COVID-19/Update (LOST INCOME & RENT Payment) – March 25, 2020

INCOME REPLACEMENTS

If you’ve lost your income as a result of COVID-19, the Canada Emergency Response Benefit will give you $2,000 a month for up to 4 months.  If you’ve lost your job – whether you worked full time, on a contract, or were self-employed, you will qualify for the benefit.

For individuals without paid sick leave (or similar workplace accommodation) who are sick, quarantined or forced to stay home to care for children, the Government is:

• Waiving the one-week waiting period for those individuals on imposed quarantine that claim Employment Insurance (EI) sickness benefits. This temporary measure is in effect as of March 15, 2020.
• Waiving the requirement to provide a medical certificate to access EI sickness benefits.
• Introducing the Emergency Care Benefit providing up to $900 bi-weekly, for up to 15 weeks. This flat-payment Benefit would be administered through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and provide income support to:
  • Workers, including the self-employed, who are quarantined or sick with COVID-19 but do not qualify for EI sickness benefits.
  • Workers, including the self-employed, who are taking care of a family member who is sick with COVID-19, such as an elderly parent, but do not qualify for EI sickness benefits.
  • Parents with children who require care or supervision due to school or daycare closures, and are unable to earn employment income, irrespective of whether they qualify for EI or not.

Application for the Benefit will be available in April 2020, and require Canadians to attest that they meet the eligibility requirements. They will need to re-attest every two weeks to reconfirm their eligibility. Canadians will select one of three channels to apply for the Benefit:

1. by accessing it on their CRA MyAccount secure portal;
2. by accessing it from their secure My Service Canada Account; or
3. by calling a toll free number equipped with an automated application process.

FOR RENTERS

For renters who are concerned with rent payment or eviction during the COVID-19 health crisis, the Residential Tenancies Branch (RTB) and Residential Tenancies Commission (RTC) will postpone all hearings for non-urgent matters to halt evictions.

Effective March 24^th all scheduled RTB and RTC hearings will be delayed to protect Manitobans from evictions during the pandemic, with certain exceptions to deal with urgent issues that involve the health and safety of tenants.

The RTB and the RTC will only issue eviction orders to address issues affecting health and safety including unlawful activities.

Measures to suspend non-urgent eviction hearings are in place until May 31 and will be monitored to determine if additional adjustments are required.