Canada Emergency Business Account

The CEBA program provides access to a $40,000 loan:

• 0% interest until December 31, 2022.

• No principal payments until December 31, 2022. 

• Principal repayments can be voluntarily made at any time without fees or penalties.

• $10,000 loan forgiveness is available, provided $30,000 is paid back prior to December 31, 2022.
  

• If the balance is not paid by December 31, 2022, the remaining balance will be converted to a 3-year term loan at 5% annual interest, paid monthly, effective January 1, 2023.

• The full balance must be repaid by no later than December 31, 2025. 

Note: Once your CEBA application is approved and verified by the Government of Canada (process is expected to take up to 10 business days from application date), your new CEBA loan will be set up and then appear on your Scotia OnLine profile as a “ScotiaLine for Business VISA”. Within 3 business days $40,000 will be deposited automatically into the operating account you designate in the application.  Please note there is no revolving feature on this product, and once the money is repaid, you will not be able to re-advance funds again. 

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The easiest and fastest way for small business customers interested in the Canada Emergency Business Account will be to apply through Scotia OnLine banking or the Scotia mobile banking app. Please do not contact the branches or contact centre at this time, as they do not have the ability to set up the Canada Emergency Business Account.

If you are not currently registered for Scotia OnLine banking or the mobile banking app, please visit scotiabank.com/digital for resources on how to register.

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For businesses with payroll expenses greater than $20,000 and less than $1,500,000 to receive the CEBA program, the following eligibility requirements must be met:

• The person applying has the ability and authority to bind the organization.
• Your organization is a sole proprietorship, partnership or a Canadian-controlled private corporation (“CCPC”) that was in operation on March 1, 2020.
• Your organization’s payroll expense in the 2019 calendar year was greater than $20,000 and less than $1,500,000 (updated payroll expense requirements effective April 17, 2020). You will need to have a federal tax registration and provide:
  
  • Your Canada Revenue Agency Business Payroll Number (BN) (15 digits), as reported at the top of the 2019 T4 Summary of Remuneration Paid (T4SUM)
    
  • Your total employment income reported on all employee T4 slips for 2019.  For customers who also pay employees tax-exempt employment income under the Indian Act, all employment income reported in Box 71 of T4 statements issued to the organization’s employees for 2019 must also be included in the total
    
  • Information to demonstrate the above when requested upon audit by the Government of Canada

When you are approved and accept this new account, you will have access to a $40,000 loan with a 0% interest rate, no fees, and will not require repayments of principal until December 31, 2022. 

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For small business customers, the Canada Emergency Business Account will be offered as a ScotiaLine for Business VISA. You will be able to access your account through Scotia OnLine Banking or the Scotia mobile banking app. $40,000 will automatically be transferred from the ScotiaLine for Business VISA to your operating account upon activation of the loan. No fees apply for this transfer.

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For CEBA submissions completed via online banking it will take up to 10 business days from the application date for funds to be deposited to your bank account provided the Government of Canada confirms your eligibility.

For CEBA submissions completed via branches the process will take up to 15 business days.

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The interest-free period for CEBA loans ends on December 31, 2022.  A 5% annual interest rate will be applied on the outstanding balance until it is paid off in full. Monthly interest-only payments will begin in January 2023 and the full outstanding principal balance must be repaid no later than December 31, 2025. CEBA loans not paid off in full by December 31, 2022 will no longer be eligible for the 25% forgiveness benefit.

Per the requirements of the program, as set out by the Government of Canada, you will agree to use funds from this loan to pay for the following Eligible Non-Deferrable Expenses incurred or to be incurred in 2020:

1. wages and other employment expenses to independent (arm’s length) third parties
2. rent or lease payments for real estate used for business purposes
3. rent or lease payments for capital equipment used for business purposes
4. payments incurred for insurance related costs
5. payments incurred for property taxes
6. payments incurred for business purposes for telephone and utilities in the form of gas, oil, electricity, water and internet
7. payments for regularly scheduled debt service
8. payments incurred under agreements with independent contractors and fees required in order to maintain licenses, authorizations or permissions necessary to conduct business by the Borrower; and
   
9. any other expense in a category other than the above as may be indicated by the Government of Canada website from time to time as being an Eligible Non-Deferrable Expense for the purpose of the Program.

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Any balance owing on this account can be repaid at any time. To qualify for the $10,000 loan forgiveness, you will need to repay $30,000 from your operating account to your ScotiaLine for business VISA between prior to Dec. 31, 2022.  You will not be charged any interest charges or service fees if you pay your CEBA loan in full prior to December 31, 2022.

