP benefits paid under the Act Respecting Parental Insurance, CQLR c A-29.011, which applies to eligible Quebec residents claiming maternity, paternity, parental, or adoption benefits. It does not cover the unpaid, job-protected leave that the Act Respecting Labour Standards (LNT) gives an employee to safeguard their job during that time; RQAP pays a government income benefit, while the LNT grants a protected leave from the employer. These are two distinct regimes, and their durations do not necessarily match. For the LNT's job-protected leave, see Parental Leave in Quebec: The Act Respecting Labour Standards. For the comparison between federal Employment Insurance and job-protected leave, see EI Benefits vs. Job-Protected Leave in Canada.

Who Is Eligible for RQAP

Article 3 of the Act Respecting Parental Insurance sets four cumulative eligibility conditions. A person must:

1. Have contributed to RQAP (or, in limited cases set out by regulation, to federal Employment Insurance or an equivalent plan in another province or territory) during their reference period.
2. Reside in Quebec at the start of their benefit period (a self-employed worker or an intermediate or family-type resource must also reside in Quebec on December 31 of the preceding year).
3. Have insurable earnings of at least $2,000 during their reference period (called the qualifying period in the official English text of the Act).
4. Have had an interruption of earnings, as defined by a Retraite Québec regulation: for a salaried employee, a drop of at least 40% in usual weekly income; for a self-employed worker, a drop of at least 40% in time devoted to their business; for an intermediate or family-type resource, the interruption is presumed.

The Act states the earnings threshold directly, in its third condition:

"(3) the person’s insurable earnings during the qualifying period are equal to or greater than $2,000;" (Act Respecting Parental Insurance, CQLR c A-29.011, s.3, official English version of the Act)

The government's plain-language guidance page repeats the same threshold: have insurable earnings of at least $2,000 during your reference period.

Basic Plan or Special Plan: A Choice That Binds Both Parents

At the time of applying, each family must choose between two plans. The basic plan offers more weeks of benefits at a lower income-replacement percentage. The special plan offers fewer weeks at a higher percentage. The official page is explicit about the scope of this choice:

"Both parents must choose the same plan. The choice of plan is determined by whichever parent files their application first, which binds the other parent, even in a shared-custody situation. Once your application is received, it will no longer be possible to change plans." (translated from the French original)

The same page adds: "Except in exceptional circumstances, it will remain the same for the entire benefit period." (translated from the French original) Section 18 of the Act sets the same rule: "Except in exceptional circumstances, an election is irrevocable." (official English version of the Act) The choice therefore binds the second parent even if that parent had no part in the initial decision. Section 18 also sets out specific exceptions for surrogacy projects, where the election of the person who gave birth does not always bind the other parent.

Weeks and Percentages of Benefits: Birth

The official summary table sets out the benefit weeks tied to a birth as follows. The exclusive weeks tied to a multiple birth and the exclusive weeks for a single parent are added on top of the other weeks; they do not replace them.

Weeks and Percentages of Benefits: Adoption

RQAP sets out separate adoption benefits, with the same additive rather than alternative structure:

Welcome-and-support weeks do not count toward the additional shareable weeks; parents may choose to use their shareable weeks before their welcome-and-support weeks if that is more advantageous for them. Weeks tied to a multiple adoption or a single-parent adoption are likewise added on top of the other weeks (ss.11.1 and 11.2), following the same structure as for a birth.

Planning the Benefit Period

Each benefit type has its own start and end window:

• Maternity benefits can start as early as 16 weeks before the expected date of delivery, and must end, absent an exception, no later than 20 weeks after the birth.
• Paternity, parental, and shareable benefits can start as early as the week of the child's birth, and must end, absent an exception, no later than 78 weeks (18 months) after the birth.
• A benefit week always begins on a Sunday and ends on a Saturday; it is not possible to split a week into individual days.

No Waiting Period in the Act or Its Regulation

Neither the Act Respecting Parental Insurance nor its regulation sets a waiting period for RQAP benefits. Section 24 of the Act Respecting Parental Insurance lists the weeks that determine when benefits start: "Benefits are payable from the last of the following weeks" (official English version of the Act), namely the week of the last interruption of earnings, the sixth week before the week the application is filed (unless a valid reason prevented the applicant from acting sooner), the earliest week allowed under sections 7 to 12.8, and the week the applicant chooses. None of these is an unpaid week, and section 26 provides that "The benefit payment for a week is due at the beginning of the following week." (official English version of the Act) The Regulation under the Act respecting parental insurance uses the term only in its rules on the qualifying period (sections 31.1, 31.2 and 32), which refer to benefits a person received under this plan or the employment insurance plan, "or would have received such benefits had there been no waiting period" (official English version of the regulation). Those rules do not create a waiting period for RQAP.

The official guidance page on applying says an application can be submitted at the earliest on the Sunday of the week the parent wants to start receiving benefits. Federal Employment Insurance normally works differently: "Before you start receiving benefits, there is 1 week for which you won't be paid. This is called the waiting period." (Government of Canada) Under a temporary federal measure, however, "the waiting period is waived for all new claims for EI benefits that start between March 30, 2025, and October 9, 2027." (Government of Canada)

How to Apply for Benefits

An RQAP benefits application can be filed online or by phone through the customer service centre. Per the official page:

"A decision is generally issued within five business days, once all required information has been received." (translated from the French original)

An application can also be filed somewhat late: "A maximum of six weeks before the date your application is submitted will be granted without justification." (translated from the French original)

Self-Employed Workers Are Covered

RQAP is not limited to salaried employees. An eligible self-employed worker is entitled to the same categories of benefits, but under separate calculation rules:

"The reference period is usually the calendar year [...] preceding your benefit period if you carried on business activities during that period. [...] Absent an exception, your benefit amount will be established on the basis of 1/52 of the insurable earnings from your reference period." (translated from the French original)

The 2026 contribution rate for a self-employed worker is 0.764%, up to an annual maximum of $786.92 (see the rate table below).

