What is CEWS?
The CEWS was a federal wage subsidy program, established during the early part of the pandemic. With various adjustments to its criteria and structure over time, it ran for 21 consecutive, four-week claim periods and ended on October 23, 2021.
Retailers who saw drops in revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy to cover part of their employee wages up until October 23, 2021. Retroactive applications for these claim periods are still open.
A newer hiring subsidy program, the Canada Recovery Hiring Program (CRHP), has been established and will be continued into 2022. Eligible retailers will be able to turn to the CRHP to help with payroll costs.
Retailers experiencing severe revenue reductions after October 24, 2021, may still be eligible for a CEWS-like wage subsidy through the Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program (HHBRP).
Support for losses experienced from public health lockdown or capacity reduction orders can be accessed through the Local Lockdown Program (LLP) after December 19, 2021.
Overview of the CEWS
Since retroactive CEWS applications are still open, the following information may be helpful to retailers looking for wage subsidies only up until the end of claim period 21, October 23, 2021.
2021 Federal Budget and fall extension
The table below captures the program’s last three claim periods, as per changes announced in spring and summer 2021. Retailers can still apply for these claim periods online.
Period 19 August 1 – August 28 | Period 20 August 29 – September 25 | Period 21 September 26 – October 23 | |
Maximum weekly benefit per employee* | $452 | $452 | $226 |
Revenue Decline: | |||
70% and over | 40% (i.e., Base: 25% + Top-up: 15%) | 40% (i.e., Base: 25% + Top-up: 15%) | 10% (i.e., Base: 10% + Top-up: 10%) |
50%-69% | Base: 25% + Top-up: (revenue decline – 50%) x 0.75 (e.g., 25% + (60% revenue decline – 50%) x 0.75 = 32.5% subsidy rate) | Base: 25% + Top-up: (revenue decline – 50%) x 0.75 (e.g., 25% + (60% revenue decline – 50%) x 0.75 = 32.5% subsidy rate) | Base: 10% + Top-up: (revenue decline – 50%) x 0.5 (e.g., 10% + (60% revenue decline – 50%) x 0.5 = 15% subsidy rate) |
>10%-50% | Base: (revenue decline – 10%) x 0.625 (e.g., (30% revenue decline – 10%) x 0.625 = 12.5% subsidy rate) | Base: (revenue decline – 10%) x 0.625 (e.g., (30% revenue decline – 10%) x 0.625 = 12.5% subsidy rate) | Base: (revenue decline – 10%) x 0.25 (e.g., (30% revenue decline – 10%) x 0.25 = 5% subsidy rate) |
For more information, see the federal government summer 2021 backgrounder.
Furloughed employees: The subsidy for furloughed employees will be capped at $595/week bringing it into line with the maximum amount available under EI.
Deeming rule: The deeming rule continues in place that provides that an employer’s decline in revenues for any particular qualifying period is the greater of its decline in revenues for the particular qualifying period and the immediately preceding qualifying period.
This essentially means automatic qualification at the same revenue decline level for two periods in a row. It also means that you would get one last month of CEWS support even if your revenues show no decline in the current month as long as your previous month did have a revenue decline.
Those who happen to experience deeper relative revenue drops in successive months would of course be free to use the revenue decline of the current month if that would deliver a better CEWS outcome.
New Executive pay claw-back: Starting in summer 2021, the CEWS contains a rule designed to deter companies from receiving CEWS while increasing executive compensation in 2021 beyond 2019 levels. The amount of the wage subsidy required to be repaid would be equal to the lesser of:
- the total of all wage subsidy amounts received in respect of active employees for qualifying periods that begin after June 5, 2021; and
- the amount by which the corporation’s aggregate specified executives’ compensation for 2021 exceeds its aggregate specified executives’ compensation for 2019.
This requirement to repay would be applied at the group level and would apply to wage subsidy amounts paid to any entity in the group. Specified executives are defined for the purposes of this rule and generally include CEOs, CFOs and a corporation’s three other most highly compensated executives. View more information.
Applications
Applications for the CEWS for a given claim period remain open for several months after the end of that claim period. You can find out when applications for a given claim period open and close on the government’s website. View more information.
Reference Periods – Current for all Claim Periods Open for Application
Your revenue for a month is measured either against revenue in the same month last year or against the average of January and February 2020.
You can also choose to compare either the current month or the immediate past month to its corresponding month in a year earlier as the basis to determine the assistance due for the current month (or can compare either the current month or the immediate past month against the average of January and February 2020). That ensures that you will receive at least two months at consistent levels of financial support.
If you do choose to use the January & February 2020 average for comparison purposes for CEWS, you must also use that method for CERS and vice versa.
