Blog  |  Community

Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance for small businesses

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News

Applications are open for commercial property owners to apply for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses. All eligible commercial property owners are encouraged to apply to help ease the burden of their tenants while meeting their operating expenses.

To qualify for CECRA the commercial property owner must meet the following criteria:

  • Own a commercial property that has one or more tenants that are impacted by COVID-19
  • Enter into a rent reduction agreement for the period of April, May, and June 2020, reducing the impacted tenant’s rent by at least 75%
  • Ensure that the agreement includes and moratorium on eviction for the period, and a declaration of rental renewal

Impacted small business tenants are businesses including non-profit organizations and charities that:

  • Do not pay more than $50,000 in monthly rent per location
  • Do not generate more than $20 million in gross annual revenues
  • Has seen at least a 70% decline in pre-COVID-10 revenues

In order to apply, commercial property owners must provide the following documents:

  • Rent Reduction Agreement for each impacted tenant
  • Rent Roll for impacted tenants
  • Property tax statement for commercial property
  • Tenant information including number of full and part time employees
  • A copy of the recent bank account statement where the rent is deposited
  • Tenant’s business number

Please see the CMHC Website for more information and to apply: https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/finance-and-investing/covid19-cecra-small-business

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

 

It was announced on April 24, 2020 that the provincial and federal governments will be working together to implement the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses.

The proposed program will be lowering rent for small businesses that have been impacted by COVID-19 by 75%. This will be done by providing forgivable loans to qualifying commercial property owners to cover 50% of three months of rent payments from eligible small business tenants who are financial impacted during April, May, and June.

These loans will be forgiven if the mortgaged property owner reduces the tenant’s rent by at least 75% under a rent forgiveness agreement, which includes terms not to evict the tenant while the agreement is in place.

The tenant would be responsible in paying the remaining rent, up to 25%. Eligible impacted small businesses include businesses paying less than $50,000 in rent per month and who have either temporarily ceased operations or have had at least a 70% drop in pre-COVID-19 revenues. This would also apply to non-profit organization as well as charities.

The program is expected to be available mid-May, and would be applied retroactively to cover April and May, as well as June.

Further information will be available once the final terms of the agreement are set. It is recommended that you see the CRA website for further details as they are announced. Please also stay up to date with our blog posts for all of the latest information regarding Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan.

CRA: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan.html

Registering for CRA My Business Account and Calculating your CEWS Amount

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News, Tax

Are you planning on applying for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) but are unsure how to get access to your CRA My Business Account? The CRA has prepared a short video to help walk business owners through the process of registering for your account.

Please follow the link below to watch the video: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/news/cra-multimedia-library/businesses-video-gallery/register-mybusiness-account.html

If you want to get some additional information including calculating your subsidy amount, please go to the CRA website: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/subsidy/emergency-wage-subsidy/cews-calculate-subsidy-amount.html#h-1

To All Those On The Front Line

Posted on by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, Graham Scott Enns

From all of us at Graham Scott Enns to the Farmers, Nurses and Paramedics, Cleaners and Garbage Collectors, Bank Tellers, Postal Workers, Truckers, Police and Fire Fighters, Doctors, Drug Stores and Grocers, and every single person who gets up everyday to help the rest of us through – Thank You From The Bottom Of Our Hearts!

Thank You

COVID-19 Financial Relief for Canadians

Posted on , Updated: by Lisa Johnson  |  Posted in Accounting, Community, News, Tax

Since the beginning of March, restrictions and measures related to COVID-19 have rapidly escalated. On March 18, 2020, the Government of Canada announced a series of measures designed to support the finances of individuals, businesses, charities, and non-profit organizations

COVID-19 Financial Relief for Canadians:

Businesses

Individuals

Other Filings and Administration

Future Changes

APPENDIX 1
Federal Government Financial Relief Measures Related to COVID-19

APPENDIX 2
Tax Deadlines & Payments – Summary of Extensions* (as of April 8th, 2020)

COVID-19 Financial Relief for Canadians April 8 2020

Client Service Delays

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, Graham Scott Enns

To our Valued Clients,

Over the past few weeks we have done our best to communicate with you via e-mail, phone, blog and social media posts regarding announcements from all levels of government and their financial responses to COVID-19.  You have also heard about all the changes we have made here at Graham Scott Enns as we strive to provide you with the highest possible quality of service.