Maximum Insurable Earnings and Contribution Rates for 2026

The maximum insurable earnings (MIE), which caps the income counted toward calculating benefits, is adjusted every January 1:

"The maximum insurable earnings used to calculate the benefit amount is $98,000 for 2025 and $103,000 for 2026." (translated from the French original)

Contribution rates dropped 13% for 2026 compared with 2025:

How the Weekly Benefit Amount Is Set

The weekly benefit is not a fixed dollar amount. Section 18 of the Act sets it as a percentage of average weekly earnings: under the basic plan, 70% for maternity, paternity, exclusive, and welcome-and-support weeks and for the first 7 shareable weeks, and 55% for the other shareable weeks and the additional shareable weeks; under the special plan, 75%. Insurable earnings count only up to the maximum insurable earnings, $103,000 for 2026.

Section 19 also allows benefits to be increased for low incomes. The official page explains that a parent whose average weekly income is below the equivalent of a normal 40-hour work week at Quebec's general minimum wage could be eligible for a higher benefit, applied automatically. For an estimate in a specific situation, the government offers a benefit calculation simulator.

For the federal side of the picture, the EI benefit calculator estimates EI regular benefits, which Quebec residents claim from EI like everyone else, and notes that their maternity and parental benefits come from the RQAP instead.

RQAP and Federal Employment Insurance

RQAP replaces federal Employment Insurance maternity and parental benefits for Quebec residents. Section 17.1 of the Act adds that a parent who has begun to receive or has already received birth- or adoption-related benefits under Employment Insurance, or under a plan of another province or a territory, is not entitled to RQAP benefits for that birth or adoption. The substitution is also reflected on the federal contribution side: Employment Insurance premium rates for Quebec employees and employers are reduced to account for RQAP (a 0.33% reduction for the employee, and 1.4 times that rate for the employer, for both 2025 and 2026). For a full comparison between federal Employment Insurance benefits and job-protected leave, see EI Benefits vs. Job-Protected Leave in Canada.

RQAP and LNT Parental Leave: Two Different Things

RQAP and the parental leave granted under the Act Respecting Labour Standards are often confused, but they are two distinct regimes. RQAP pays a government income benefit. The LNT grants an unpaid, job-protected leave from the employer, and its length does not necessarily match RQAP's benefit weeks: the LNT's parental leave allows, for example, up to 65 weeks unpaid per parent, while RQAP's paid shareable parental weeks total 32 under the basic plan or 25 under the special plan. A parent may therefore have a right to a longer protected leave than the period during which they receive benefits. For the details of the protected leave, see Parental Leave in Quebec: The Act Respecting Labour Standards.

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Quebec's Régime québécois d'assurance parentale under the Act Respecting Parental Insurance, CQLR c A-29.011, current as of September 24, 2026. It is not legal advice and does not replace verifying directly with Retraite Québec or a licensed professional for a specific situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much income do you need to qualify for RQAP?

Article 3 of the Act Respecting Parental Insurance requires insurable earnings of at least $2,000 during the reference period, in addition to contributing to the plan, residing in Quebec at the start of the benefit period, and having had an interruption of earnings, generally a drop of at least 40% in usual weekly income.

Can you change plans after applying for RQAP?

Generally no. The choice between the basic plan and the special plan binds both parents once the first of the two files an application, including in shared-custody situations, and section 18 of the Act makes the choice irrevocable except in exceptional circumstances.

How many shareable parental weeks does RQAP offer?

The basic plan offers 32 shareable parental weeks (7 weeks at 70% and 25 weeks at 55%), plus 4 additional weeks at 55% once each parent has received at least 8 shareable weeks. The special plan offers 25 weeks at 75%, plus 3 additional weeks at 75% once each parent has received at least 6 shareable weeks.

Is there a waiting period before RQAP benefits start?

No. Neither the Act Respecting Parental Insurance nor its regulation sets a waiting period for RQAP benefits. Section 24 of the Act sets the first payable week as the last of four listed weeks, such as the week of the last interruption of earnings or the week the applicant chooses, and section 26 makes the payment for each week of benefits due at the beginning of the following week. Federal Employment Insurance normally has a one-week waiting period, although a temporary federal measure waives it for new EI claims that start between March 30, 2025, and October 9, 2027.

Are self-employed workers covered by RQAP?

Yes. An eligible self-employed worker generally has benefits calculated on the basis of 1/52 of the insurable earnings from their reference period, usually the calendar year before the benefit period, and pays a separate contribution rate (0.764% in 2026, up to an annual maximum of $786.92).

What is the maximum weekly RQAP benefit in 2026?

The benefit is not a fixed dollar amount. It is a percentage of average weekly insurable earnings (70% or 55% under the basic plan depending on the benefit week, 75% under the special plan, s.18), and insurable earnings count only up to the maximum insurable earnings of $103,000 for 2026. The government benefit calculation simulator gives an estimate for a specific situation.