COVID 19 - BUSINESS THREAD INFO/DISCUSSION
- Thread starter SpringVelocity
- Start date
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Just a question. Did the bank tell you what it could be used for? Was there any guidelines?
Rain City
Crew Member
They just said it's a credit line that has a 10k daily limit and can be transferred into my checking account.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Your so lucky good for you.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Just found this out man that sucks. Posted on CIBC as part of loan qualification. A lot of people non incorporated do this. Obviously it's wrong to set it up like that, but some will be kicking themselves.
I run my sole proprietor business using a CIBC personal chequing account. Can I still apply?
No. The Canada Emergency Business Account is available only to business clients with employee payrolls between $50,000 and $1 million in 2019. Use of a personal chequing account is not permitted when operating in the name of a business. The federal government has announced a number of relief measures to support individuals as sole proprietors. Further information is available at the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan siteOpens a new window in your browser..
I run my sole proprietor business using a CIBC personal chequing account. Can I still apply?
No. The Canada Emergency Business Account is available only to business clients with employee payrolls between $50,000 and $1 million in 2019. Use of a personal chequing account is not permitted when operating in the name of a business. The federal government has announced a number of relief measures to support individuals as sole proprietors. Further information is available at the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan siteOpens a new window in your browser..
MadJigga
Well-Known Member
Me to,
Here’s the guidelines provided by my accountant
Attachments
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
It just looks like they don't want people using to pay another debt off. Basically using to refinance existing debts.
MadJigga
Well-Known Member
I’ve been deemed ineligible even though my business checks every box for eligibility.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
That sucks sorry man. Did the give any other explanation?
MadJigga
Well-Known Member
We re applied. With the same info. The response was that there is a problem with my business number, or payroll declared or something like that. Nothing specific as the approval or lack there of is all computer generated. My accountant did all the paperwork/application. I’m 100% sure his numbers aren’t off. I’ll see what happens with the second application.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Good luck.
Matthew S.
Member
BC HYDRO
For small businesses
If you own a small business that needed to close due to COVID-19, you may be eligible to have your business' electricity use charges waived for up to three months.
Application form to open the week of April 13
The application is not open yet, but we expect it to open the week of April 13. Once it opens, there is no rush to apply. Eligible business customers can apply any time before June 30, 2020 to have their business' bills waived for April, May and June.
https://app.bchydro.com/accounts-bi...s-to-pay/covid-19-relief-fund/commercial.html
For small businesses
If you own a small business that needed to close due to COVID-19, you may be eligible to have your business' electricity use charges waived for up to three months.
Application form to open the week of April 13
The application is not open yet, but we expect it to open the week of April 13. Once it opens, there is no rush to apply. Eligible business customers can apply any time before June 30, 2020 to have their business' bills waived for April, May and June.
https://app.bchydro.com/accounts-bi...s-to-pay/covid-19-relief-fund/commercial.html
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Federal payroll test shuts out small new start-ups from COVID-19 loan, says St. Albert business owner
"I can't, in my mind, reconcile why that would be a driving factor for eligibility," said Herc's Nutrition owner of $50,000 payroll minimum.
about 18 hours ago By: Brittany Gervais
Owner David Niebach, owner of Herc's Nutrition in St. Albert, said the new business does not qualify for the federal government's $40,000 loan because of payroll requirements. BRITTANY GERVAIS/St. Albert Gazette
When Herc's Nutrition first opened in St. Albert last November, owner Daniel Niebach knew they'd be in the red at first, but expected to eventually break even in the spring.
Then everything changed when the COVID-19 pandemic hit Alberta, putting a halt on cash flow even before the vitamins and supplements store had a chance to build up savings.
Scrambling to find income, Niebach said he was hopeful the federal government's $40,000 Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan would be enough to keep the business alive long enough to balance out their budget.
To be eligible, small businesses must demonstrate they paid between $50,000 and $1 million in total payroll for 2019.