We ask for your understanding as we continue to do our best to serve your accounting, taxation and business needs, and for your patience as our systems are strained and normal processing times are lengthening.  As not all tax filing deadlines were extended, we are prioritizing incoming requests in accordance with those deadlines as they currently stand.  As more economic updates become available, we will continue our efforts to keep everyone informed and to address your concerns as they arise.

On behalf of the entire staff at Graham Scott Enns, we thank you again for your understanding and patience.

 

Updated! – Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News

Updates to the CEWS – Per our previous posting on April 15, the CEWS as put in place for an initial 12-week period ending June, 6, 2020. This was extended for an additional 12-weeks, ending August 29, 2020.

Draft legislation has been released to extend the program until at least November 21, 2020. This extension includes some rule changes that are important to take note of.

Effective July 5, 2020 (period 5 and subsequent periods), the CEWS will now be made up of two parts:

  • Base: available to all eligible employers that are experiencing a decline in revenues, with the subsidy amount varying depending on the scale of revenue decline (see picture #1). The base will be the specified rate applied to the remuneration paid to the employee for the period, on remuneration up to $1,129. The base rate will vary depending on the level of revenue decline, and is extended to employers who have had a drop of less than 30% so all employers with a revenue decline will qualify. This decrease will either be based on the revenue decline for either the current or previous month (whichever is greater) compared to the same month in 2019 (or the average of January and February 2020 revenue if that method is chosen)
  • Top-up: up to an additional 25 per cent for those employers that have been most adversely affected by COVID-19 (Picture #2). The top-up will be available to employers who have had a three-month average revenue decline of 50% or more compared to the same three months in 2019 (or the average of January and February 2020 if that method is chosen)

Please see the CRA website (https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2020/07/adapting-the-canada-emergency-wage-subsidy-to-protect-jobs-and-promote-growth.html) for more information regarding the changes to the CEWS as well as other COVID-19 related information and programs.

If you have any questions about this or any of the other COVID-19 related programs, including how to apply, please reach out to a member of the GSE team and they would be glad to assist you.

(Picture #1 – Base Calculation)

(Picture #2 – Top-up Calculation)

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

 

On April 11, 2020 updated information regarding the CEWS was made available.

Some key items are summarized below. Please see the CRA website for updates and additional details on CEWS including calculating subsidy amount: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2020/04/additional-details-on-the-canada-emergency-wage-subsidy0.html

  • Eligible employers include individuals, taxable corporations, partnerships, non-profit organizations and registered charities
  • Subsidy is available to eligible employers who have seen a drop of at least 15% of revenues in March and 30% in subsequent months
  • Charities and non-profit organization are allowed to choose to either include or not to include government funding as part of their calculation, but this must be applied consistently
  • Employers will have a choice of using an average of revenues reduction for January and February 2020 OR for the same period in the prior year
  • Once an employer is approved, it will automatically qualify for the next period
  • There are three qualifying periods:
    1. Mach 15, 2020 to April 11, 2020 (based on March revenue decline)
    2. April 12, 2020 to May 9, 2020 (based on April revenue decline)
    3. May 10, 2020 to June 6, 2020 (based on May revenue decline)
  • Eligible employees include individuals who are employed in Canada, and will be available to employees other than those who have been without pay for 14 or more consecutive days in the eligibility period.
  • Employers can apply through their CRA My Business Account

________________________________________________________________________________________

There are new proposed changes to the CEWS bill coming from the Government of Canada including:

  • A new option to use January and February as reference points
  • A 15% revenue reduction threshold instead of the 30% originally proposed for March
  • Charities and NPO’s may include or exclude government funding to measure revenue drop
  • The Government is actively asking companies to rehire their workers using the subsidy, even if the employees don’t work or work less than before.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Canadian Government have announced a new lifeline to the economy to help Canadians and businesses get through the challenges caused by the pandemic.  The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy aims to prevent further job losses by allowing businesses to retain the employees they have on payroll who may not be working, while also encouraging businesses to re-hire workers that have already been laid off as a result of the crisis.  The program promises to provide a 75% wage subsidy to employers for up to 12 weeks, retroactive to March 15th.

To learn if you are an Eligible Employer, how to calculate the amount of subsidy you will receive, and for information regarding how to apply for the subsidy you can read the full announcement at www.cananda.ca.

