Question Period Note: Repayment of Emergency Benefits

The Government of Canada is reaching out directly to Canadians who have received emergency benefit overpayments and may be required to repay these amounts.

• From the beginning of the COVID pandemic, the Government of Canada has supported Canadians with benefits like the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).

• The Government understands there may be situations where workers received a CERB payment to which they were not eligible. These individuals may be required to repay.

• Canadians who may be required to repay emergency benefits can reach out to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to request flexible payment schedules.

• The Government is committed to providing an empathetic, people-first approach to all Canadians, and to work with individuals who need to repay benefits to help them find the payment arrangement best suited to their situation.

• This approach is responsive to each individual’s unique financial situation.

• The Government is committed to fiscal responsibility and stewardship, while not placing Canadians in financial hardship.

The Government of Canada is reaching out directly to Canadians who have received emergency benefit overpayments and may be required to repay these amounts.

CERB

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada has delivered emergency benefits rapidly to millions of Canadians in need, including the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). The CERB was delivered jointly by Service Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

As part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada implemented an attestation-based approach to enable fast delivery of emergency benefits to millions of Canadians. This attestation-based approach was designed to verify eligibility for emergency benefits through robust post-payment compliance and integrity measures. Although it was understood that this risk created the potential for mis-payments (in error or deliberately through fraud), this approach was taken to ensure that income support went to vulnerable Canadians and residents as quickly as possible.

CERB Repayment

Now that post-payment verification of emergency benefits is taking place, some Canadians are beginning to be notified of their emergency benefit overpayments.

While there will not be any penalty or interest for workers if they received a payment in error, they may be required to repay the benefits for which they were determined to be ineligible. Under the Financial Administration Act, the CRA and ESDC have an obligation to collect amounts owed to the Government, including debts resulting from COVID-19 income support payments.

Once debts are established, individuals are encouraged to reach out to the CRA to request flexible payment schedules. The CRA will also take into account the financial circumstances of the person, including deferral of debt for those who cannot repay at that time. Canadians will also have access to formal hardship assessments where repayment is not financially possible.

Should individuals want to discuss the amount of the overpayment and the reasons why it was created it the first place they should contact the department who issued the debt (CRA or Service Canada). If the clients want to discuss repayment arrangements, they should contact CRA.

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