For periods beginning September 27, 2020, applicants for the top-up subsidy can use the current month (or immediate prior month) YOY comparison in the same way as they do for the base CEWS subsidy. However, you can still opt to use the previous rolling three-month average YOY comparison if it would be advantageous to do so.
Hence, the CEWS top-up subsidy is calculated based on the better of (a) the same current month/previous month year-over-year comparison as exists for the base CEWS; or (b) the three-month revenue decline compared year-over-year.
Businesses using the general approach of comparing reference periods year over year to show revenue decline switched to 2019 calendar months in spring 2021. This change was made to ensure 2021 revenue was still being compared to pre-pandemic revenue.
However, some businesses may not have been in existence for theses 2019 months. New flexibility has been introduced into the program to allow businesses in this situation to switch to using the alternative approach (comparing their 2021 reference period revenue to an average of January to February 2020 revenue) for Periods 14 to 17, March 14 to July 3, 2021. More information can be found in the summer 2021 federal wage and rent subsidy program announcement. View announcement.
How to apply
There are three options for retailers to apply for CEWS with CRA:
- Most retailers will apply using their My Business Account
- Business representatives may also apply using Represent a Client
- Alternatively, a retailer may use the Web Forms application
More information
- RCC’s COVID-19 Relief Measures by Region
- CEWS application
- The CEWS Backgrounder
- CEWS Subsidy Calculator
- Government summary of CEWS changes
Q&As
Les exigences en matière de vaccination varient selon la province ou le territoire. Pour en savoir plus, veuillez consulter la page du site du CCCD consacrée aux exigences provinciales en matière de preuve vaccinale.
Our dedicated COVID-19 page is updated daily with information
addressing retailer-specific questions and concerns.
RCC webinars are also open to all retailers every Wednesday on a variety of topics that impact retail operations during the COVID-19 crisis. RCC’s dedicated team are also available for members to contact with specific questions about the most current regulations in their areas.
If you have questions specific to your area, please contact RCC’s Regional Directors directly:
- Pacific: Greg Wilson, gwilson@retailcouncil.org, 604-730-5254
- Prairies: John Graham, jgraham@retailcouncil.org, 204-926-8624
- Ontario: Sebastian Prins, sprins@retailcouncil.org, 416-467-3759
- Quebec: Michel Rochette, mrochette@cccd-rcc.org, (514) 792-4430
- Atlantic: Jim Cormier, jcormier@retailcouncil.org, 902-818-7738
- Public Affairs: Karl Littler, klittler@retailcouncil.org, 416-906-0040
- Media: Michelle Wasylyshen, mwasylyshen@retailcouncil.org
- President & CEO: Diane J. Brisebois, djbrisebois@retailcouncil.org, 416-801-3793
The CERS was a federal rent and property expense support program established to help businesses affected by COVID-19. If eligible, retailers would have received direct support from the federal government. The CERS program ended on October 23, 2021, but retroactive application remains available.
Applications to the Local Lockdown Program will be administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) on a period-by-period basis.
Retailers will need to apply through the CRA via MyBusiness Account (MyBA) OR Represent a Client. View CRA Local Lockdown Program page.
Adding any extra features would not necessarily change the requirements. A retailer would still need to ensure the product is clearly labelled, that it is not intended for medical use and does not pose a danger to human health or safety.
There are no regulations specific to a fashion face covering or mask. However, it’s important to know that masks are assumed to be medical devices unless it is explicitly clear on the labelling that they are not intended for medical use. Additionally, the same regulations that would apply to any product being sold in Canada are still applicable. View Regulatory requirements for non-medical masks/fashion face coverings more info.
A retailer would not require an MDEL to sell to the public. However, if they sell masks to a hospital or health care facility, they would be considered a medical device distributor and would require an MDEL.
- The health care provider who makes the diagnosis has the obligation to call and inform Public Health right away.
- The Public Health official will conduct the investigation and contact the employer, notifying them about the investigation.
- Any disclosure to other employees must respect privacy legislation and be done in accordance with advice from the public health unit.
- Specific requirements vary by jurisdiction. At a minimum, restrict access to area(s) the employee worked and comprehensively disinfect the premises using a Health Canada-approved disinfectant.
- Continue to practice physical distancing, regular handwashing and other regularly prescribed COVID-19 mitigation protocols
- Generally, an employer is not obligated to inform customers. Public Health officials will conduct an investigation and provide the required follow-up.
RCC has an incident checklist for retailers dealing with a positive COVID-19 case. View checklist.
There is little consistency amongst jurisdictions on this question. See “Returns” in RCC’s COVID-19 Requirements for Retailers guide.
The occupancy rules vary by province. Generally, they are based on either the number of people per square metre, or, percentage of the fire code occupancy limit. See “Maximum number of people in store” in RCC’s COVID-19 Requirements for Retailers guide.
