Eligibility criteria - Closed

Status: Closed

The CERB closed to retroactive applications on December 2, 2020. You can no longer apply for this benefit.

Find support after CERB

If you continue to need income support, find out if you are eligible for Employment Insurance or other Recovery benefits.

Transition to new COVID-19 benefits

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the $2,000 CERB payment, you must have met the following conditions during the period you were applying for:

You did not apply for, nor receive, CERB or EI benefits from Service Canada for the same eligibility period
You did not quit your job voluntarily
You reside in Canada and are at least 15 years old
You earned a minimum of $5,000 (before taxes) in the last 12 months, or in 2019, from one or more of the following sources:
- employment income
- self-employment income
- provincial benefit payments related to maternity or parental leave
One of the following:
- Your work hours were reduced because of COVID-19 (see last checkbox below for more details)
- You stopped working because of COVID 19
- You were unable to work because of COVID-19, for example because you were taking care of someone
- You were paid EI regular or fishing benefits for at least one week of benefits since December 29, 2019 and you used up your entitlement to those benefits
One of the following:
- If you were applying for the first time: You stopped working, or you were working reduced hours due to COVID-19, and you didn’t expect to earn over $1,000 in employment or self-employment income (before deductions) for at least 14 days in a row during the 4-week period.
- If you were applying for a subsequent period: You were still not working, or you were working reduced hours due to COVID-19, and didn’t expect to earn over $1,000 in employment or self-employment income (before deductions), and you expected this to continue during the entire 4-week period.
What counted towards the $1,000 in income you could have earned?

You were eligible for the CERB. You could have received $2,000 for each 4-week period that you qualified for.

Verifying your eligibility

The CRA will be verifying that you are eligible to receive the benefit. You may receive a notice from the CRA asking you to contact the CRA to validate your application. This is needed to verify your information and process your application.

In cases where claimants have received a payment and are later found to be ineligible, they will be contacted to make arrangements to repay any applicable amounts. Canadians can also report suspected CERB misuse through the CRA's Leads program.

As part of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy, the CRA will also be comparing employers' payroll records with information provided by CERB claimants to ensure that individuals who have returned to work and who have therefore become ineligible for the CERB repay those amounts.

Language selection

Search

Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) with CRA

Eligibility criteria - Closed

Find support after CERB

Eligibility criteria

Verifying your eligibility

Thank you for your help!