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INFO COVID-19 – CANADA EMERGENCY RESPONSE BENEFIT

26 March 2020

UPDATE OF MARCH 26 2020

The Emergency Care Allowance and the Emergency Support Allowance have been merged to become the Canadian Emergency Benefit (CERB).  The CERB has also been integrated into employment insurance to allow workers to apply for benefits at the same counter.

ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS

  • I lost my job ;
  • I’m sick ;
  • I’m in quarantine;
  • I have to take care of my sick parents;
  • I have to take care of my children;
  • I have no income, but not yet laid off;
  •  I am a contract worker with no income;
  • I am self-employed without income;
  •  I must have had an income of at least $ 5,000 in 2019 or during the 12-month period preceding the filing of the application.      

HOW MUCH WILL I RECEIVE?

  • $ 2,000 (taxable) per month for 4 months. It is retroactive to March 15, 2020. It should be paid within 10 days of the request.

HOW TO APPLY?

  • The form will be available on April 6, 2020;
  • If you have already applied for employment insurance, you do not need to apply for this new benefit. Your request will be automatically transferred to the CERB and you will be entitled to the sixteen-week period.

3 ways to request the service:

  1. by accessing My file on the CRA secure portal;
  2. by accessing your secure My Service Canada file;
  3. by calling a toll-free number equipped with an automated request process.

I HAVE ALREADY APPLIED FOR EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE. AM I ELIGIBLE?

  • Yes, if you applied after March 15. The Canada Emergency Benefit will replace the employment insurance you were supposed to receive. You do not need to reapply. Your current request will be converted to a request for the CERB ;
  • If you applied before March 15, you will have to wait until your EI benefits have expired. You may subsequently be eligible for the CERB.

I ALREADY RECEIVE EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE BENEFITS?

  • You will continue to receive your employment insurance benefits. If these end before October 3, 2020, and you still cannot return to work, you can apply for an CERB after your employment insurance benefits have ended.

IF I HAVE RETAINED MY EMPLOYMENT LINK, BUT MY INCOME HAS REDUCED DUE TO THE CRISIS, AM I ELIGIBLE?

  • Not in all cases. The program is divided into four-week increments. To receive benefits, it will be necessary to demonstrate that you have absolutely no income for a minimum period of 14 consecutive days within each four-week period. On the other hand, one can receive income on other days;
  • This means that a worker who had two part-time jobs and lost one of them because of COVID-19 is not eligible.