CRB expiring Saturday, to be replaced with COVID-19 lockdown benefit

OTTAWA —
The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) will expire as of Oct. 23, and will be replaced by a targeted benefit that helps individuals whose work is impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit will go live on Oct. 24 and would provide $300 a week to workers who are subject to a lockdown.

“Temporary lockdowns are still a possibility in the months to come. We want Canadians to know that we intend now to put in place measures that would snap into action immediately,” Freeland said Thursday.

The CRB, which replaced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, provides income support to individuals who were unemployed or self-employed for reasons related to COVID-19 or faced a 50 per reduction in their average weekly income compared to the previous year.

It applied to those not entitled to employment insurance benefits and is administered by the Canada Revenue Agency.

Under the CRB, eligible applicants can receive up to $500 a week, for a total of 27 eligibility periods or 54 weeks.

As of Oct. 10, the government had paid out $27 billion to more than 28 million CRB applicants.

Freeland also announced changes to a suite of other pandemic benefits for businesses.

This is a breaking news update. More details to come…