The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (“CEWS”) legislation has been released and is now law. In general, the CEWS will reimburse eligible employers 75 per cent of the amount of remuneration paid to eligible employees (to a maximum benefit of $847 per week).

The legislation was prepared under less than ideal circumstances so it is not surprising that there are a number of questions and observations we hope the government will address. However, we can now provide more answers than in our April 7, 2020 Tax Tip.

The Federal government recently announced a number of measures to assist Canadians during the current COVID-19 crisis.  Two measures were introduced to assist businesses with retaining, rather than laying off, employees.

The 10% Temporary Wage Subsidy (“TWS”) is a three- measure that will allow eligible employers to reduce the amount of payroll deductions required to be remitted to the Canada Revenue Agency (the “CRA”).  The subsidy is 10% of remuneration paid by eligible employers (from March 18, 2020 to June 19, 2020) of up to $1,375 per employee, and a maximum of $25,000 per employer.  Given its limited value, Canadians were disappointed with this support program.

It is well understood that qualified donations made by an individual generate donation tax credits in the year the donation is made or the subsequent five taxation years. What are less known are donation “carryback” rules that are available when a donation is made in the year of an individual’s death or some of the subsequent years.