Comprehensive information how businesses and employees can stay safe while operating during COVID-19 from the Public Health Agency of Canada is here.
Phishing, videoconferencing vulnerabilities, malware and simple mistakes are only some of the increased cybersecurity risks.
Retailers seeking to protect themselves against heightened fraud and cybersecurity risk must look to their people (e.g. training), processes (e.g. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies) and technologies (e.g. updated virus protection, videoconferencing safety).
Keep in mind that not all fraud risks are necessarily cyber risks. For example, reported COVID-19 scams include fraudsters posing as public health agencies to get personal information (retailers should always check that someone asking them for this data has legal authority to do so) and posing as vendors selling COVID-19 tests.
Read more:
- View more information and links to Canadian COVID-19 fraud and cybersecurity guidance.
- View federal Privacy Commissioner videoconferencing tips.
Cybersecurity guidance specifically for small and medium businesses exists and could be useful to many independent retailers. View resources.
This program, despite its name, has sector-agnostic application criteria. In other words, the sector you are in is irrelevant to the loan application.
Criteria are mainly financial and include your ability to demonstrate the pandemic’s significant negative financial impact on your business. View RCC HASCAP Overview.
The HASCAP Guarantee is a federal government support program to help the businesses hardest-hit by COVID-19. This program was available to all eligible retailers, regardless of sector, up until March 31, 2022.
Retailers can apply through their primary financial institutions for a HASCAP loan of $25,000 – $1M to cover their operational expenses. The government (BDC) will provide a 100% net loss guarantee to make it easier for these retailers to secure a loan.
To qualify, a retailer must, among other criteria:
- be a commercial enterprise whose intent is to generate revenue from the sale of goods or services that is at least sufficient to cover its operating expenses and service its debt
- have been financially stable and viable prior to the current economic environment
- not have an impaired loan (as determined in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards) as at March 1, 2020, or the eligible loan closing date
Applicants must also have received payments from one of the federal Covid-19 financial relief programs. If your business did not qualify for any of the federal support programs, but otherwise meets all HASCAP eligibility criteria, you can provide financial statements that show three months in which monthly year-over-year revenue decreased by at least 50% within the eight-month period prior to the date of the HASCAP Guarantee application.
Phishing, videoconferencing vulnerabilities, malware and simple mistakes are only some of the increased cybersecurity risks.
Retailers seeking to protect themselves against heightened fraud and cybersecurity risk must look to their people (e.g. training), processes (e.g. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies) and technologies (e.g. updated virus protection, videoconferencing safety).
Keep in mind that not all fraud risks are necessarily cyber risks. For example, reported COVID-19 scams include fraudsters posing as public health agencies to get personal information (retailers should always check that someone asking them for this data has legal authority to do so) and posing as vendors selling COVID-19 tests.
Read more:
- View more information and links to Canadian COVID-19 fraud and cybersecurity guidance.
- View federal Privacy Commissioner videoconferencing tips.
Cybersecurity guidance specifically for small and medium businesses exists and could be useful to many independent retailers. View resources.
The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) was a program that helped individuals affected by Covid-19. The CRB ended on October 23, 2021.
Shortly before the Omicron surge, the government announced a new CRB-like $300/week benefit called the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit (CWLB). Eligibility for the CWLB only arises in the event of a local lockdown public health order.
L’indemnité de confinement est une aide supplémentaire offerte dans le cadre du programme de soutien fédéral de la Subvention d’urgence du Canada pour le loyer (SUCL), destinée aux détaillants obligés de composer avec des directives sanitaires liées à la COVID-19. Établi comme une subvention pour le loyer octroyée aux détaillants durement touchés par la COVID-19, la SUCL a pris fin le 23 octobre 2021.
Il demeure toutefois possible de présenter des demandes rétroactives. Si vous avez dû fermer ou cesser vos activités pendant une semaine ou plus dans un ou plusieurs de vos établissements en raison d’une directive de la Santé publique, vous êtes peut-être admissible à l’indemnité de confinement, laquelle peut représenter jusqu’à 25 % des dépenses admissibles (par commerce touché) suivant le nombre de jours où la directive a été en vigueur.
Les détaillants doivent garder à l’esprit que, s’ils ne sont pas admissibles à la SUCL de base au cours d’une période donnée, ils ne peuvent pas non plus présenter de demande d’indemnité de confinement pour cette période.
L’aperçu de la SUCL du CCCD contient de plus amples informations.
If the stores have separate ownership, e.g. if they have different business numbers, then they have to submit separate applications. If they all fall under one business number, then one application can be submitted, with each of the Work-Sharing units documenting on a separate Attachment A.
For more detail, RCC
SOPs on workplace safety can be found here.
- Most jurisdictions require worker screening for symptoms prior to entry into the workplace. Workers who fail screening should not enter the store or office, and should put on a mask before going home.
