9.001 For the purposes of subsection 50(8) of the Act, the criteria for determining whether the efforts that the claimant is making to obtain suitable employment constitute reasonable and customary efforts are the following:

• (a) the claimant’s efforts are sustained;

• (b) the claimant’s efforts consist of

  • (i) assessing employment opportunities,

  • (ii) preparing a resumé or cover letter,

  • (iii) registering for job search tools or with electronic job banks or employment agencies,

  • (iv) attending job search workshops or job fairs,

  • (v) networking,

  • (vi) contacting prospective employers,

  • (vii) submitting job applications,

  • (viii) attending interviews, and

  • (ix) undergoing evaluations of competencies; and

• (c) the claimant’s efforts are directed toward obtaining suitable employment.

9.002 For the purposes of paragraphs 18(a) and 27(1)(a) to (c) and subsection 50(8) of the Act, the criteria for determining what constitutes suitable employment are the following:

• (a) the claimant’s health and physical capabilities allow them to commute to the place of work and to perform the work;

• (b) the hours of work are not incompatible with the claimant’s family obligations or religious beliefs;

• (c) the nature of the work is not contrary to the claimant’s moral convictions or religious beliefs;

• (d) the daily commuting time to or from the place of work is not greater than one hour or, if it is greater than one hour, it does not exceed the claimant’s daily commuting time to or from their place of work during the qualifying period or is not uncommon given the place where the claimant resides, and commuting time is assessed by reference to the modes of commute commonly used in the place where the claimant resides;

• (e) the employment is of a type referred to in section 9.003; and

• (f) the offered earnings correspond to the scale set out in section 9.004 and the claimant, by accepting the employment, will not be put in a less favourable financial situation than the less favourable of

  • (i) the financial situation that the claimant is in while receiving benefits, and

  • (ii) that which the claimant was in during their qualifying period.

• 9.003 (1) A type of employment is

  • (a) in respect of a claimant who was paid less than 36 weeks of regular benefits in the 260 weeks before the beginning of their benefit period and who, according to their income tax returns for which notices of assessment have been sent by the Canada Revenue Agency, paid at least 30% of the maximum annual employee’s premium in 7 of the 10 years before the beginning of their benefit period or, if their income tax return for the year before the beginning of their benefit period has not yet been filed or a notice of assessment for that year has not yet been sent by that Agency, in 7 of the 10 years before that year,

    • (i) during the first 18 weeks of the benefit period, the same occupation, and

    • (ii) after the 18th week of the benefit period, a similar occupation;

  • (b) in respect of a claimant who was paid more than 60 weeks of regular benefits in at least three benefit periods in the 260 weeks before the beginning of their benefit period,

    • (i) during the first six weeks of the benefit period, a similar occupation, and

    • (ii) after the sixth week of the benefit period, any occupation in which the claimant is qualified to work; and

  • (c) in respect of a claimant to whom neither paragraph (a) nor (b) applies,

    • (i) during the first six weeks of the benefit period, the same occupation,

    • (ii) after the sixth week and until the 18th week of the benefit period, a similar occupation, and

    • (iii) after the 18th week of the benefit period, any occupation in which the claimant is qualified to work.

• (2) For the purposes of this section,

  • (a) “same occupation” means any occupation in which the claimant worked during their qualifying period;

  • (b) “similar occupation” means any occupation in which the claimant is qualified to work and which entails duties that are comparable to the ones that the claimant had during their qualifying period; and

  • (c) “occupation in which the claimant is qualified to work” includes an occupation in which the claimant could become qualified to work through on-the-job training.

• (3) In the counting of weeks referred to in subsection (1) and section 9.004, account shall be taken only of the waiting period, of any week in respect of which regular benefits are paid to the claimant and of any week of disqualification referred to in subsection 28(1) of the Act.