Writing wrongs

A man came to us for help when a problem with his birth certificate prevented him from applying for federal employment insurance (EI). He was told there were inconsistencies with his parents’ names on his documents – but he couldn’t get further details from ServiceOntario.

RESULT: Our inquiries with the Office of the Registrar General revealed that the problem stemmed from the man’s original handwritten birth certificate, in which the last letter of his mother’s surname appeared to be different from what appeared on his printed documents. The issue was corrected and the man was able to apply for EI. ServiceOntario also used this case to provide guidance to staff about how to handle similar situations.