However, by tying this relief fund directly to payroll, the federal government is effectively shutting out any new businesses that opened since Jan. 1, Niebach said.
The small business has only two employees and two months of operation to show for last year, falling below the $50,000 payroll minimum. When he tries to submit an application, an error message appears.
"The threshold that's been established of having $50,000 in payroll ... I can't, in my mind, reconcile why that would be a driving factor for eligibility," he said.
"Why is having $50,000 in payroll the magic number to getting the small business loan? Even if we have no payroll, we still have rent, that's our biggest cost."
According to a recent survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), 45 per cent of small businesses in Alberta say they plan to use the CEBA, while 20 per cent say they want to use it but are not eligible. Only 11 per cent say they don’t need it, with the rest unsure.
“These loans can’t be available fast enough and we strongly recommend eliminating the payroll test and making the $10,000 forgivable portion a simple grant that is available quickly,” stated CFIB executive vice-president Laura Jones in a media release.
“If we don’t do a good job helping small businesses survive this today, the cascading effects will be felt for years to come. They are the job providers and creators for millions of Canadians. They are the connective tissue of our communities. Small business really is too big to fail."
Niebach said change needs to happen fast, as all other supports previously announced don't seem to apply to small new start-ups, or could result in the accumulation of more debt over time.
Herc's Nutrition hadn't built up enough credit to qualify for a bank loan, he explained, and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) said it couldn't offer any additional help with their existing credit.
As a family-owned business with two employees, the federal government's wage subsidy doesn't help because someone needs to be at home with the kids, he said. Although their landlord agreed to defer two months of rent, the money owed is just tacked on to future months.
Right now, Herc's Nutrition is dipping into their personal funds to be able to afford utilities and pay their vendors. While the business could defer interest on credit card payments, the interest just compounds over time, Niebach said.
"As a business owner, you're being put in a very tough position. Besides potentially closing your business, you could ruin your credit."
Ken Kolby, Chamber of Commerce of Alberta president and CEO, said there have been constant discussions between the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the federal government on ways to catch businesses falling through the cracks.
The government didn't have the luxury of time to roll out these supports, he said, and there are still some glitches to work through.
"I think the federal government thought those numbers will fit the target groups that we're trying to get. But they didn't consider, under the lower limit, brand new businesses," Kolby said.
Placing a $1-million limit on the other end of the scale can also be a barrier for small businesses with more people on the payroll.
"You may think ($1 million) is a lot, but it's a tire shop," he said. "You can easily rack that number up if you had 20 employees,"
But the solution doesn't have to be complicated, he said. Asking basic questions around these requirements could identify barriers along the way.
"They need to ask these questions," he said. "If your payroll is below $50,000, is this due to the fact that you just started up a new business? If so, provide us with your date of incorporation. Then you've got the loan."
On Thursday morning, Susanna Cluff-Clyburne, Canadian Chamber of Commerce senior director for parliamentary affairs, brought the issue of the arbitrary limits before the federal standing committee on finance.
She said the reasons why some businesses don't qualify for the CEBA "simply don't make sense," pointing to another small Alberta business who had to lay off their staff and cut back on operations because of the virus, but wasn't eligible for the loan because its payroll exceeded $1 million.
"If an incentive to make it as easy as possible for businesses to qualify for support programs, and to get that help to them while they're still around to use it, ever existed, today's employment data is surely it," Cluff-Clyburne said.
According to Statistics Canada, Canada's economy lost more than 1 million jobs in March because of COVID-19, with approximately 21,000 jobs lost in Edmonton.
"I can't, in my mind, reconcile why that would be a driving factor for eligibility," said Herc's Nutrition owner of $50,000 payroll minimum.
about 18 hours ago By: Brittany Gervais
Owner David Niebach, owner of Herc's Nutrition in St. Albert, said the new business does not qualify for the federal government's $40,000 loan because of payroll requirements. BRITTANY GERVAIS/St. Albert Gazette
When Herc's Nutrition first opened in St. Albert last November, owner Daniel Niebach knew they'd be in the red at first, but expected to eventually break even in the spring.
