Tax Tip - Temporary expansion to the eligibility for the Local Lockdown Program (periods 24 & 25)

OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 4, 2022 /CNW/ - Canada Revenue Agency

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada has remained committed to ensuring that Canadian businesses are supported financially as our economy recovers.

On December 22, 2021, the government announced a temporary expansion to the eligibility for the Local Lockdown Program to ensure Canadians are protected and businesses continue to receive the support they need as public health restrictions continue to be in place across the country.

These temporary changes will only be in effect from December 19, 2021, to February 12, 2022 (Periods 24 and 25). The application portals for Period 24 of the business subsidy programs open on February 7, 2022, at 6:00 am EST.

Expansion of Eligibility for the Local Lockdown Program

On December 17, 2021, the government implemented the Local Lockdown Program to provide businesses that face temporary new local lockdowns with up to the maximum amount available through the wage and rent subsidy programs.

As COVID-19 continues to spread and new regional public health restrictions were put in place to limit capacity, the government has temporarily expanded the Local Lockdown Program for periods 24 and 25 to better support Canadian businesses in need.

Under previous rules, employers must have faced a lockdown to be eligible for the lockdown program. This requirement has been temporarily expanded so employers can now also qualify for the program if they are subject to a qualifying partial (capacity-limiting) public health restriction.

Businesses can qualify under the temporary expansion for periods 24 and 25 if:

• one or more of its locations is subject to a public health order that has the effect of reducing the entity's capacity at the location by 50 per cent or more, and
• activities limited by the public health order accounted for at least 50 per cent of the entity's total qualifying revenues during the prior reference period.

In addition, the current-month revenue loss threshold has decreased from 40 per cent to 25 per cent. The subsidy rate starts at 25 per cent for eligible organizations with a 25 per cent current-month revenue decline, increasing thereafter in proportion to current-month revenue loss up to a maximum rate of 75 per cent for those with a current-month revenue decline of 75 per cent or higher.

The Local Lockdown Program is a way businesses, charities, and non-profits subject to a qualifying public health restriction and now a qualifying partial (capacity-limiting) public health restriction can be eligible for wage and rent support through the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program (THRP).

More information and how to apply

You can find more information on the expansion of the eligibility on the Canada Revenue Agency's (CRA) webpages.

Applications can be made through the CRA's My Business Account or through Represent a Client for business representatives.

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SOURCE Canada Revenue Agency

Contacts, Media Relations, Canada Revenue Agency, 613-948-8366, [email protected]