How Many Paid Sick Days Are You Entitled to in Canada? A Province-by-Province Comparison
A worker in Quebec gets two paid sick days a year. A federally regulated employee at a bank or telecom company gets ten. An employee in Ontario, Alberta, or Nova Scotia gets zero paid sick days and only unpaid, job-protected time off instead. There is no single national standard for paid sick days in Canada. Entitlement depends entirely on which province an employee works in, how long they have been employed, and whether their job falls under federal or provincial labour law.
What "Paid Sick Days" Actually Means Under Canadian Law
"Sick leave" and "paid sick days" get used interchangeably, but they are legally different things. Every province guarantees some amount of job-protected sick leave, meaning an employer cannot fire or replace someone for taking it. Far fewer provinces guarantee that any of those days come with pay.
Employment standards legislation sets a floor, not a ceiling. An employer can offer more generous paid sick leave through a company policy or a union collective agreement, and many do, particularly in competitive industries. When people ask how many paid sick days in Canada they are entitled to, the honest answer is to check the relevant Employment Standards Act, or the Canada Labour Code for federally regulated employers, and then check any employment contract for terms better than the legal minimum.
Federally Regulated Employees Get the Most: 10 Paid Days a Year
Employees who work for federally regulated employers, including banks, telecommunications companies, interprovincial and international trucking and rail, and airlines, fall under the Canada Labour Code rather than provincial law. Since December 1, 2022, the Code has entitled these employees to up to 10 paid medical leave days per calendar year, according to Employment and Social Development Canada.
The days accrue rather than arriving all at once. An employee earns three paid days after completing 30 days of continuous employment, then one additional day at the start of each following month of continuous employment, up to the 10-day maximum. Unused days can carry over to the next year, though total entitlement still caps at 10. The leave covers personal illness or injury, organ or tissue donation, medical appointments during working hours, and quarantine.
Federally regulated employers cover only a small share of the Canadian workforce, but they currently set the most generous paid sick leave floor in the country by a wide margin.
Paid Sick Days in Canada by Province: The Full Breakdown
Provincial rules vary sharply, and only three provinces currently guarantee any paid sick days at all. The rest guarantee unpaid, job-protected leave only.
British Columbia - 5 paid sick days per year, plus 3 unpaid days, once an employee has worked for the same employer for 90 days. Paid days are calculated using average daily earnings from the previous 30 days and do not carry over into the following year.
Quebec - 2 paid days per year after 3 months of continuous service, as part of a broader 10-day annual leave entitlement under the Act Respecting Labour Standards (the remaining 8 days are unpaid). Unused paid days cannot be carried forward.
Prince Edward Island - Paid sick leave that scales with seniority: 1 paid day after one year of employment, 2 days after two years, and 3 days after three or more years. A separate 4 unpaid days become available after 30 days on the job.
Ontario - 3 unpaid, job-protected sick days per year under the Employment Standards Act. There is no province-wide paid sick day requirement, and since October 2024 employers have not been permitted to request a doctor's note to justify these three days.
Alberta - 5 unpaid days per year for personal illness or family caregiving, available after 90 days of employment. No paid sick day mandate exists.
Saskatchewan - 12 unpaid days per year for illness or family care, the largest unpaid allotment of any province, though it still comes with no pay requirement.
Manitoba - 3 unpaid days per year, available after 30 days of continuous employment with the same employer.
Nova Scotia - 3 unpaid days per year for the sickness of a child, parent, or family member, or for medical and dental appointments. There is no general paid sick day law.
New Brunswick - 5 unpaid days per year, available once an employee reaches 90 days of employment.
Newfoundland and Labrador - 7 unpaid days per year for sickness or family responsibility leave, available after 30 days on the job.
These figures are statutory minimums. An employer can always choose to pay for sick days beyond what the law requires, and many workplace benefit plans do exactly that.
