On June 5, 2020, the Province of Saskatchewan announced that it was implementing an order under section 18 of The Emergency Planning Act to provide commercial eviction protection for small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The mortarium on evictions is targeted towards landlords that have chosen not to apply for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (“CECRA”) program.

The CECRA program is a joint program between the Government of Saskatchewan and the Federal Government that provides forgivable loans to landlords that cover 50 percent of the total rent for the months of April, May and June 2020 for commercial tenants that have seen a 70 percent loss of revenues during the pandemic period, provided that the landlord enters into a rent reduction agreement with the commercial tenant to forgive 25 percent of the rent during these months.  

While the CECRA program is designed to provide financial support to both landlords and commercial tenants that have been impacted by the pandemic, many landlords have said they are not interested in the program because the application process is too difficult or they are not willing to provide the rent reductions to tenants that are required under the program. 

By implementing a moratorium on evictions on commercial tenants that are eligible for the CECRA program, the Province of Saskatchewan is sending a message to landlords that the Province wants landlords and commercial tenants to negotiate on the CECRA program.  As the application process under the CECRA requires a landlord to enter into a rent reduction agreement with each commercial tenant, reviewing the terms of commercial leases will be a necessary part of these negotiations.  The moratorium on evictions implemented by the Province will provide landlords and commercial tenants some additional time to conduct these reviews.

If you have questions about the mortarium on evictions or the CECRA program, feel free to contact James T. Sproule or David J. Ukrainetz for assistance.

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This post is for information purposes only and should not be taken as legal opinions on any specific facts or circumstances.  Counsel should be consulted concerning your own situation and any specific legal questions you may have.

For more information and resources regarding COVID-19 visit https://www.mckercher.ca/covid-19