The Canadian government will provide a taxable benefit of $2,000 a month for up to 4 months.

Eligible individuals include :

  • workers who lost their income due to COVID-19;
  • wage earners and self-employed individuals, including contract workers, who would not otherwise be eligible for Employment Insurance;
  • working parents who must stay home without pay to care for children that are sick or need additional care because of school and daycare closures (including those who are eligible to sickness benefits);
  • workers who are sick, quarantined, or taking care of someone who is sick with COVID-19 (including those who are eligible to sickness benefits);
  • workers who still have their employment but are not being paid because there is currently not sufficient work and their employer has asked them not to come to work (including those who were laid off and eligible to regular benefits).

Those who voluntarily resign from their jobs are not eligible,

To be eligible, workers will also have to show that they haven’t earned any income for at least 14 consecutive days.

To qualify for the CERB, applicants must have earned a minimum of $5,000 income in 2019 or in the past 12 months, whatever the legal source of income. Students can qualify if they are 15 years or older and have earned at least $5,000 in the previous year, even if they live at home with their parents.

You are entitled to the $2,000 even if your spouse still receives his or her income.

Those who are receiving EI parental benefits or who are on the Québec Parental Insurance Plan and whose leave is coming to an end and whose employer has closed down because of COVID-19 are entitled to the $2,000.

Foreigners that have obtained a Canadian Working Holiday permit are eligible.

For those who are not eligible to employment insurance:

An application form will be online starting April 6. People need to register and will receive the benefits of $500 per week, for a maximum of 16 weeks.

For those who are eligible to employment insurance and have applied since March 13:

Their claim will automatically be moved over to Revenue Canada who will be paying the CERB. In the case that a person did not get their job back by the end of the four brackets of 4 weeks, they will be able to resume their employment insurance benefits. The period of 16 weeks should be considered like a pause in their benefit period.

For those who have sent in a benefits application before March 13:

They will continue to receive their benefits and should not apply for a CERB. If their benefits end before October 3, 2020, they can apply for the CERB once their employment insurance ends, if they haven’t been able to go back to work because of COVID-19.