Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS)

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Calculate your subsidy amount

When you apply for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), you will be asked to enter amounts such as the number of eligible employees and gross payroll. You can determine these amounts and preview your subsidy claim, based on information you enter. The calculator is a tool to help you estimate the amount of your wage subsidy.

Before you calculate your subsidy, make sure you are eligible to apply, and determine which employees are eligible to be included in your calculation.

To understand the math behind the subsidy calculation, refer to How the subsidy is calculated.

There is no limit on the total subsidy amount that an eligible employer may claim. After you apply for the wage subsidy, your claim will be subject to verification.

You can use the calculator below to determine the subsidy you can expect for your organization. This calculator will help you to determine some specific line amounts (lines A – G) that you will need to enter into the CEWS application form. Use the calculator only for eligible employees. Do not include any amounts for ineligible employees.

Note: You must do a separate calculation and application for each payroll program (RP) account you have with the CRA.

How to use the calculator

Calculate the basic CEWS using the provided spreadsheet
Input the amounts from the spreadsheet on this page as indicated
Enter the refund of employer contributions for any eligible employees on leave with pay
Enter the amount you calculated for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers program for this claim period
Enter any amounts for eligible employees receiving a Work-Sharing benefit through Employment Insurance
Print and save the information to enter in your future CEWS application

Note: You may be required to provide a full list of your employees and their Social Insurance Numbers (SIN) for verification after you apply. The CRA is not collecting or retaining any of the information you enter on this page or in the spreadsheet. These amounts are only used to help you determine the amount of CEWS you may be eligible to claim.

Claim period
Select the period you are claiming for (required)
Summary of Step 1
- Claim period is:

Gross payroll for eligible employees

Understand how situations are calculated

Employees who earn $1,129.33 a week or more

The maximum subsidy is $847 per week. For employees earning $1,129.33 (or more) for each week in the claim period, the maximum weekly subsidy is ($1,129.33 x 75% = $847).

The exception is for employees who are non-arm's length . The maximum weekly subsidy for these employees is the lesser of:

100% of their weekly gross pay in respect of the claim period
75% of their average weekly remuneration paid for the period of January 1 to March 15, 2020; or
The maximum subsidy of $847 ($1,129.33 x 75% = $847)

Employees who earn $1,129.33 a week or more: Employee is arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,500	$1,500	$847	$3,388
$500	$1,500	$847	$3,388
$0	$1,500	$847	$3,388

Employees who earn $1,129.33 a week or more: Employee is non-arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,500	$1,500	$847	$3,388
$500	$1,500	$375	$1,500
$0	$1,500	$0	$0

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have not experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis

The subsidy for employees who have not experienced a reduction in pay is 75% of their weekly gross pay for the claim period.

The exception is for employees who are non-arm's length . The maximum weekly subsidy for these employees is the lesser of:

100% of their weekly gross pay in respect of the claim period;
75% of their average weekly remuneration paid for the period of January 1 to March 15, 2020; or
The maximum subsidy of $847 ($1,129.33 x 75% = $847)

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have not experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis: Employee is arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,000	$1,000	$750	$3,000
$500	$1,000	$750	$3,000
$0	$1,000	$750	$3,000

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have not experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis: Employee is non-arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,000	$1,000	$750	$3,000
$500	$1,000	$375	$1,500
$0	$1,000	$0	$0

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis

The subsidy for employees who have experienced a reduction in pay and earn $1,129.32 or less, is the lesser of:

100% of their weekly gross pay in respect of the claim period;
75% of their average weekly remuneration paid for the period of January 1 to March 15, 2020; or
The maximum subsidy of $847 ($1,129.33 x 75% = $847)

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis: Employee is arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,500	$1,000	$847	$3,388
$1,000	$500	$500	$2,000

Employees who earn $1,129.32 or less, and have experienced a reduction in pay since before the crisis: Employee is non-arm's length
Average weekly gross pay: January 1 to March 15, 2020	Weekly gross pay during claim period	CEWS basic amount per week	CEWS basic amount per period (week x 4)
$1,500	$1,000	$847	$3,388
$1,000	$500	$500	$2,000

Calculate the values using the spreadsheet

The calculator spreadsheet is improving based on your feedback. For accuracy, please check that you made your calculations with the most recent version.

Download the calculation spreadsheet (Excel)

Current version: 2020-5

Version updates

Version updates
Release date	Version	Description
2020-06-25 17:30:00 (EDT)	Version 2020-5	Add period 4
2020-04-27 16:15:00 (EDT)	Version 2020-4	Text updates (change does not affect calculation)
2020-04-24 19:15:00 (EDT)	Version 2020-3	Batch rows moved to a separate sheet Layout updates to make the spreadsheet easier to complete More detailed instructions on how to input amounts and avoid errors Rounding made more accurate
2020-04-22 12:45:00 (EDT)	Version 2020-2	On the “Instructions and results” worksheet, the "Total Gross Payroll" label has been renamed to "Total eligible remuneration", so it matches the corresponding web application form label
2020-04-21 09:30:00 (EDT)	Version 2020-1	Initial worksheet

(If you don't have Excel, you can open the spreadsheet in free solutions like Google Sheets, Numbers or OpenOffice.)

Note: If you have an employee that also works for one or more related eligible employers, the combined total CEWS amount that can be claimed for that employee between yourself and any related eligible employers for each week is $847. The calculations in the spreadsheet may need to be manually adjusted if you have such employees. A related eligible employer is any eligible employer that you do not deal with on an arm’s length basis.

