![]() ![]() The HTSBA covered the period of Septemto October 30, 2020. Bill 204, Helping Tenants and Small Business Act (“ HTSBA”) came into force on Octoand continued the protections offered under the PSBA.The PBSA was intended to incentivize landlords to apply for rental relief under CECRA on behalf of their tenants. The PBSA prohibited courts from ordering evictions for non-payment of rent and suspended landlords’ right of re-entry for non-payment of rent during a “non-enforcement period” which covered to September 1, 2020. It introduced protections for commercial tenants whose landlords declined to apply for the federal CECRA relief program. Bill 192, Protecting Small Business Act, 2020 (“ PSBA”) came into effect on June 18, 2020.Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Act has been amended by three consecutive bills, each bill repealing the previous changes: The Act provides landlords with certain remedies, including termination, in the case of tenants’ non-payment of rent. Ontario’s Commercial Tenancies Act (the “ Act”) outlines the rights and obligations of commercial landlords and tenants. Ontario has also passed legislation to protect commercial tenants. According to the 2021 Federal Budget, CERS will now be available until at least September 25, 2021. The qualifying periods run from Septemup to June 5, 2021. An additional subsidy of 25% of such per location costs (with no maximum aggregate cap) is also available where a tenant is required to shut down completely as a result of pandemic-related governmental restrictions. Under CERS, most commercial tenants experiencing a drop in revenue of up to 70% in a prescribed period as compared to another prescribed period were eligible for a subsidy to cover up to 65% of their per location rental costs up to a maximum of $75,000.00, with an aggregate maximum cap across all locations in Canada of $300,000.00. In September 2020, CECRA was replaced with the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (“ CERS”), a rent subsidy program for commercial tenants that does not require landlord participation. forgo 25% of the rent), with the tenant remaining responsible for the final 25%. These loans covered 50% of gross rent owing and, in exchange, landlords were required to agree to reduce rent by 25% (i.e. CECRA provided forgivable loans to eligible commercial landlords who agreed to lower or forego the rent of impacted small business tenants from April through to September 2020. In May 2020, the federal government introduced the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“ CECRA”) program to assist commercial tenants with rent. While landlords appear to have fewer options at this time, recent case-law does provide landlords with important tools to prepare for potential future litigation with tenants.įollowing the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government passed a range of legislation to protect businesses and the economy. ![]() Such decisions appear to indicate that protections may exist in common law once governmental relief efforts have ended. Ontario courts have also seen fit to grant some commercial tenants “relief from forfeiture” by reinstating their leases after they were terminated. Meanwhile, the Federal government has passed a series of bills intended to supplement income for commercial landlords and provide protection for commercial tenants. Questions have arisen about what landlords and tenants are permitted to do in these circumstances, particularly whether landlords can terminate leases and evict tenants for non-payment of rent.Īlong with other measures to protect the Canadian economy, most provincial governments have enacted legislation preventing commercial landlords from terminating a commercial lease for non-payment of rent. As a result of stay-at-home orders and increased restrictions on non-essential business activity, many commercial tenants have struggled to pay their lease obligations. Mervyn Allen, Reuben Rothstein, Paola RamirezĪ year after the first province-wide shutdown, courts continue to hear disputes between commercial landlords and tenants over unpaid rent.
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