The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) was designed to support Canadian employees directly affected by COVID-19. The May Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada shows that 5 million Canadians lost their job due to COVID-19, yet there were 15 million CERB applications and $42 billion paid out.
Prime Minister Trudeau addressed the concerns of CERB fraud stating that the “focus was getting help out to people when they needed it, as quickly as possible and cleaning it up afterwards.”
If you suspect fraudulent activity in Brampton, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has an anonymous snitch line for you to contact. The Leads Program allows you to report a person, business, or charity suspected of benefit cheating to the CRA.
The CRA and Service Canada have records of all individuals who have received payments for the CERB and the Canadian Emergency Student Benefit (CESB). They will be verifying that all payments were allocated appropriately. Prepayment and post-payment reviews will also be carried out for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS).
As the CRA begins to investigate the first 1300 tips delivered to The Leads Program, Canadians who engage in fraud will be facing a $5000 fine or imprisonment.
