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Status: Closed

The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) provided financial support to employed and self-employed Canadians who were directly affected by COVID-19. and were not entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits.

Depending on when you applied, applicants received either $1,000 ($900 after taxes withheld) or $600 ($540 after taxes withheld) for a 2-week period, between September 27, 2020 and October 23, 2021. The last day to apply was December 22, 2021.

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Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the CRB payments, you must have met the following conditions:

    • or

    How to calculate the 50% reduction

    The 50% reduction is based on your average weekly employment or net self-employment income from the previous year.

    • For periods in 2020, use either 2019 or the previous 12 months
    • For periods in 2021, use 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months

    You must have met this criteria for every period you applied for.

    Example:

    2020, 2019, or the previous 12 months

    $26, 000 (employment and self-employment income in 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months)

    ÷ 52

    = $500 (average weekly income in 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months)

    ÷   2

    = $250 (50% of the average weekly income in 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months)

    CRB 2-week period

    $100 (employment and self-employment income for the CRB period)

    ÷   2

    = $50 (average weekly income for the CRB period)

    Your average weekly income for the CRB period must have been less than 50% of your average weekly income in 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months for periods in 2021.

    In this example, since $50 (average weekly income for the CRB period) is less than $250 (50% of the average weekly income in 2019, 2020, or the previous 12 months), the individual would have met this criteria.

    What is included in employment or self-employment income

    For this calculation, self-employment income is your revenue minus any expenses incurred to earn the self-employment revenue.

    Employment and/or self-employment income includes, among other things:

    • tips you may earn while working
    • non-eligible dividends
    • honoraria (such as nominal amounts paid to emergency service volunteers)
    • royalties (such as those paid to artists)

    Do not include the following in the calculation:

    • Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Québec Pension Plan (QPP), or other pension income
    • Social assistance or family support payments
    • Student loans and bursaries
    • Old Age Security (OAS) payments
    • Maternity and parental benefits from EI or similar QPIP benefits
    • Any Canada COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefits
  • Definition

    You lived and had a home in Canada, but did not have to be a citizen or a permanent resident.

    What counted towards the $5,000
    • Counts as income:
      • All employment or self-employment income, including:
        • tips
        • non-eligible dividends
        • honoraria (nominal amounts paid to volunteers)
        • royalties (payments to artists)
    • Does not count as income:
      • disability benefits
      • student loans, bursaries or scholarships
      • social assistance or family support payments
      • Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Québec Pension Plan (QPP), or other pension income
      • Old Age Security (OAS) payments
      • amounts from other COVID-19 benefits:
        • Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB)
        • Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB)
        • Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB)
        • Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB)
        • Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB)
  • Provincial course exception

    If you attended a course, program, or training referred to you by a provincial government or provincial body during the 2-week period, you may have been eligible for the CRB if you also met all the other eligibility criteria.

  • Penalty for refusing work

    If you refused reasonable work, you would have automatically lost 5 periods (10 weeks) of the CRB eligibility periods. You would have had to wait 5 periods (10 weeks) before re-applying. If you refused work again, you would have faced the penalty again.

  • Exceptions

    This does not apply to you if you were isolating because:

    • you travelled for medical treatment certified by a medical practitioner
    • you accompanied a person who was not able to travel without help from an attendant to get medical treatment certified by a medical practitioner
    • you were an essential worker who travelled for reasons normally exempt from quarantine (such health care workers or truck drivers who need to cross the border for work) but were required to quarantine upon return to Canada
  • Exception

    Filing your 2019 or 2020 tax return is not a CRB requirement if:

    • you applied for fewer than 21 periods starting September 27, 2020
    • and

    • you applied for period 21 (July 4 to 17, 2021) or an earlier period

    To confirm your number of CRB periods, check in CRA My Account, under "COVID-19 Support Payment Application Details".

If you did not meet the above criteria, you were not eligible for the CRB. Find out how to repay the CRB.

Period dates for the benefit

Review CRB eligibility period dates in a calendar

  • No longer available
    • Period 1: September 27 to October 10, 2020
    • Period 2: October 11 to October 24, 2020
    • Period 3: October 25 to November 7, 2020
    • Period 4: November 8 to November 21, 2020
    • Period 5: November 22 to December 5, 2020
    • Period 6: December 6 to December 19, 2020
    • Period 7: December 20, 2020 to January 2, 2021
    • Period 8: January 3 to January 16, 2021
    • Period 9: January 17 to January 30, 2021
    • Period 10: January 31 to February 13, 2021
    • Period 11: February 14 to February 27, 2021
    • Period 12: February 28 to March 13, 2021
    • Period 13: March 14 to March 27, 2021
    • Period 14: March 28 to April 10, 2021
    • Period 15: April 11 to April 24, 2021
    • Period 16: April 25 to May 8, 2021
    • Period 17: May 9 to May 22, 2021
    • Period 18: May 23 to June 5, 2021
    • Period 19: June 6 to June 19, 2021
    • Period 20: June 20 to July 3, 2021
    • Period 21: July 4 to July 17, 2021
    • Period 22: July 18 to July 31, 2021
    • Period 23: August 1 to August 14, 2021
    • Period 24: August 15 to August 28, 2021
    • Period 25: August 29 to September 11, 2021
    • Period 26: September 12 to September 25, 2021
    • Period 27: September 26 to October 9, 2021
    • Period 28: October 10 to October 23, 2021

Verifying your eligibility

The CRA will verify that you were eligible to receive the CRB. We may ask you to provide additional details to validate your application.

Individuals who are found to have intentionally made fraudulent claims may face consequences.

To report any suspected misuse: CRA's Leads program

If you need to repay

If you received any benefit payments that you were not eligible for, the CRA will contact you to make arrangements to repay.

For details: Repay COVID-19 benefits

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