Then everything changed when the COVID-19 pandemic hit Alberta, putting a halt on cash flow even before the vitamins and supplements store had a chance to build up savings.
Scrambling to find income, Niebach said he was hopeful the federal government's $40,000 Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan would be enough to keep the business alive long enough to balance out their budget.
To be eligible, small businesses must demonstrate they paid between $50,000 and $1 million in total payroll for 2019.
However, by tying this relief fund directly to payroll, the federal government is effectively shutting out any new businesses that opened since Jan. 1, Niebach said.
The small business has only two employees and two months of operation to show for last year, falling below the $50,000 payroll minimum. When he tries to submit an application, an error message appears.
"The threshold that's been established of having $50,000 in payroll ... I can't, in my mind, reconcile why that would be a driving factor for eligibility," he said.
"Why is having $50,000 in payroll the magic number to getting the small business loan? Even if we have no payroll, we still have rent, that's our biggest cost."
According to a recent survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), 45 per cent of small businesses in Alberta say they plan to use the CEBA, while 20 per cent say they want to use it but are not eligible. Only 11 per cent say they don’t need it, with the rest unsure.
“These loans can’t be available fast enough and we strongly recommend eliminating the payroll test and making the $10,000 forgivable portion a simple grant that is available quickly,” stated CFIB executive vice-president Laura Jones in a media release.
“If we don’t do a good job helping small businesses survive this today, the cascading effects will be felt for years to come. They are the job providers and creators for millions of Canadians. They are the connective tissue of our communities. Small business really is too big to fail."
Niebach said change needs to happen fast, as all other supports previously announced don't seem to apply to small new start-ups, or could result in the accumulation of more debt over time.
Herc's Nutrition hadn't built up enough credit to qualify for a bank loan, he explained, and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) said it couldn't offer any additional help with their existing credit.
As a family-owned business with two employees, the federal government's wage subsidy doesn't help because someone needs to be at home with the kids, he said. Although their landlord agreed to defer two months of rent, the money owed is just tacked on to future months.
Right now, Herc's Nutrition is dipping into their personal funds to be able to afford utilities and pay their vendors. While the business could defer interest on credit card payments, the interest just compounds over time, Niebach said.
"As a business owner, you're being put in a very tough position. Besides potentially closing your business, you could ruin your credit."
Ken Kolby, Chamber of Commerce of Alberta president and CEO, said there have been constant discussions between the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the federal government on ways to catch businesses falling through the cracks.
The government didn't have the luxury of time to roll out these supports, he said, and there are still some glitches to work through.
"I think the federal government thought those numbers will fit the target groups that we're trying to get. But they didn't consider, under the lower limit, brand new businesses," Kolby said.
Placing a $1-million limit on the other end of the scale can also be a barrier for small businesses with more people on the payroll.
"You may think ($1 million) is a lot, but it's a tire shop," he said. "You can easily rack that number up if you had 20 employees,"
But the solution doesn't have to be complicated, he said. Asking basic questions around these requirements could identify barriers along the way.
"They need to ask these questions," he said. "If your payroll is below $50,000, is this due to the fact that you just started up a new business? If so, provide us with your date of incorporation. Then you've got the loan."
On Thursday morning, Susanna Cluff-Clyburne, Canadian Chamber of Commerce senior director for parliamentary affairs, brought the issue of the arbitrary limits before the federal standing committee on finance.
She said the reasons why some businesses don't qualify for the CEBA "simply don't make sense," pointing to another small Alberta business who had to lay off their staff and cut back on operations because of the virus, but wasn't eligible for the loan because its payroll exceeded $1 million.
"If an incentive to make it as easy as possible for businesses to qualify for support programs, and to get that help to them while they're still around to use it, ever existed, today's employment data is surely it," Cluff-Clyburne said.
