On October 9, 2020, the government of Canada announced the expansion of Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA).
CEBA has been expanded to provide an interest-free loan of up to $20,000 for businesses impacted by COVID-19.
5 things to know about the expanded CEBA:
- The $20,000 is in addition to the original CEBA loan of $40,000
- Up to $20,000 of the total CEBA loan of $60,000 (i.e. $40,000 original CEBA loan + $20,000 additional loan) would be forgivable if the balance of the loan is repaid before December 31, 2022.
- CEBA is also being expanded to make available to small businesses additional loans of $20,000, with $10,000 of those eligible to be turned into forgivable loans if paid back by a certain date.
- An attestation of the impact of COVID-19 on the business will be required to access the additional financing.
- Businesses applying for the loans will be required to prove they have faced income losses specifically caused by COVID-19.
CEBA was initially launched in April 2020 to provide zero-interest, partially forgivable loans to small businesses that have experienced decrease in revenues due to COVID-19 but face ongoing costs, such as rent, utilities, insurance, taxes and employment costs.
The additional CEBA loan would effectively increase CEBA loans to $60,000 from $40,000 for eligible businesses, of which a total of $20,000 would be forgiven if the balance of the loan is repaid before December 31, 2022.
As of early October, over 765,000 CEBA loans have been approved, representing more than $30 billion.
For more details and up to date information, consult the official CEBA website