The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) gives income support to employed and self-employed individuals who are directly affected by COVID-19 and are not entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. The CRB is administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

If you are eligible for the CRB, you can receive $1,000 ($900 after taxes withheld) for a 2-week period.

If your situation continues past 2 weeks, you will need to apply again. You may apply up to a total of 13 eligibility periods (26 weeks) between September 27, 2020 and September 25, 2021.

Who can apply

If you are eligible for the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), you can receive $1,000 ($900 after taxes withheld) for a 2-week period.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the CRB, you must meet all the following conditions for the 2-week period you’re applying for:

• During the period you’re applying for:
  • • you were not employed or self-employed for reasons related to COVID-19

  or

  • you had a 50% reduction in your average weekly income compared to the previous year due to COVID-19
  How to calculate the 50% reduction
  What is included in employment or self-employment income
• You did not apply for or receive any of the following:
  • Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB)
  • Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB)
  • short-term disability benefits
  • workers’ compensation benefits
  • Employment Insurance (EI) benefits
  • Québec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP) benefits
• You were not eligible for EI benefits
  
  Find out if you qualify for EI benefits
• You reside in Canada
  
  Definition
• You were present in Canada
• You are at least 15 years old
• You have a valid Social Insurance Number (SIN)
• You earned at least $5,000 in 2019, 2020, or in the 12 months before the date you apply from any of the following sources:
  • employment income (total or gross pay)
  • net self-employment income (after deducting expenses)
  • maternity and parental benefits from EI or similar QPIP benefits
  What counts towards the $5,000
• You have not quit your job or reduced your hours voluntarily on or after September 27, 2020, unless it was reasonable to do so
  
  Penalty
• You were seeking work during the period, either as an employee or in self-employment
  
  Provincial course exception
  You may work while receiving the CRB
• You have not turned down reasonable work during the 2-week period you’re applying for
  
  Penalty for refusing work

You need all of the above to be eligible for the CRB.

If you’re not eligible for CRB

If you still need financial support, review other options at COVID-19 benefits and services.

Note: Incarcerated individuals in prison or other institutions are not likely to meet all the above eligibility criteria. Those on day parole or who may legally seek employment may be eligible if all criteria are met.

Verifying your eligibility

The CRA will verify that you’re eligible to receive the CRB. Individuals who are found to have intentionally made fraudulent claims may face additional consequences, such as penalties or possible jail time.

To report any suspected misuse, go to: CRA’s Leads program.

If information is missing from your application, you may need to provide additional documentation to validate your application and complete the process.

How eligibility periods work

Each Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) eligibility period is a specific 2-week period. When you apply, you will receive a $1,000 ($900 after taxes withheld) payment for the period that you applied for.

The CRB does not renew automatically. You must apply for each period separately. You can apply for a maximum of 13 periods out of the total 26 periods available between September 27, 2020 and September 25, 2021. The 13 periods do not have to be taken consecutively.

You may apply for benefits retroactively for any period up to 60 days after that that period has ended.

Period start and end dates

Each 2-week period starts on a Sunday and ends on the Saturday of the following week. The earliest you can apply is on the first Monday after the period has ended.