The Government of Canada introduced multiple temporary social security and financial aid programs in response to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. The initial CA$82-billion aid package was announced on March 18, 2020 by Justin Trudeau.
The first measures were implemented when the COVID-19 Emergency Response Act received royal assent from Governor General Julie Payette on March 25, 2020.
Modifications to existing programs
Existing federal social security programs were modified to provide additional financial support to their recipients. Canada Child Benefit payments were given a one-time increase of $300 per child, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) credit for the 2019 tax year was doubled, and personal income tax deadlines for 2019 were extended.
Catherine McKenna, the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, also announced on April 16 that the federal government was seeking "shovel-ready" infrastructure projects to receive stimulus funding.
Income support programs
CERB (March – September 2020)
The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB; ) was a program that provided a taxable benefit of per month for Canadian residents facing unemployment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Initially announced as providing a maximum of four months' financial support, the federal government announced a further two months of support in June 2020 and another month in August 2020. The benefit is jointly administered by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), with eligible persons either applying through ESDC's Service Canada online portal or through the CRA online portal. To be eligible, applicants must attest they: did not quit their job voluntarily, earned at least in the 2019 tax year or the preceding 12 months, have stopped working or are working reduced hours due to COVID-19, and are earning less than in employment or self-employment income.
Within one week of the CERB program's launch in April 2020, nearly 3.5 million Canadians applied for this benefit; this grew to 7.12 million by April 24. On April 15, eligibility for CERB was expanded to include seasonal workers, persons who had exhausted their Employment Insurance (EI) regular or sickness benefits, and those who have returned to work but still earn less than per month due to reduced hours or lower demand.
Employment minister Carla Qualtrough announced on July 31, 2020 that the CERB would be wound down following a final extension of one month. CERB recipients who are still unemployed will be transitioned to the regular EI system and those who do not qualify for EI will be transitioned into one of three new recovery benefit programs. CERB was ended on September 26, 2020, and a revamped EI program was implemented. Approximately 8.9 million Canadians applied for CERB by its end date.
CERB repayment
In late 2020, the CRA sent out 441,000 letters asking for full or partial repayment of the CERB to Canadians, due to ineligibility. These individuals were urged to repay the benefit by December 31, 2020 to avoid tax issues. Confusion on eligibility arose from language used to describe who could receive the CERB with the requirement being $5,000 in net income vs. $5,000 gross income. The CRA later admitted the semantics were 'unclear'.
CESB (May – August 2020) Due to the lack of summer employment available for post-secondary students or graduating high school students, the Canadian government introduced the Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB; ) as a counterpart to CERB to help students. Students who cannot find employment or are unable to work due to the COVID-19 pandemic are eligible for CA$1,250 per month from May through August 2020. CESB applicants with a disability or caring for dependents receive an additional $750, increasing their monthly amount to the equivalent of a CERB payment.
Recovery Benefits (September 2020 – October 2021)
CRB
On October 12, 2020, the federal government rolled out a new income support program, the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), designed to support those who do not normally qualify for EI (for example, the self-employed). The benefit paid a pre-taxed (at 10%) $500 per week for up to 38 weeks; over 240,000 Canadians applied to the program on its first day of launching. To be eligible Canadians must have been unemployed or have had a 50% reduction in average weekly income compared to the previous year due to COVID-19. If a participant made more than $38,000 annual salary, $0.50 of every dollar earned on the CRB would have to paid back if the participant was still taking it.