In the midst of the pandemic, the federal government sent money to nearly nine million Canadians in the form of benefits from the Canadian Emergency Response Program (CERB).
Now, two years later, the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) has checked its accounts and wants some of that money back.
Sarah Mercer of Newmarket, Ont. I just received an email instructing her to pay some of her benefits to CERB, but she won’t know how much until she receives a letter from the CRA in the mail.
“It’s funny,” Mercer told CTV News Toronto. “I’ve been working for 20 years and I’ve always paid my taxes on time and the government will finally do something to help me. At that time it was a relief and then two years later I was told I had to return the money? It’s like “Wow.”
Janice Bowers of Stony Plain, Alta. she applied for unemployment insurance due to an injury at the beginning of the pandemic, but instead received payments from CERB.
Bowers has just been told she will have to pay $ 1,000 in CERB benefits, something she says will be difficult as her husband receives a disability pension and works part-time.
“With the rise in gas prices and my mortgage payment today, it will be a fight against rising food prices and everything else,” she said.
Many Canadians who have received benefits from CERB are still struggling, and while some have been asked to return $ 1,000 to $ 2,000, others could owe much more.
Lori Campbell, director of financial wellness services for clients at Bromwich & Smith, a licensed trustee, said she saw more clients in financial difficulty due to inflation, rising bills and health problems.
Campbell said many Canadians will have difficulty getting their money back.
“The federal government initially gave $ 2,000 before qualifying someone, so a lot of people will just owe that $ 2,000, but there are people who collected CERBs throughout the period and could owe tens of thousands of dollars,” Campbell said.
CTV News Toronto asked the CRA why payments are required now, and in a statement, a CRA spokesman said: of one or more periods of benefits. “
The CRA has said it will take payments over time and will not charge interest, but many Canadians may still find it difficult to find the money.
Doug Gablehouse, president of CPS Accounting Services in Calgary, said: “People should not be asked for this money back. That’s only two thousand dollars. “
Some of those asked to pay the funds say the federal government should have done a better job of distributing the benefits, so they will not be asked to pay them now.
“I do not know how I will be able to pay for this at the moment. “I’m absent from work, I’m not even sure when I’ll be back, and that was a real shock,” Mercer said.
Bowers said, “Why do I pay for their mistakes, why do we all pay for their mistakes?”
The CRA has said it is ready to work with Canadians who have applied for CERB benefits in good faith, and will deal with taxpayers who owe money on a case-by-case basis.
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