According to Statistics Canada, Canada's economy lost more than 1 million jobs in March because of COVID-19, with approximately 21,000 jobs lost in Edmonton.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Chef Dustin Riley nurses a cold can of Lucky Lager in his empty Ucluelet restaurant ‘The Blue Room’ over Easter long weekend. (Nora O’Malley photo)
Sinking Vancouver Island small businesses say aid package too little, too late
Rent abatement and cash up front is needed, say owners
- Nora O'Malley
- Apr. 11, 2020 6:00 a.m.
- Business
- Local Business
“I went through a really dark time right after closing and I was ready to walk away. But I can’t do that to the community. I’d rather go down fighting then just walk away,” Riley said over the telephone, choking back tears.
He opened his west coast bistro 10 years ago after falling in love with the small fishing town. Leading up to the annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival that was supposed to kick-off on March 20, Riley said he was fully staffed and had proudly secured employee housing for four of his team members – a feat that is an ongoing struggle unto itself in the tourism-driven west coast region.
RELATED: Merchants struggle to find a new ‘business as usual’ during COVID-19 pandemic
Then he had to pull the plug when B.C.’s top doctor ordered all restaurants across the province to close its doors to dine-in guests.
“At the beginning of [April], $4,300 came out of my bank account for housing that we are not going to be able to use,” he said. “I had to lay off my staff. In my conscience mind I couldn’t have these new employees pay for staff (accommodations) when they had just moved. I was floating them. I would do anything for my staff because without them I am nothing.”
The proverbial life raft bobbing on the horizon for Canadian small business owners like Riley is a $40,000 interest-free loan, offered up as part of the federal governments $25 billion loan program to support small businesses and non-profits.
To qualify for the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) as it is being referred to, organizations will need to demonstrate they paid between $50,000 to $1 million in total payroll in 2019. Up to $10,000 of the $40,000 will be eligible for complete forgiveness if $30,000 is fully repaid on or before December 31, 2022.
Gord Johns, NDP small business critic and MP for Courtenay-Alberni, said the CEBA needs to be more flexible.
“Get rid of the payroll limitations on the $40,000 loan so that everyone can access it. Keep it universal,” said Johns. “If you’re a proprietorship, and it’s you and your partner, you get nothing.”
“The $10,000 repayable that you get as a grant if you pay it back by Dec. 2022, what we are saying, and this is supported by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, is give the grant up front. People actually need cash up front, right now,” Johns continued.
Save Small Business, a grassroots coalition of over 20,000 small businesses across Canada, is calling on all levels of government to provide a “land-lord friendly” commercial rent abatement strategy.
In an April 9 Finance Committee meeting, NDP critic for finance Peter Julian, MP for New Westminster-Burnaby, raised a concrete example of a popular Ucluelet food truck ‘Jiggers Fish and Chips’ applying for the loan, but because their payroll requirement fell $483 short of the minimal payroll requirement, they were rejected by the system.
“The regulations, do they not need to be much more flexible both in terms of loans, but also in terms of the wage subsidy and that 30 per cent threshold,” said Julian.
A survey sent to businesses who signed up via SaveSmallBusiness.ca showed that 38 per cent of small businesses will default on their commercial rents on April 1. By May 1, 70 per cent of small businesses will have defaulted.
“There is a fundamental unfairness in asking businesses to close to protect the community, and then asking them to take on debt to make sure costs like rent, phone bills and debt payments are paid in full,” said Jon Shell, Save Small Business co-founder. “This crisis calls for more equitable burden sharing.”
RELATED: Small businesses say fed’s singular approach to wage subsidies doesn’t fit them all
Save Small Business launched a petition asking the federal government to “mandate the first $10,000 of commercial rent is waived for three months and give landlords the support they need to make it happen.” As of April 10, over 25,000 small business owners and over 6,100 individuals had signed.
Blue Room’s chef re-iterates what is being offered is not enough.
