CEBA Eligibility Expanded
The Canada Emergency Business Account, or CEBA, was first announced in March and opened up for applications in April, as a way for businesses to access government-guaranteed loans to cover the costs of keeping their enterprise afloat during the COVID-19 crisis.
Trudeau announced on Monday that the eligibility has been expanded to include more companies, with the updated application process set to open on Friday. Specifically, now small businesses with payrolls between $20,000 and $1.5 million, sole proprietors receiving business income directly, and family-owned corporations that pay through dividends will be eligible. Initially, CEBA was open to businesses that had payrolls between $50,000 and $1 million. “Our government is providing support to small businesses, so that they can keep their doors open, keep their employees on the job,
and be better positioned once the economy begins to recover. We want businesses to know that we are there for them and that we are listening to their concerns,” said Finance Minister Bill Morneau in a statement. “Based on the feedback we have received on the CEBA, we are pleased to make adjustments to the program and expand it so that it can help more small businesses.”
The program offers $40,000 governmentguaranteed loans, interest-free for the first year. If the company can repay the balance of the loan by the end of 2022, up to $10,000 will be forgiven.
Projected as a $25-billion program, notfor-profit organizations are also able to apply through their banks, to help cover their operating costs during a period when their revenues have been “temporarily reduced” due to the economic impacts of COVID-19. Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos
said on Monday that so far, approximately 670,000 businesses have applied for these loans, which amounts to more than $26 billion in credit being made available. FOOD SURPLUS PROGRAM OPENS Trudeau announced on Monday that the applications for the surplus food program are now open.
First promised in May, the $50-million program will see the government buy large quantities of surplus products and redistribute them to areas where food insecurity is an issue, to avoid throwing out food and to allow the producers to still be compensated. Fishers or farmers who can’t sell their harvest can apply and the federal government will send the surplus to northern communities or food banks.
“No one could have predicted that this spring would turn out the way it did. Certainly for farmers, who keep our grocery stores stocked and our families fed, it’s been an unexpectedly challenging few months,” Trudeau said. “Farmers will have people to buy their goods, and food will get to the plates of families who wouldn’t have enough otherwise.”