As of Wednesday, February 24thOntario Ministry of Small Business & Red Tape Reduction have approved over 67,000 applications with more than $950 million in payments going to businesses in communities across the province.

Starting at $10,000 for all eligible businesses, the grant provides them with funding to a maximum of $20,000 to help cover decreased revenue expected as a result of the Provincewide Shutdown. In order to qualify, business must demonstrate that they experienced a revenue decline of at least 20 per cent when comparing monthly revenue in April 2019 and April 2020.

This time period was selected because it reflects the impact of the public health measures in spring 2020, and as such provides a representation of the possible impact of these latest measures on small businesses. New businesses established since April 2019 are also eligible provided they meet the other eligibility criteria.

And to help keep businesses informed with the most up to date information, there’s now a new way for them to check the status of their application online: https://www.app.grants.gov.on.ca/msrf/#/home#BSGStatusWindowThe applicants would need to scroll down to the section marked “Check Ontario Small Business Support Grant application status” as indicated in the screenshot below. To check  application status, authorization number and CRA business number are required.

Check your application status: https://www.app.grants.gov.on.ca/msrf/#/home#BSGStatusWindow

Learn more about the grant: http://ontario.ca/COVIDsupport