On March 4, 2021, B.C. updated the eligibility for the Business Recovery Grant. This grant ranges from $10,000 to $30,000, depending on the size of your business. It is based on pre-COVID annual revenues as follows:
| Pre-COVID annual revenue | Grant amount |
| Up to $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $100,001 to $1,000,000 | $15,000 |
| $1,000,001 to $2,000,000 | $20,000 |
| $2,000,001 to $3,000,000 | $25,000 |
| More than $3,000,000 | $30,000 |
Recently, the program has been updated to extend the applicants’ ability to access this program’s benefits.
To be eligible, these are the necessary conditions that must be met:
- The business must have been operating in B.C. for at least 18 months as of the date of application to the Grant program.
- The business must operate in B.C., be registered in B.C. and be current on its taxes.
- The business must employ up to 149 people in B.C. for at least four months.
- The business had a positive cash flow for the last financial statements before February 1, 2020.
- The business had at least a 30% revenue loss from March 2020 to the present compared to the same one-month period in 2019. This condition only needs to be met for one month.
- The business was not prepared for sale after February 1, 2020.
If you meet the conditions, you can apply for the Grant program. You will be required to complete a recovery plan. This plan can be completed by yourself, or the B.C. government will provide you with a professional service provider to prepare the plan. There is no cost to prepare this plan as the B.C. government covers it for up to $2,000.
The recovery plan describes how the funds will be used in the recovery plan. Here are a few examples of how the funds can be used:
- Provide new services to your customers.
- Modify your physical business location.
- Support your business moving online.
- Hire a B.C.-based online marketing service.
- Diversify your business to reach new customers or offer new services.
- Purchase equipment to support a change or improvement to your goods or services.
- Pay for rent, lease, or other fixed costs.
- Other actions that help your business recovery.
The above items can also include actions your business took since the program began on September 17, 2020.
The deadline to apply for the program is August 31, 2021, or until the program’s funds are fully expended.
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/economic-recovery/business-recovery-grant
Consult with your advisor at Purtzki Johansen & Associates on how you can maximize the benefits under this plan.
