The Government of Canada is taking immediate, significant and decisive action to support Canadians and employers facing hardship as a result of the global COVID-19 outbreak.

Today, Finance Minister Bill Morneau provided further details on the eligibility criteria for businesses to access the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS). These details will ensure that the proposed CEWS meets the government’s objective to support the employers that are hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and protect the jobs Canadians depend on during these difficult times.

The proposed CEWS would provide a strong incentive for employers to pay employees who have been sent home for health and safety reasons or due to lack of work. It would also enable employers to retain employees who are still on the payroll and rehire workers who have been previously laid off.

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The proposed CEWS would apply at a rate of 75 per cent of the first $58,700 normally earned by employees – representing a benefit of up to $847 per week, per employee. The program would be in place for a 12-week period, from March 15 to June 6, 2020. Employers of all sizes and across all sectors of the economy would be eligible, with certain exceptions including public sector entities. An eligible employer’s entitlement to this wage subsidy will be based entirely on the salary or wages actually paid to employees. All employers would be expected to make best efforts to bring employees’ wages to their pre-crisis levels.

As well, the Government is proposing that employers eligible for the CEWS be entitled to receive a 100-per-cent refund for certain employer-paid contributions to Employment Insurance, the Canada Pension Plan, the Quebec Pension Plan, and the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan. This refund would apply to the entire amount of employer-paid contributions in respect of remuneration paid to furloughed employees in a period where the employer is eligible for the CEWS. This will make it easy and cost effective for employers to rehire people previously laid off.

In order to address the realities faced by the not-for-profit sector, high growth companies and new businesses, the Government proposes the following additional flexibility:

• To measure their revenue loss, it is proposed that all employers have the flexibility to compare their revenue of March, April and May 2020 to that of the same month of 2019, or to an average of their revenue earned in January and February 2020.
• For March, the Government proposes to make the CEWS more accessible than originally announced by reducing the 30-per-cent benchmark to 15 per cent, in recognition of the fact that many businesses did not begin to be affected by the crisis until partway through the month.
• In recognition that the time between when revenue is earned and when it is paid could be highly variable in certain sectors of the economy, it is proposed that employers be allowed to measure revenues either on the basis of accrual accounting (as they are earned) or cash accounting (as they are received). 
• Special rules would also be provided to address issues for corporate groups, non-arm’s length entities and joint ventures.
• Registered charities and non-profit organizations would also be able to benefit from the additional flexibilities being provided to employers with respect to the revenue loss calculation. In addition, to recognize that different types of organizations are experiencing different types of funding pressures, it is proposed that charities and non-profit organizations be allowed to choose to include or exclude government funding in their revenues for the purpose of applying the revenue reduction test.

The government will continue to carefully monitor all developments relating to the COVID-19 outbreak and will continue to take further action to protect Canadians and the economy.

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Quotes

Bill Morneau

Minister of Finance

“The government will continue to do whatever it takes to support Canadians and the economy during this very difficult time. The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy is one of the tools we have proposed to help businesses and workers. We are listening to the feedback that Canadians and the business community have provided and will make sure this subsidy serves the needs of Canadians.”

Mary Ng 

Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade

“We’ve heard the voices of small business owners and employers from across the country. These enhancements to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy will mean more flexibility and support for start-ups, high-growth companies, and non-profit organisations. We continue to listen, and we’ll be there for Canadian businesses every step of the way through this unprecedented challenge.”

Navdeep Bains

Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry

“Our government is working as quickly as possible to help support our Canadian businesses and workers. This increased flexibility for employers to access the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy will help Canadians keep their jobs, so they can continue to pay their bills and feed their families. We know these are trying times. We will continue to listen and take action to make sure we make it through, together.

Quick facts

The government has taken action to support Canadian businesses through the outbreak of COVID-19, with targeted new initiatives that:

• Launch the new Canada Emergency Business Account. This program will provide $25 billion in total funding consisting of interest-free, partially forgivable loans of up to $40,000 to small businesses and not-for-profits in all sectors and regions. To qualify, organizations will need to demonstrate they paid between $50,000 and $1 million in total payroll in 2019. These loans – guaranteed and funded by the Government of Canada – will ensure that small businesses have access to the capital they need so they can pay for rent and other important costs over the next number of months.
• Launch the new Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Loan and Guarantee program that will enable up to $40 billion in lending, supported through Export Development Canada and the Business Development Bank of Canada, for small businesses to help weather the impacts of COVID-19. This is intended for small and medium-sized companies that require greater help to meet their operational cash flow requirements. The program will allow eligible businesses to access up to $12.5 million in additional financing support.
• Increase credit available for farmers and the agri-food sector through Farm Credit Canada.
• Extend the maximum duration of the Work-Sharing program, from 38 weeks to 76 weeks, for workers who agree to reduce their normal working hours because of developments beyond the control of their employers.
• Defer the payment of income taxes. The government is allowing all taxpayers to defer, until after August 31, 2020, the payment of income tax amounts that become owing on or after March 18 and before September 2020. This relief would apply to new balances due, as well as instalments, under Part I of the Income Tax Act. No interest or penalties will accumulate on these amounts during this period.
• Allow businesses, including self-employed individuals, to defer all Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) payments until June, as well as GST and customs duty payments owed for imports. This measure is the equivalent of providing up to $30 billion in interest-free loans to Canadian businesses. It will help businesses so they can continue to pay their employees and their bills, and help ease cash-flow challenges across the country.