There were several programs announced by the various levels of government, here's the history.
Government of Canada
TAXES
EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
Government of BC
TAXES
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INFORMATION ABOVE IS CURRENT AS OF THE TIME OF PUBLISHING THIS PAGE. READERS SHOULD CONSULT WITH THE RESPECTIVE AGENCIES TO ENSURE IT IS ACCURATE AS THERE HAVE BEEN MULTIPLE CHANGES ALREADY.
Government of Canada
TAXES
- Individual tax payers filing deadline moved to Sept 30, 2020 and taxes due need to be paid by September 30, 2020
- Trusts with Dec 31 year ends moved to May 1, 2020 and taxes due need to be paid by September 1, 2020
- Corporations filing deadline unchanged from 6 months after year
- No announcement regarding deadline changes or deferrals for GST returns
- RRIF minimum withdrawals reduced by 25% for 2020
- GST - The Minister of National Revenue will extend until June 30, 2020 the time that:
- Monthly filers have to remit amounts collected for the February, March and April 2020 reporting periods;
- Quarterly filers have to remit amounts collected for the January 1, 2020 through March 31, 2020 reporting period; and
- Annual filers, whose GST/HST return or installments are due in March, April or May 2020, have to remit amounts collected and owing for their previous fiscal year and installments of GST/HST in respect of the filer’s current fiscal year.
EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
- Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) *ENDED: this benefit will provide a taxable benefit of $2,000 /month for up to 4 months to:
- Residing in Canada, who are at least 15 years old;
- Who have stopped working because of COVID-19 and have not voluntarily quit their job or are eligible for EI regular or sickness benefits;
- Who had income of at least $5,000 in 2019 or in the 12 months prior to the date of their application; and
- Who are or expect to be without employment or self-employment income for at least 14 consecutive days in the initial four-week period. For subsequent benefit periods, they expect to have no employment or self-employment income.
- EI applications already submitted after March 15th will automatically be re-directed to the CERB
- You can get more information from the CERB information page
- Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) *ENDED: this benefit will provide a taxable benefit of $2,000 /month for up to 4 months to:
- Residing in Canada, who are at least 15 years old;
- Who had income of at least $5,000 in 2019 or in the 12 months prior to the date of their application;
- Who were not employed or self-employed for reasons related to COVID-19 -OR -; who had a 50% reduction in your average weekly income compared to the previous year due to COVID-19
- Did not apply for or receive any of Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB), Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB), short-term disability benefits, workers' compensation benefits, Employment Insurance (EI) benefit, or Québec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP) benefits
- Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) *ENDED: this benefit will provide a taxable benefit of $500 /week for up to 2 weeks:
- Residing in Canada, who are at least 15 years old;
- Who were not employed or self-employed for reasons related to COVID-19 -OR -; who had a 50% reduction in your average weekly income compared to the previous year due to COVID-19
- Who had income of at least $5,000 in 2019 or in the 12 months prior to the date of their application;
- You are unable to work at least 50% of your scheduled work week because you're self-isolating for one of the following reasons:
- You are sick with COVID-19 or may have COVID-19
- You are advised to self-isolate due to COVID-19
- You have an underlying health condition that puts you at greater risk of getting COVID-19.
- Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB) *ENDED: this benefit will provide a taxable benefit of $500 /week for up to 26 weeks:
- Residing in Canada, who are at least 15 years old;
- Who were not employed or self-employed for reasons related to COVID-19 -OR -; who had a 50% reduction in your average weekly income compared to the previous year due to COVID-19
- Who had income of at least $5,000 in 2019 or in the 12 months prior to the date of their application;
- You are unable to work at least 50% of your scheduled work week because you are caring for a family member
- You are caring for your child under 12 years old or a family member who needs supervised care because they are at home for one of the following reasons:
- Their school, daycare, day program, or care facility is closed or unavailable to them due to COVID-19
- Their regular care services are unavailable due to COVID-19
- The person under your care is:
- sick with COVID-19 or has symptoms of COVID-19
- at risk of serious health complications if they get COVID-19, as advised by a medical professional
- self-isolating due to COVID-19
- Did not apply for or receive any of Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB), Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB), short-term disability benefits, workers' compensation benefits, Employment Insurance (EI) benefit, or Québec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP) benefits
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
- Canada Child Benefit - $300 per child proposed as part of the May benefit payment
- GST Credit - $400 for individuals or $600 for couples top up as part of the May benefit payment
- Student Loans - Changes that include:
- doubling the Canada Student Grants for all eligible full-time students to up to $6,000 and up to $3,600 for part-time students in 2020-21. The Canada Student Grants for Students with Permanent Disabilities and Students with Dependents would also be doubled.
- broadening eligibility for student financial assistance by removing the expected student’s and spouse’s contributions in 2020-21.
- raising the maximum weekly amount that can be provided to a student in 2020-21 from $210 to $350.
- Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB) *ENDED - Emergency financial relief to students and recent graduates who are unable to work, or unable to find work, due to reasons related to COVID-19.
- Seniors - A one-time tax-free payment of $300 for seniors eligible for the Old Age Security (OAS) pension, with an additional $200 for seniors eligible for the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS).
- Persons with disabilities - A one-time, tax-free, non-reportable payment of up to $600 to help Canadians with disabilities who are recipients of any of the following programs or benefits:
- holders of a valid Canada Revenue Agency Disability Tax Credit (DTC) certificate,
- beneficiaries as at July 1, 2020 of:
- Canada Pension Plan Disability
- Quebec Pension Plan Disability Pension,
- Disability supports provided by Veterans Affairs Canada
Government of BC
TAXES
- Filling and payment deadlines changed to September 30, 2020 for the following:
- Employer health tax
- Provincial sales tax (including municipal and regional district tax)
- Carbon tax
- Motor fuel tax
- Tobacco tax
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
- BC Emergency Benefit for Workers - Provides a one-time $1,000 payment for people who lost income due to COVID-19
- Climate Action Tax Credit - A one-time enhancement will be paid in July 2020
- Temporary Rent Supplement - Providing up to $500/month to low to moderate-income renters.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INFORMATION ABOVE IS CURRENT AS OF THE TIME OF PUBLISHING THIS PAGE. READERS SHOULD CONSULT WITH THE RESPECTIVE AGENCIES TO ENSURE IT IS ACCURATE AS THERE HAVE BEEN MULTIPLE CHANGES ALREADY.