Dear members,

The Government of Canada has unveiled new details on how the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program will operate. One of the things we learned from today’s announcement is that:
Applications for the EWS will be able to begin being processed next Monday, April 27, through the Canada Revenue Agency’s portal;
The government will proceed with a target of 90% of applications being processed/approved by May 5th;
The funds should be available to businesses shortly after approval is served.
The government has posted a calculator on the Canada Revenue Agency’s website to help calculate the amount that the wage subsidy will cover. This tool will be used to make financial decisions regarding access to credit to cover expenses that will not be covered by the wage subsidy. To access the calculator, please visit: https://www.canada.ca/fr/agence-revenu/services/subvention/subvention-salariale-urgence/ssuc-calculez-montant-subvention.html

In the meantime, we will continue to work on developing and providing information about the supports that you and your employees could benefit from. We recognize that the summer season is a “financial window of opportunity” for our industry, which helps to replenish cash flow. We continue to advocate to governments for assistance solutions for our industry.

To this end, we will be sending you tomorrow a survey from our national partner, the Hotel Association of Canada – HAC. The partnership and ongoing collaboration we have with them gives us the opportunity to make important representations to the federal government. As such, knowing your pulse on federal support measures will be important to us.

I invite you to contact us if you have any questions, ideas or suggestions on these topics.
Xavier Gret
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Quebec Hotel Association