Example of an adjustment for an employee working for related entities

Westside Restaurant Ltd (WRL) and Eastside Bar Ltd (EBL) are both owned by the same person. Mary works full time at WRL but also works weekends at EBL. Mary earns $1000 per week at WRL and another $300 per week at EBL.

Using the spreadsheet calculator, WRL determines the CEWS amount related to Mary for the week is $750 (75% of $1000). When EBL uses the spreadsheet calculator it shows a CEWS amount of $225 (75% of $300) for Mary. However, the total of those two amounts ($750 + $225) is $975 – which exceeds the maximum of $847 by $128.

The claim amount of WRL or EBL will need to be manually reduced by a total of $128 so that the total CEWS amount related to Mary does not exceed the $847 maximum for that week.

Input the values from the spreadsheet

Once the spreadsheet is complete, refer to the instructions and results sheet for the final values.

Total number of eligible employees (do not include spaces or commas) (required)

Total eligible remuneration paid to these employees during this claim period (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
$ .00

Total basic CEWS for these employees during this claim period (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
$ .00

Summary of Step 2

Line A Number of eligible employees =
Line B Total eligible remuneration paid =
Line C Basic CEWS =

Premiums and contributions
As part of the CEWS, employers can claim a 100% refund for the employer-paid part of contributions made on behalf of eligible employees who are furloughed (on leave with full or partial pay ) for any full week in the claim period, and for which the employer is eligible to claim the CEWS for those employees.

These employer-paid contributions include:
- Employment Insurance (EI)
- the Canada Pension Plan (CPP)
- the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP), and
- the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP)
Indicate the total amount of premiums or contributions during the selected period. Enter $0 if not applicable.

Total EI and QPIP premiums that you paid on salary to eligible employees (for the claim period) (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
$ .00

Total CPP and QPP contributions that you made on salary to eligible employees (for the claim period) (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
$ .00
Summary of Step 3
- Line D Employer’s EI and QPIP premiums payable on salary paid to furloughed employees (for the claim period) =
- Line E Employer’s CPP and QPP contributions payable on salary paid to furloughed employees (for the claim period) =
Deductions

Amount that you calculated for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers (for the claim period) (enter $0 if not applicable) (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers reduction

$ .00

Total amount that your eligible employees have received under ESDC’s Work-Sharing benefit program (for the claim period) (enter $0 if not applicable) (do not include a dollar sign, commas, or decimals) (required)
$ .00
Summary of Step 4
- Line F Amount calculated for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers (for the claim period) =
- Line G Amounts received by eligible employees under ESDC's Work-Sharing benefit program (for the claim period) =
Get results
After completing the four steps above, you can now calculate the results.

Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) amount to claim

You will need the amounts below when you apply for CEWS. Print and keep this record. You will need these line amounts when you complete your online application for CEWS.

For the claim period of , and based on the following criteria:

Line A: Number of eligible employees:
Line B: Total eligible remuneration paid:
Line C: Basic CEWS:
Line D: Employer’s EI and QPIP premiums payable on salary paid to furloughed employees (for the claim period):
Line E: Employer’s CPP and QPP contributions payable on salary paid to furloughed employees (for the claim period):
Line F: Amount claimed under the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers (for the claim period):
Line G: Amount received by eligible employees under ESDC’s Work-Sharing benefit program (for the claim period):

Result

Line H: The total amount you will claim for the CEWS for this period is: This amount is subject to verification.

Summary of CEWS claim
Basic CEWS (Line C)
(add) EI and QPIP share (Line D)	+
(add) CPP and QPP share (Line E)	+
(less) 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers claim (Line F)	-
(less) Work-Sharing benefit program received (Line G)	-
Your CEWS claim, subject to verification, is (Line H)

Line F –10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers reduction

The 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers reduces the amount of income tax source deductions that employers have to remit to CRA on behalf of their employees by up to 10% of their remuneration (to a maximum of $1,375 per employee up to $25,000 per employer). Many employers that qualify for the CEWS also qualify for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers.

CEWS and the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers are intended to provide total support of up to 75% for payroll, not 75% + 10%. If you are eligible for both wage subsidies for a claim period, all amounts that you calculate under the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers in the period will reduce the amount available to be claimed under the CEWS in that same period. Enter the amount of 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers that you calculated for the period in the box for line F.

On May 15, 2020, the government adopted regulatory changes that allow employers to elect to use a percentage lower than 10% when calculating their 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers. If you do not enter any amount for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers in your CEWS application, the CEWS will be determined as if you are electing 0% as the prescribed percentage for calculating your 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers and requesting the maximum CEWS.

If you calculated an amount for the 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers but did not reduce the source deductions you remitted to the CRA, the CRA will treat you as having over-remitted your employee source deductions (so that normally you will be entitled to a refund). The CRA will require you to fill out a self-identification form, that will be published in the coming months, in order for us to credit your payroll program account by the amount of the subsidy. If you elected to use a prescribed percentage lower than 10% when calculating your 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers, you will have to indicate that election on the self-identification form.

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Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS)

Calculate your subsidy amount

How to use the calculator

Summary of Step 1

Summary of Step 2

Summary of Step 3

Summary of Step 4

Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) amount to claim

Result

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