The Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) provides easy-to-access rent and mortgage support until June 2021 for qualifying organizations affected by COVID-19.
What is the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS)?
This financial support helps businesses, charities, and non-profits that have suffered a revenue drop due to COVID-19, by subsidizing a percentage of their expenses, on a sliding scale, up to a maximum of 65 per cent of eligible expenses until December 19th, 2020. It replaces the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program.
Organizations will be able to make claims retroactively for the period that began September 27th and ends October 24th, 2020.
The CERS program includes a subsidy of 25 per cent for organizations temporarily shut down by a mandatory public health order issued by a qualifying public health authority, in addition to the 65 per cent subsidy.
As of early October, the Government of Canada has delivered over $1.8 billion in rent support, through the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses. This rent assistance has helped over 130,000 small businesses, supporting 1.18 million jobs in Canada.
The new Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) picks up where the previous program ended, delivering direct, targeted, and accessible rent support to qualifying organizations without the need to work through their landlord. It will also provide a subsidy for eligible fixed property expenses, including rent and interest on commercial mortgages.
Who is Eligible?
Full details of eligibility and how to apply will follow when they are announced.
