Our government implemented the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to help keep Canadians on their pay roll. Last month, in order to protect even more Canadian jobs, we passed new legislation to make the subsidy better targeted and more accessible for more employers. This included extending the program until December 19, 2020, making the subsidy available to a broader range of employers, and introducing a top-up subsidy of up to an additional 25% for employers that have been hit hardest by the crisis. Since the launch of the CEWS, the CRA has delivered more than $26.5B in subsidies from over 800K applications.

Tuesday, Minister Lebouthillier launched an updated and improved Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy online calculator. This includes detailed information to help employers understand how the CEWS can support their employees and operations, who is eligible to apply, and how claim periods are structured. The program will help small and large employers alike prepare to apply for the next period of the CEWS program, which will open for applications on August 17, 2020. The CEWS calculator can be found on the CRA’s Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy web page.