CRA says it’s owed more than $10 billion in COVID-19 benefit payments

OTTAWA — The Canada Revenue Agency says it’s owed $10.35 billion in COVID-19 benefits.

Nina Ioussoupova, a spokesperson for the agency, said that, as of Nov. 30, it had disbursed $83.5 billion in COVID benefits to Canadians, including $45.3 billion for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, the financial support program known as CERB.

Ioussoupova said the CRA began sending recovery letters to individuals with debts related to COVID-19 benefits in 2023.

Those debts, she said, arose from overpayments or from individuals who received benefits without being eligible.

“Emergency benefits needed to be delivered extremely quickly to millions of Canadians, leading to an attestation-based application process beginning with the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB),” Ioussoupova said. “Individuals were required to confirm they met the program eligibility criteria and were made aware that the CRA might verify this information at a later date.”

Ioussoupova said that, as of Nov. 30, close to 1.4 million people have repaid approximately $3.3 billion in debts related to individual COVID-19 benefits.

“These figures represent repayments for individuals who received benefits administered by the CRA only and do not include those administered by Employment and Social Development Canada,” she said.

The CRA takes “firm and responsible” measures against those who seek to avoid paying outstanding amounts, Ioussoupova said.

“If it is determined that a taxpayer has the ability to pay their debt in full and it remains unpaid without an acceptable payment arrangement, the CRA may take legal action to recover the debt,” she said. “This includes offsetting refunds and future credits, garnishing wages or other sources of income, or using any other means under applicable laws or regulations to recover an outstanding amount.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 31, 2025.

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press