- Employees and customers who are ill must be informed (signage) not to enter the store.
- Many jurisdictions require employees and customers to wear masks in indoor public spaces. See RCC’s Mask Requirement page.
- Break rooms, lockers and employee gathering places such as offices are proven to be places where the virus is most often spread in workplaces. Where possible, schedule breaks and lunch hours at staggered times to reduce interactions. Ensure physical distancing in break rooms, change rooms, outdoor smoking areas, and offices.
- Where employees must carpool to and from work together, try to start and end their shifts at the same time to reduce their interaction with other employees.
- Enhance the workplace sanitation plan and schedule, and ensure staff are practicing proper hygiene. This includes frequent hand washing, coughing or sneezing into an elbow rather than a hand, and avoiding touching one’s face.
- Ensure the washrooms are always well stocked with liquid soap and paper towels and that warm running water is available. Antibacterial soap is not recommended to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
- Provide clean carry-out bags for purchased products while respecting provincial and local laws. You may choose to enact a policy that customer packaging (reusable bags, containers, cups or boxes) will not be handled by workers.
- Use a physical queue line controls such as markers or cordons at entrances and in checkout lines inside stores.
- Where applicable, place markers every 2 metres at checkouts and entrances to provide customers with visible cues that support physical distancing.
- Place alcohol-based hand sanitizer dispensers near doors, payment stations and other high-touch locations for customer and staff use, making wipes and trash bins available for wiping shopping carts and disposing of the wipes.
- Have clear signs at each entrance that indicate the maximum number of customers and staff a store can accommodate at any one time.
- Monitor the number of customers and staff entering and leaving the store. Once the maximum number of persons for a store is reached, allow one person in for every person that leaves.
- Offer online or telephone orders with delivery or pick-up services as alternatives to shopping in person.
- Clean high touch surfaces such as pay stations, bagging areas and carts or hand baskets between each customer and use and encourage tap payment over pin pad use.
- Limit the handling of credit cards and loyalty cards wherever possible, by allowing customers to scan.
- Employees who handle cash or credit card must wash their hands frequently with soap and water. This includes before any breaks, at the end of their shift, and before preparing food.
- Should operators and employees choose to use gloves, employees must wash their hands thoroughly before putting on the gloves and change them regularly. Change the gloves before you handle money or credit card machines, and afterward. Wearing gloves does not reduce the need for hand washing. Even while wearing gloves, employees must avoid touching the face.
- The health care provider who makes the diagnosis has the obligation to call and inform Public Health right away.
- The Public Health official will conduct the investigation and contact the employer, notifying them about the investigation.
- Any disclosure to other employees must respect privacy legislation and be done in accordance with advice from the public health unit.
- Specific requirements vary by jurisdiction. At a minimum, restrict access to area(s) the employee worked and comprehensively disinfect the premises using a Health Canada-approved disinfectant.
- Continue to practice physical distancing, regular handwashing and other regularly prescribed COVID-19 mitigation protocols
- Generally, an employer is not obligated to inform customers. Public Health officials will conduct an investigation and provide the required follow-up.
RCC has an incident checklist for retailers dealing with a positive COVID-19 case. View checklist.
Vaccination requirements vary across Canada. For more information, see RCC’s Table on Proof of Vaccination Requirements by Province.
The CRA has a list of requirements that you must meet at the end of the tax year in order to be a Canadian-controlled private corporation (CCPC).
The general theme is that the CCPC label is restricted to private companies controlled by Canadian individual and private corporate residents.
The main wage subsidies still available to eligible retailers are the Canada Recovery Hiring Subsidy (CRHP) and wage support under the Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program (HHBRP) and Local Lockdown Support (LLP).
Wage subsidies under the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) also remain available for eligible retailers, via retroactive application, for a few months leading up to the CEWS’ program’s last day on October 23, 2021.
View RCC’s CEWS overview. View CRHP Overview. View HHBRP Overview. View LLP Overview.
The time periods for which retailers may qualify for CEWS subsidy coverage end on October 23, 2021. Retroactive applications remain open.
During the Omicron surge the government announced that the repayment deadline for CEBA loans to qualify for partial loan forgiveness had been extended from December 31, 2022, to December 31, 2023, for all eligible borrowers in good standing.
Repayment on or before the new deadline of December 31, 2023, will result in loan forgiveness of up $20,000. Any outstanding loans will subsequently convert to two-year term loans with interest of 5 per cent per annum commencing on January 1, 2024, with the loans fully due by December 31, 2025.
No. The program is closed and is no longer receiving applications. The deadline to repay the CEBA loan and qualify for partial loan forgiveness has been extended until December 31, 2023. View government website.
For further information, please contact: Karl Littler, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs at klittler@retailcouncil.org or 416-906-0040.