To qualify for the full $10,000 loan forgiveness. If you repay $30,000 from your operating account to your ScotiaLine for business VISA prior to December 31, 2022, the remaining $10,000 balance will be forgiven if you meet all requirements as set out by the Government of Canada.

If you receive a “technical difficulties” message, we encourage you to clear your browser and re-try if you haven’t already been approved for the CEBA program, and your business continues to meet the program requirements as set out by the Government of Canada.

Follow these instructions on clearing your browser for Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox.

For businesses with payroll expenses greater than $20,000 and less than $1,500,000 to receive the CEBA program, the following eligibility requirements must be met:

• The person applying has the ability and authority to bind the organization.
• Your organization is a sole proprietorship, partnership or a Canadian-controlled private corporation (“CCPC”) that was in operation on March 1, 2020.
• Your organization’s payroll expense in the 2019 calendar year was greater than $20,000 and less than $1,500,000 (updated payroll expense requirements effective April 17, 2020). You will need to have a federal tax registration and provide:
  
  • Your Canada Revenue Agency Business Payroll Number (BN) (15 digits), as reported at the top of the 2019 T4 Summary of Remuneration Paid (T4SUM)
    
  • Your total employment income paid reported on all employee T4 slips for 2019.  For customers who also pay employees tax-exempt employment income under the Indian Act, all employment income reported in Box 71 of T4 statements issued to the organization’s employees for 2019 must also be included in the total
    
  • Information to demonstrate the above when requested upon audit by the Government of Canada

• Per the requirements of the program, as set out by the Government of Canada, you will agree to use funds from this loan to pay for the following Eligible Non-Deferrable Expenses incurred or to be incurred in 2020:
  1. wages and other employment expenses to independent (arm’s length) third parties
  2. rent or lease payments for real estate used for business purposes
  3. rent or lease payments for capital equipment used for business purposes
  4. payments incurred for insurance related costs
  5. payments incurred for property taxes
  6. payments incurred for business purposes for telephone and utilities in the form of gas, oil, electricity, water and internet
  7. payments for regularly scheduled debt service
  8. payments incurred under agreements with independent contractors and fees required in order to maintain licenses, authorizations or permissions necessary to conduct business by the Borrower; and
     
  9. any other expense in a category other than the above as may be indicated by the Government of Canada website from time to time as being an Eligible Non-Deferrable Expense for the purpose of the Program.
     
• You have an active business chequing/operating account at Scotiabank, which is your primary financial institution.  Your account was opened prior to March 1, 2020, and was not in arrears on existing borrowing products, if applicable, with Scotiabank by 90 days or more as of March 1, 2020.
• You have not previously received CEBA and are not applying for this program at any other financial institution.  You understand that applying for support under the Program at more than one financial institution may result in ineligibility under the Program, default under the facility in respect of which this attestation is being provided, prosecution or other enforcement measures available at law or otherwise.
• You agree to participate in post-funding surveys conducted by the Government of Canada or any of its agents.
• You intend to continue to operate your business or to resume operations.
• You authorize Export Development Canada, as your representative with the Canada Revenue Agency, to access any required payroll information for the purpose of verifying eligibility.

Please note the following businesses are not eligible for the Canada Emergency Business Account:

• Government organizations or bodies, or entities owned by a government organization or body.
• Unions, charitable, religious or fraternal organizations or entity owned by such an organization or if it is, it is a registered organization that has filed its T2 return or T3010 return and that generates a portion of its revenue from the sales of goods or services.
• Entities owned by any federal Member of Parliament or senator.
  
• Entities that promote violence, incite hatred or discriminate on the basis of sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, colour, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, region, education, age or mental or physical disability, contrary to applicable laws.

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If your business is not able to meet the specific qualification criteria as defined by the Government of Canada, unfortunately you will not be eligible for this program. Some examples include those operating out of a personal bank account, as well as those who opened their business account after March 1st, 2020. For additional program details and clarity on eligibility criteria, please visit www.CEBA-CUEC.ca.

For customers who are ineligible for CEBA, you may be able to benefit from government funding recently made available through the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF). For more information on funding that may be available to you through your regional development agency, please visit here.

No. The eligibility criteria only applies to your 2019 payroll expenses, as displayed on your T4 Summary of Remuneration Paid (T4SUM). For customers who also pay employees tax-exempt employment income under the Indian Act, all employment income reported in Box 71 of T4 statements issued to the organization’s employees for 2019 must also be included in the total.

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If you have applied for CEBA and have questions, please contact the new CEBA Call Centre at 1-888-324-4201 to receive a status update on your CEBA application. The CEBA call centre is open Monday to Friday from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm EST and can address the following types of questions:

• What is the status of my application?
  
• Why was my application declined?
  
• Why was my submitted document rejected?