“That 40 grand that they are offering and those tax breaks, it’s just not enough.”
And the community vibe between West Coast restaurant owners is sadly sinking too, Riley observes.
“Everyone is fighting for crumbs right now. The whole working together that we were doing really well at, it’s going to come back to ‘I’m in it for myself’. Those crumbs, even if they do open up in July and August, the crumbs will be pretty sparse for the widespread of restaurants that we have,” he said.
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
No government relief program for some small businesses
Scott Miller Videographer
@ScottMillerCTV Contact
Published Monday, April 13, 2020 4:51PM EDT
Marla Valdez of The Gift Chest in Wingham, Ont. fears her business may close. (Scott Miller / CTV London)
WINGHAM, ONT. -- The Gift Chest just celebrated 30 years in business last week.
But owner Marla Valdez fears her gift shop in downtown Wingham, may not make it through the next three months. “It’s a little stressful. There’s been lots of tears and and a lot of stress,” she says.
Valdez is doing as much online selling and delivery as she can, since she had to close her doors to customers due to COVID-19 restrictions. But she’s only making about 30 per cent of her normal revenue, with 100 per cent of her bills left to pay, this month, next month, and the month after that.
The worst part, says Valdez, is she doesn’t qualify for any of the government programs. As she’s bringing in some revenue, she doesn’t qualify for the $2,000 per month Canada Emergency Relief Benefit (CERB). She also doesn’t qualify for the small Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA), consisting of a $40,000 interest-free loan, because she needs to have paid out $50,000 in salaries last year.
As she runs the shop almost entirely by herself, she can't apply, along with thousands of other owner-operated small businesses in Canada.
“I would like Huron County and area and small businesses everywhere to survive this, and they won’t if the government doesn’t step up and look at the little, little people like us,” she says.
Canada has more than 1.1 million small businesses. Over half of those have one to four employees.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business is lobbying the government to change the criteria around both the CERB and CEBA, to let small business owners like Valdez qualify.
Scott Miller Videographer
@ScottMillerCTV Contact
Published Monday, April 13, 2020 4:51PM EDT
Marla Valdez of The Gift Chest in Wingham, Ont. fears her business may close. (Scott Miller / CTV London)
WINGHAM, ONT. -- The Gift Chest just celebrated 30 years in business last week.
But owner Marla Valdez fears her gift shop in downtown Wingham, may not make it through the next three months. “It’s a little stressful. There’s been lots of tears and and a lot of stress,” she says.
Valdez is doing as much online selling and delivery as she can, since she had to close her doors to customers due to COVID-19 restrictions. But she’s only making about 30 per cent of her normal revenue, with 100 per cent of her bills left to pay, this month, next month, and the month after that.
The worst part, says Valdez, is she doesn’t qualify for any of the government programs. As she’s bringing in some revenue, she doesn’t qualify for the $2,000 per month Canada Emergency Relief Benefit (CERB). She also doesn’t qualify for the small Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA), consisting of a $40,000 interest-free loan, because she needs to have paid out $50,000 in salaries last year.
As she runs the shop almost entirely by herself, she can't apply, along with thousands of other owner-operated small businesses in Canada.
“I would like Huron County and area and small businesses everywhere to survive this, and they won’t if the government doesn’t step up and look at the little, little people like us,” she says.
Canada has more than 1.1 million small businesses. Over half of those have one to four employees.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business is lobbying the government to change the criteria around both the CERB and CEBA, to let small business owners like Valdez qualify.
Stizzla
Crew Member
@SpringVelocity
Trudeau changed the minimum payroll to $20k for the loan.
Trudeau changed the minimum payroll to $20k for the loan.
MadJigga
Well-Known Member
That should help a lot of people that were left out. I applied last Thursday and nothing yet.....
MadJigga
Well-Known Member
Me and the buddies have been joking about a YouTube Chanel for a bit....might try it
SpringVelocity
Crew Member
Thanks I am just reading now....
