Expanding Access To The Canada Emergency Response Benefit

On April 15, 2020, the Canadian government announced changes to the eligibility criteria for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) that will provide individuals with enhanced opportunities to access the program. The CERB was originally established to provide a taxable benefit of $2000 for every four-week period, up to a maximum of 16 weeks, to workers who lost their income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the government subsequently acknowledged that the original eligibility criteria left out workers who continue to earn nominal levels of income, workers who are seasonally employed and would have returned to work, and workers who have exhausted Employment Insurance (EI) and are unable to obtain new work. The changes to the eligibility criteria help to fill these gaps.