Introducing the Canada United Small Business Relief Fund

Are you a Canadian Small Business owner/operator? Could you use some financial relief?

Get ready to apply for the Canada United Small Business Relief Fund, courtesy of RBC and a host of Canada United Partners, starting August 31, 2020. The Fund will be managed by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the national Chamber network in support of other chambers and partners to help small Canadian businesses with their recovery efforts as a result of COVID-19. If awarded, a relief grant can be used for any of the following activities:

• Purchasing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as masks, face shields, and latex gloves.
• Renovating physical space to adhere to local, provincial or federal reopening guidelines.
• Developing or improving e-commerce capabilities for your business.

Successful applicants will receive a relief grant of up to $5,000. We intend to support local businesses of all kinds from across the country (from retailers to barbershops to farmers). Eligibility criteria includes:

• One application per ownership group
• Small to medium-sized (SME) companies from all sectors and all regions of Canada
• Both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations are eligible. Government organizations and municipalities are not eligible to apply
• Be incorporated and operating as a business in Canada as of March 1, 2020
• A SME with no more than 1- 75 employees
• Have minimum annual sales of $200,000 and not more than $3,000,000 (based on 2019 fiscal year annual sales).
• Have $2,000,000 of commercial general liability insurance that includes products and completed operations.
• Not receiving any other contributions from public funds towards the activities contained in the funding application
• Be in full compliance with all government laws and regulations
• Must continue in operation after September 1, 2020