Government business relief programs FAQ

If the error occurred before you submitted the application, for example if you didn’t see a confirmation screen, then please visit www.cibc.com/ceba and select “Apply Now”. You will be prompted to sign on to CIBC Online Banking for Business, and taken directly to the application form. Alternatively, you can access the application from the Customer Services section within CIBC Online Banking for Business.

Use your CRA Business Number to resume your application directly at the Government of Canada’s CEBA websiteOpens a new window in your browser. to upload all your documents as evidence of incurred and projected amount of eligible non-deferrable expenses between $40,000 and $1.5 million for 2020.

• If applying on the basis of eligible non-deferrable expenses, the next step is to upload evidence of eligible non-deferrable expenses via the Government of Canada’s CEBA document upload website Opens in a new window. for verification in order to complete your submission.
• Your completed application will be sent to the government for review. This entire process can take between 10 to 15 business days from the date that all required supporting documentation is received by the Government of Canada.
• You’ll receive a decision on the application from the Government of Canada, and CIBC will notify you via email. If approved, you can expect to receive the CEBA loan directly in your existing CIBC Business Operating Account.
• The deposit will be for the $60,000 or the $20,000 upsize and will appear in your account as, “credit memo CEBA loan advance.”

Before you begin your application, make sure you have:

• Your 9-digit CRA Business Number (BN);
• Your most recent business tax filing, such as:
  • T2 Corporation Income Tax Return
  • T1 General Form
• Financial statements or documentation for calculating projected non-deferrable expenses during 2020. Eligible non-deferrable expenses include:
  • Wages and other employment expenses
  • Rent or lease payments for real estate used for business purposes
  • Rent or lease payments for capital equipment used for business purposes
  • Payments incurred for insurance related costs
  • Payments incurred for property taxes
  • Payments incurred for telephone and utilities in the form of gas, oil, electricity, water and internet
  • Mandatory payments to service debt incurred for business purposes
  • Payments incurred under agreements with independent contractors
  • Fees required in order to maintain licenses, authorizations or permissions necessary to conduct business;
• You’ll also be asked to provide input on any other funds you received through other Government of Canada relief programs; and
• Your business contact information, including phone number and email address

Get a full list of eligible non-deferrable expenses on the Government of Canada Document Upload Website Opens in a new window..

We’ll keep you informed of the status of your application by emailing the business email address you provided. Our advisors, Relationship Managers, banking centre and contact centre teams are unable to support the application process for this government loan.

• Your application will be sent to the government for review. This entire process can take between 10 to 15 business days from the date that all required supporting documentation is received by the Government of Canada;
• Approved clients will be notified via email, and receive their loan directly into their CIBC Business Operating Account;
• The deposit will be for the  $60,000 or the $20,000 upsize and appear in your account as “credit memo CEBA loan advance”; and
• Clients with declined applications will also be notified via email.
• You can check the status of your CEBA application on the CEBA Application Status Website Opens in a new window.. Alternatively, you can also contact the Government of Canada CEBA Call Centre at 1-888-324-4201 Opens your phone app. to receive additional clarification on the status of your CEBA application.

Check the status of your CEBA application on the CEBA Application Status Website Opens in a new window.. Alternatively, you can also contact the Government of Canada CEBA Call Centre at 1-888-324-4201 Opens your phone app. to receive clarification on the program eligibility criteria or non-deferrable expense document upload issues on the Export Development Canada (EDC) website. You can make inquiries like “why was I declined?” or “why were my documents rejected?” about a status update on your CEBA application. CIBC is administering the Canada Emergency Business Account loan program on behalf of the federal government. The program eligibility criteria are defined by the Government of Canada. No organization involved in administering the CEBA program has the authority to grant exceptions, including CIBC, your financial institution. For more information visit the Government of Canada website Opens in a new window..

For businesses applying for a new $60,000 CEBA loan, approved applications will be funded in 10 to 15 business days from the date the Government of Canada receives your completed application. For clients applying based on their non-deferrable expenses, funding is received in 10 to 15 business days after the uploading of your eligible expense documentation.

For business applying for a $20,000 CEBA loan, approved applications will be funded in 5 to 7 business days from the date the Government of Canada receives your application from CIBC.

The application deadline for CEBA is June 30, 2021. If applying on the basis of non-deferrable expenses, applicants must upload all supporting documents no later than July 14, 2021. If there are observations on your documents, you will have until October 1, 2021 to fix or upload additional documentation.

In the event that your application has been on hold for a few months and you have been directed to upload additional information on your non-deferrable expenses, your deadline to submit the documentation is October 1, 2021.

For further details, visit the Government of Canada website Opens in a new window..

The CEBA loan is interest-free. If the loan can’t be repaid by December 31, 2023, it will be converted into a 2-year term loan charging an interest rate of 5%.

