REGINA — Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loans are coming due Jan. 18.
The Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) program offered interest-free loans of up to $60,000 to small businesses and not-for-profits to ease the impact of COVID-19 closures and restrictions.
CEBA loans were available from more than 220 financial institutions across the country.
For eligible CEBA loan holders in good standing, repaying the balance of the loan on or before Jan. 18, 2024 will result in loan forgiveness of up to 33 per cent (up to $20,000).
As of Oct. 26, 2020, eligibility for CEBA expanded by removing the previous March 1, 2020 condition for having an active business chequing/operating account. With this removal, eligible businesses were able to apply after opening a business chequing/operating account with their primary financial institution.
As of Dec. 4, 2020, the maximum CEBA loan amount was increased to $60,000. CEBA loan holders who had received the $40,000 CEBA loan were able to apply for the CEBA expansion, which offered eligible businesses an additional $20,000 of financing.
The application period for the CEBA Program closed on June 30, 2021 and the funding period has now ended.
As of Sept. 14, 2023, the repayment deadline for eligible CEBA loan holders to qualify for partial loan forgiveness was extended to Jan. 18, 2024. Additionally, CEBA loan holders who submit a refinancing loan application to the financial institution that provided their CEBA loan by Jan. 18, 2024, but require a grace period to finalize the payout of their CEBA loan, can still qualify for partial loan forgiveness if the outstanding principal of their CEBA loan, other than the amount of potential debt forgiveness, is repaid by March 28, 2024.
