Country file

What it costs an employer to hire in Canada

An employer in Canada pays C$101,426 on a gross salary of C$95,000. That is 6.8% more than the salary.

At C$190,000 the employer adds 3.4%, because the contribution ceilings start to bite.

Every rate below comes from a statutory source with the date it was read. The figures are for 2026.

A mid salary of C$95,000

Employer-side statutory contributions on a gross salary of C$95,000 a year. Each line is capped at the range shown, so the amount is the rate applied to the part of the salary that falls inside that range.
Contribution	Rate	Annual base charged	Amount	Source
CPP, base, employer share	5.95%	C$74,600	C$4,439	source checked 2026-08-21
Employment Insurance, employer premium at 1.4 times the employee rate	2.28%	C$68,900	C$1,571	source checked 2026-08-21
CPP2, second additional, employer share	4.00%	C$74,600 to C$85,000	C$416	source checked 2026-08-21
Statutory employer contributions			C$6,426

Scroll sideways on a phone.

Everything the law obliges the employer to pay. It excludes anything discretionary, anything an EOR charges, and any insurance premium that is set per employer rather than by statute.
Gross salary	C$95,000
Statutory employer contributions	C$6,426
Total employer cost	C$101,426
Added on top of the salary	6.8%

A senior salary of C$190,000

Employer-side statutory contributions on a gross salary of C$190,000 a year. Each line is capped at the range shown, so the amount is the rate applied to the part of the salary that falls inside that range.
Contribution	Rate	Annual base charged	Amount	Source
CPP, base, employer share	5.95%	C$74,600	C$4,439	source checked 2026-08-21
Employment Insurance, employer premium at 1.4 times the employee rate	2.28%	C$68,900	C$1,571	source checked 2026-08-21
CPP2, second additional, employer share	4.00%	C$74,600 to C$85,000	C$416	source checked 2026-08-21
Statutory employer contributions			C$6,426

Scroll sideways on a phone.

Everything the law obliges the employer to pay. It excludes anything discretionary, anything an EOR charges, and any insurance premium that is set per employer rather than by statute.
Gross salary	C$190,000
Statutory employer contributions	C$6,426
Total employer cost	C$196,426
Added on top of the salary	3.4%

The formula

total employer cost = gross salary + sum over each statutory contribution of rate x max(0, min(salary, ceiling) - band floor) (zero if the contribution applies only below a wage the salary exceeds) + gross salary x (mandatory extra months / 12) + gross salary x mandatory severance accrual rate

Each ceiling above applies only to its own line, which is why the employer percentage for Canada is not the same at both salaries. Employer contribution ceilings, country by country lists where every ceiling on this site sits.

Time off, extra pay and leaving

Statutory paid leave	10 days
Public holidays	10
Mandatory extra pay	0 months
Minimum employer notice	2 weeks

Federal minimums under the Canada Labour Code, which cover roughly a tenth of workers: two weeks' vacation under five years, rising to three and four weeks with tenure. Provincial minimums vary and are generally similar or lower.

No statutory 13th month federally.

For federally regulated employers, statutory severance is the greater of two days' wages per completed year of service or five days' wages (section 235, Canada Labour Code). Provinces differ.

What the percentage hides

The employer burden steps down in bands: about 8.23% up to 68,900 dollars, 5.95% from there to 74,600, 4.00% from 74,600 to 85,000, and zero above 85,000.

Provincial payroll and health levies come on top. Ontario's Employer Health Tax reaches 1.95% of payroll above a one million dollar exemption for eligible private employers with payroll under five million.

Quebec runs QPP and QPIP instead of CPP and the federal EI split. The rates are close but not identical.

Not confirmed on a statutory source, and therefore not in any figure above: a direct CRA page confirming the 2026 CPP2 ceiling of 85,000 dollars; the Ontario EHT figures on ontario.ca (the page could not be retrieved).

Using an employer of record in Canada

Everything above is what the state takes. An employer of record adds its own fee on top, and that fee is a flat monthly amount rather than a percentage, so it weighs far more on a junior salary than a senior one. The published prices are here, and the calculator will add one to the figures on this page.

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Written by Kaz, independent publisher. No commercial relationship with the providers named unless it is listed on the disclosure page.

Page last updated 2026-08-30. Sources: statutory bodies only, listed per figure. Rates last verified 2026-08-21. This is not legal, tax or payroll advice and we do not file anyone's payroll.

Every formula on this site is written out in full on Method. Ordering is by computed cost, never by what a provider pays us.

Corrections: contact form.