Why the Gap Between Provinces Is So Wide
Employment standards fall under provincial jurisdiction in Canada, so each legislature sets its own floor independently. No federal law forces one province to match another. British Columbia, Quebec, and Prince Edward Island introduced paid sick day requirements only in the past few years, largely in response to pressure exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, when workers without paid leave faced a direct financial penalty for staying home while sick. Most other provinces have not followed.
It is also worth separating short-term paid sick days from long-term illness leave, which is a different protection. Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Nova Scotia have all recently extended job-protected leave for serious, long-term illness or injury to up to 27 weeks. That leave remains unpaid unless an employee qualifies for Employment Insurance sickness benefits or a workplace short-term disability plan.
What Happens When You Run Out of Your Paid Sick Days
Once an employee has used up whatever paid or unpaid sick days their province guarantees, the remaining options are unpaid leave, a workplace short-term disability plan if one exists, or Employment Insurance sickness benefits. EI sickness benefits can pay for up to 26 weeks, but the application requires a completed medical certificate confirming the employee is unable to work for medical reasons.
Continued leave beyond the first few sick days is also where most employers start asking for supporting documentation, since an unpaid absence still needs to be recorded and explained. Getting that documentation quickly, rather than waiting weeks for a family doctor appointment, is handled through our sick leave notes service.
When Your Employer Can (and Can't) Ask for a Doctor's Note
The right to request a doctor's note varies by province and generally starts only after a certain number of consecutive days off, not for a single day. Ontario employers cannot request a note for the three unpaid ESA sick days at all. In British Columbia, no sick note can be required for an employee's first two absences of five consecutive days or fewer in a calendar year. Prince Edward Island allows a note request only once leave reaches five consecutive days, and New Brunswick sets that threshold at four consecutive days.
When a note is legitimately required, it needs to confirm the right details, that the employee was seen, that they were medically unable to work, and for what period, without turning into a request for a full diagnosis. Standard forms and letters that meet these requirements are available through our medical certificates and standard medical forms services.
How to Confirm Your Own Sick Day Entitlement
Figuring out an individual entitlement takes a few concrete steps rather than general advice:
Find out whether the employer is federally or provincially regulated. Banks, airlines, telecoms, and interprovincial transportation companies fall under the Canada Labour Code; almost everyone else falls under their province's Employment Standards Act.
Check the relevant Employment Standards Act directly, or the federal leave page on canada.ca, rather than relying on general advice, since thresholds like 90 days or 3 months of service determine when entitlement actually starts.
Read the employment contract or collective agreement. Union agreements and many employer policies provide more paid sick time than the legal minimum, and that additional entitlement is contractual, not just a courtesy.
Ask HR in writing for a specific sick day balance, especially after changing roles or employers partway through the year.
Keep any documentation an employer requests on file. If an employer asks for something beyond a standard note, such as paperwork for HR records, insurance, or a return-to-work process, that kind of documentation is available through our custom medical documentation service.
FAQ
Do employers have to pay for sick days in Canada?
Only in British Columbia, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, and for federally regulated employees. Every other province guarantees unpaid, job-protected sick leave only, unless an employer's own policy or a union contract provides more.
Which province has the most paid sick days?
Federally regulated employees get the most, with up to 10 paid medical leave days per year. Among the provinces, British Columbia offers the most at 5 paid days annually.
Can my employer offer more paid sick days than the law requires?
Yes. Employment standards legislation sets a legal minimum, not a maximum, so an employer's policy or a collective agreement can provide more generous paid sick leave.
Do unused paid sick days carry over to the next year?
Generally no. British Columbia's and Quebec's paid sick days reset each year with no carryover. Federal medical leave days can carry over, but total entitlement still caps at 10 days per year.
What happens if I need more time off than my province's sick leave allows?
Options include unpaid job-protected leave, a workplace short-term disability plan, or EI sickness benefits, which require a completed medical certificate as part of the application.
Do part-time and casual employees get paid sick days too?
In provinces with paid sick day laws, entitlement is generally based on length of service with an employer rather than full-time versus part-time status, though pay is calculated using actual hours or earnings.
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