You have until December 31, 2023 to repay the loan without interest charges; however:

• If your loan application was approved, or increased by $20,000 to $60,000, on or after December 4, 2020, you can begin or resume making principal repayments any time after April 1, 2021.
• If your loan application was approved, or increased by $20,000 to $60,000, on or after April 1, 2021, you can begin or resume making principal repayments any time after July 1, 2021.

If you have a $40,000 loan, a quarter of the CEBA loan, $10,000, is eligible for complete forgiveness¹ if $30,000 is fully repaid on or before December 31, 2023. If you have a $60,000 loan, a third of the loan, $20,000, is eligible for complete forgiveness¹ if $40,000 is fully repaid on or before December 31, 2023. After this date, any outstanding principal is automatically converted into a 2-year term loan charging an interest rate of 5%.

If you’re a commercial banking or private banking client, get in touch with your Private Banker or Relationship Manager. You can also use CIBC Cash Management Online (CMO)Opens a new window in your browser., CIBC SmartBanking for Business, CIBC Online Banking for BusinessOpens a new window in your browser., as well as ATMs and eDeposit for daily transactions.

The loan is interest-free until December 31, 2023. Furthermore, no principal repayments are required during this period, unless you are seeking to repay $30,000 or $40,000 to qualify for the $10,000 or $20,000 forgiveness¹ feature.

If you choose to extend the loan beyond this date, interest of 5% applies during the extension period. While no principal repayments are required until December 31, 2025, it’s always good practice to make steady installment payments to match the incoming cash flows from your business operations.

Your loan forgiveness amount is based on the loan amount you borrowed and the amount you have repaid by December 31, 2023. You must also be eligible at all times in order to claim the forgiveness. You will only receive the forgiveness amount if you have repaid $30,000 out of your $40,000 loan, $40,000 out of your $60,000 loan or $10,000 out of your $20,000 loan expansion.

• If you borrowed $40,000 and you have repaid $30,000 on or before December 31, 2023, your loan forgiveness will be $10,000.
• If you borrowed $60,000 and you have repaid $40,000 on or before December 31, 2023, your loan forgiveness will be $20,000.
• If you repaid $30,000 out of your $40,000 loan, claimed the forgiveness amount, received the $20,000 expansion and repaid $10,000 on or before December 31, 2023, your loan forgiveness will be $10,000.
• If on or before December 31, 2023 you have repaid less than $30,000 out of your $40,000 loan,  less than $40,000 out of your $60,000 loan or less than $10,000 out of your $20,000 loan expansion, you will not be eligible to receive a forgiveness amount.

Note: The forgiveness amount cannot be included as your repayment amount. 

Refer to a few examples:

If you choose to extend the loan beyond December 31, 2023, a 5% interest rate will apply on the outstanding balance during the extension period. While no principal repayments are required until December 31, 2025, it’s always good practice to make steady installment payments to match the incoming cash flows from your business operations.

Only the $20,000 forgivable portion of the CEBA loan is taxable, while the remaining $40,000 is considered a repayable loan and does not need to be declared. The $20,000 forgivable portion of the CEBA loan is taxable in the year in which the loan is received.

You can declare the forgivable loan portion to the CRA for the year in which the loan is received either by including it in your business reported income, or by reducing the deduction for business expenses by the amount of the forgivable portion. For more information on how to do this, or if you have other questions on how to prepare your future tax returns, speak to the CRA or your accountant.

No. The eligibility criteria only applies to your 2019 payroll expenses.

Getting your CIBC Business Convenience Card will allow you to maintain a high level of banking access on an ongoing basis.

To obtain your card, you’ll need to contact your Relationship Manager to arrange. 

Afterwards, registering for CIBC Online Banking for Business with your new Convenience Card can be done at home within minutes.

If one of the cases below applies to you, follow the instructions provided by email and resubmit your Business Number before September 10, 2021:

1. You never applied for a $20,000 expansion and received an email instructing you to resubmit your Business Number.

2. You applied for a $20,000 expansion and received an email instructing you to resubmit your Business Number.

If neither of the cases above apply and you are still waiting for a reply on your Business Number issue, no further action is required on your end at this moment. We’ll make the correction on your behalf and notify you of the outcome.

If you successfully remedy your original loan application, your business may be eligible for the $20,000 expansion.

The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting small businesses throughout the pandemic. You may be able to remediate your original loan application by requalifying under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream. This reclassification process will not be immediately available, but CIBC will contact you by email as soon as it is launched. 

Once the process is available, to requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream, please visit the CEBA Document Upload Website, Opens in a new window. complete a new attestation, and provide supporting documentation to demonstrate between $40,000 CA and $1,500,000 CA in 2020 Non-Deferrable Expenses. You have until October 1, 2021 to submit this information and upload supporting documents for your eligible non-deferrable expenses. For more information, please visit the Canada Emergency Business Account website Opens in a new window.. 