New COVID-19 Updates from the CRA

Posted on by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Accounting, Community, News, Tax

As part of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan the CRA has extended a number of income tax filing and payment dates to help Canadians during this difficult time.
Some key highlights include:
• Interest and penalties will not be charged if deferred payments are made by September 1, 2020
• Individual filing date extended until June 1, 2020
• All Corporations with a filing date after March 18, 2020 and June 1, 2020 has been extended to June 1, 2020
• Trusts with a year end date of December 31, 2019 have a filing date extension to May 1, 2020
• Trusts with typical due dates in April or May have been extended until June 1, 2020

For additional information on these and other filing and payment extensions please see the CRA website:

www.canada.ca

Information Regarding Employer Health Tax & WSIB

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News, Tax

In response to the difficulties that businesses are facing in light of the COVID-19 situation, both the Ontario Government and WSIB have announced relief plans offering support to Ontario businesses.

This includes:

  • Increasing the Employer Health Tax (EHT) exemption for 2020 to $1 Million (previously $490,000)
  • Implementing a relief period for Ontario business for filing and remitting provincial taxes due to circumstances related to COVID-19
  • Allowing businesses to defer premium reporting and payments until August 31, 2020 for WSIB payments

Please see the following websites for more information regarding the changes to the Employer Health Tax and WSIB.

Changes to EHT: https://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/tax/eht/index.html

Changes to WSIB: https://www.wsib.ca/en/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-update

Updated! – Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB)

Posted on , Updated: by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News

On April 15, it was announced that there were some changes made to the CERB eligibility criteria. These rules will help give access to more Canadians impacted by COVID-19.

Changes include the following:

  • Individuals applying for CERB can now earn up to $1,000 per month while collecting CERB
  • Seasonal workers who have exhausted their regular EI benefits and are unable to undertake their regular seasonal work due to COVID-19
  • Extending CERB to workers who have recently exhausted their regulars EI benefits and are unable to find a job due to COVID-19

Other key criteria remain the same. Please see the CRA website for more information and directions to apply: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/cerb-application.html

Please continue to check out our blog for more information as it becomes available and for information previously announced.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Starting on April 6, 2020 Canadians who have been directly affected by COVID-19 can begin to apply for CERB.

This benefit will provide payments for employed and self-employed individuals who have stopped working due to reasons related to COVID-19.

To apply you must meet some basic criteria including:

  • Residing in Canada
  • Being aged 15 years or old when you apply
  • Have stopped working for due to COVID-19 and have not received any income or benefits for 14 days in a row
  • Are not currently receiving EI for the period that you apply
  • Earned a minimum of $5000 income in the last 12 months or in 2019

The CRA website goes through all of the criteria as well as provides additional information regarding eligibility periods and how to reapply once you have been approved for payments. It will also walk you through how to apply and get you set up with direct deposit so you can quickly receive your benefits.

Please note, that since there will be many people applying for this benefit the CRA has set out guidelines to help manage the flow of applicants.

CRA: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/benefits/apply-for-cerb-with-cra.html#who

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Government of Canada has introduced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) to help people and businesses as a response to the issues facing Canadians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The proposed plan will provide $2000 a month for up to four months for workers who are unable to work during this time. This includes people who are sick, quarantined, people who are taking care of individuals who are sick with COVID-19 as well as parents who have to stay home without pay to care for children who are home due to school and daycare closures. This will also cover people who are not working due to a disruption to their work due to COVID-19, so they can easily return to work in the future.

This will apply to wage earners as well as contract and self-employed individuals who would not normally be eligible for EI.

If you qualify, you should be able to apply for CERB starting in April and can expect to receive payment in 10 days of application.

Please see the CRA website located below for more details, including links to apply for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit as well as EI if you qualify.

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2020/03/introduces-canada-emergency-response-benefit-to-help-workers-and-businesses.html

Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers – FAQ

Posted on by Graham Scott Enns  |  Posted in Community, News

The Canadian Revenue Agency has created a frequently asked questions information page to help businesses take advantage of wage subsidies made available to them.  What the subsidy consists of, which employers are eligible, and how to calculate and start receiving help are all discussed in the briefing.

The full update can be found on the Government of Canada website at:https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/campaigns/covid-19-update/frequently-asked-questions-wage-subsidy-small-businesses.html