May 15th Update: CEWS

The federal government announced today that it is extending the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) for an additional 12 weeks to August 29, 2020.  The CEWS was initially put in place for a 12-week period running March 15, 2020 to June 6, 2020.

The government will be consulting with the business and labour community over the next month to see if any adjustments to the CEWS program should be made to help create jobs and growth in the economy.  This includes whether the current required revenue decrease of 30% should be reduced as more businesses start reopening and generating revenue.

The government also announced proposed changes to the CEWS program to address some technical issues.  These proposals include making sure corporations that have recently amalgamated qualify for the CEWS and ensuring that employers with seasonal employees and employees returning from extended leave are able to access the maximum CEWS for those employees.

You can read more about today’s announcement here: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2020/05/extending-eligibility-for-the-canada-emergency-wage-subsidy.html

Please contact your Fruitman Kates LLP advisor if you have any questions about CEWS or need assistance with claiming it.