Highly Affected Sectors Credit Availability Program (HASCAP)

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HASCAP loans are intended for small and medium-sized businesses that have seen their revenue decrease by 50% or more due to COVID-19 and its restrictions.

  • Loans will carry a 4% interest rate
  • Repayment term of up to 10 years
  • Up to a 12-month postponement of principal payments at the start of the loans
  • The guaranteed loans are to cover operational cash flow needs for your business
  • The loans cannot be used to pay or refinance existing debt
  • You can apply for the loan for each legal entity you own up to a maximum combined amount of $6.25 million

Eligibility Criteria

  • Your business is Canadian based
  • Your business must have been financially stable and viable prior to the pandemic
  • You are not required to operate in any specific sector to qualify for this program
  • You must have received payments either from the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) or the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) by having demonstrated a minimum 50% revenue decline for at least 3 months (not necessarily consecutive) within the 8-month period prior to your HASCAP application date
    • If your business does not qualify for CEWS and CERS, but otherwise meets all HASCAP eligibility criteria, you must provide financial statements that reflect at least 3 months (not necessarily consecutive) of financial statements in which monthly year-over-year revenue decreased by a minimum of 50% within the 8-month period prior to your HASCAP application date

Risk Ratings

The pre-financing eligibility validation is based on the criteria established by the Government of Canada:

  • Segment 1 – Eligible loans between $25,000 to $100,000: your business must meet a profitability of default requirement
  • Segment 2 – Eligible loans between $100,001 to $250,000: your business must meet profitability of default requirements and have generated a minimum of $500,000 in gross revenue for the 12-month period ending’s financial statement prior to March 1, 2020
  • Segment 3 – Eligible loans between $250,001 to $1,000,000: your business must meet a minimum debt service coverage ratio of 1.1x as at the date of the most recent financial statements prior to March 1, 2020 including the HASCAP loan and any other debt added since these financial statements and have a minimum S&P CCC+ rating prior to March 1, 2020

How Do I Apply?

Contact your primary financial institution to apply. Applications are due June 30, 2021.

We encourage you to contact us if you have any questions about the program’s eligibility.

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