Under the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases, interprovincial or international railway transport or shipping businesses are the only businesses that may be held personally liable for the payment of income replacement indemnities to an employee who is absent from work following an industrial accident; this applies both before and after the Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) makes a decision.

If you are recognized as a railway transport or shipping business operator, the amounts you pay an employee both before and after the decision of the CNESST that correspond to the income replacement indemnity provided for under the Act generally constitute an income replacement indemnity. You do not have to make source deductions or pay employer contributions on these amounts.

However, the amounts you pay an employee to compensate for the salary or wages lost as a result of the employee's absence on the day they stopped working or their absence to undergo a medical test at your request constitute employment income. You must make source deductions and employer contributions on these amounts.

Similarly, if you pay an employee more than the income replacement indemnity provided for under the Act, the excess amount constitutes employment income. You must make source deductions and pay employer contributions on this amount. For example, if the CNESST indemnity is $500, and you pay the employee $600, you must make source deductions and pay employer contributions on the excess amount of $100 ($600 − $500).

If an employee repays you the excess amount, you must enter the amount repaid on the employee's RL-1 slip (see courtesy translation RL-1.T). In this way, the employee will be able to claim a deduction with regard to the amounts repaid during the year when filing their income tax return for the year.

However, if an employee repays you the income replacement indemnity, you are not required to make any adjustments as the repayment will be reported on the RL-5 slip the employee receives from the CNESST.