COVID-19 Relief - Highly Affected Sectors Credit Availability
Program (HASCAP) Guarantee
The grim one year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
has highlighted that many businesses across the country continue to
struggle financially. Two Federal assistance programs, the
Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) and the
Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) have helped by giving
out a combined total of over $77 billion in subsidies, but it is
not enough for many small and medium-sized
businesses.1
The CEWS was announced nearly a year ago to prevent job loss by
encouraging employers to maintain or re-hire workers previously
laid off via wage subsidies based on revenue
loss.2 To date, the CEWS has received 3,171,960
applications (3,141,900 of which have been approved), and has meted
out $74.25 billion in subsidies.3 About six months
later, the CERS was introduced as a subsidy to help cover
businesses' commercial rent or property expenses, providing
payments