If you successfully requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream, your business may also be eligible for the $20,000 expansion.

Applicants who do not attempt to requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream will be contacted with further information regarding their original loan 4 to 8 weeks following the October 1 deadline to requalify.

We will contact loan holders that do not ultimately meet program eligibility under either stream with further information regarding their original loan. This will be done before the end of June; no further action is required at this time.

The specific reason for the decline of your application was communicated to you by email.

The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting small businesses throughout the pandemic. For a list of other Government of Canada COVID response programs you may be eligible for, please check  Opens in a new window.Canada’s COVID-19 Response Plan page Opens in a new window..

CEBA eligibility is determined based on the criteria established by the Government of Canada. No organization involved in administering the CEBA program has the authority to grant exceptions, including CIBC.

We will contact loan holders that do not ultimately meet program eligibility with further information regarding their original loan. This will be done before the end of June; no further action is required at this time.

For process related questions contact the Government of Canada CEBA Call Centre at 1-888-324-4201 Opens your phone app.. 

For status questions, you will be contacted by CIBC via email once there is a response on your Business Number remediation application.

The message means that based on the information in the CRA’s records, your business does not meet eligibility criteria for the CEBA payroll stream.

The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting small businesses throughout the pandemic. You may be able to fix your original loan application by requalifying under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream. 

This reclassification process will not be immediately available, but CIBC will contact you by email as soon as it is launched. 

Once the process is available, to requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream, please visit the CEBA Document Upload Opens in a new window.Website Opens in a new window., complete a new attestation, and provide supporting documentation to demonstrate between $40,000 CA and $1,500,000 CA in 2020 Non-Deferrable Expenses. You have until October 1, 2021 to submit this information and upload supporting documents for your eligible non-deferrable expenses. For more information, please visit the Canada Emergency Business Account website Opens in a new window.. 

If you successfully requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream, your business may also be eligible for the $20,000 expansion.

Applicants who do not attempt to requalify under the Non-Deferrable Expense stream will be contacted with further information regarding their original loan 4 to 8 weeks following the October 1 deadline to requalify.

We will contact loan holders that do not ultimately meet program eligibility under either stream with further information regarding their original loan. This will be done before the end of June; no further action is required at this time.

Before you update your application, make sure you have:

• Your 9-digit CRA Business Number (BN);
• Your most recent business tax filing, such as:
  • T2 Corporation Income Tax Return
  • T1 General Form
• Financial statements or documentation for calculating projected non-deferrable expenses during 2020. Eligible non-deferrable expenses include:
  • Wages and other employment expenses
  • Rent or lease payments for real estate used for business purposes
  • Rent or lease payments for capital equipment used for business purposes
  • Payments incurred for insurance related costs
  • Payments incurred for property taxes
  • Payments incurred for telephone and utilities in the form of gas, oil, electricity, water and internet
  • Mandatory payments to service debt incurred for business purposes
  • Payments incurred under agreements with independent contractors
  • Fees required in order to maintain licenses, authorizations or permissions necessary to conduct business;
• You’ll also be asked to provide input on any other funds you received through other Government of Canada relief programs; and
• Your business contact information, including phone number and email address

Get a full list of eligible non-deferrable expenses by visiting the CEBA Document Upload Website Opens in a new window..

Based on the information in the CRA’s records and the supporting documents uploaded to demonstrate eligible non-deferrable expenses, your business does not meet eligibility criteria for the CEBA program. As such, you are not eligible for the $20,000 expansion. The specific reason for the decline of your application was communicated to you by email.

The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting small businesses throughout the pandemic. For a list of other Government of Canada COVID response programs you may be eligible for, please check Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Program Plan page Opens in a new window..

CEBA eligibility is determined based on the criteria established by the Government of Canada. No organization involved in administering the CEBA program has the authority to grant exceptions, including CIBC.

We will contact loan holders that do not ultimately meet program eligibility with further information regarding their original loan. This will be done before the end of June; no further action is required at this time.

You can contact the Government of Canada CEBA Call Centre at 1-888-324-4201 Opens your phone app.. You can also use the self-service tool Opens in a new window. to have access to the Document Upload Instruction Guide.

For everyday banking, continue to speak with your CIBC Advisor or Relationship Manager and use CIBC Online Banking for BusinessOpens a new window in your browser., CIBC Mobile Banking^® App, CIBC SmartBanking for Business, and Telephone Banking anytime.

If you’re a commercial banking or private banking client, get in touch with your Private Banker or Relationship Manager. You can also use CIBC Cash Management Online (CMO)Opens a new window in your browser., CIBC SmartBanking for Business, CIBC Online Banking for BusinessOpens a new window in your browser., as well as ATMs and eDeposit for daily transactions.