,, the dSmall business and registered charity electricity or natural gas customers are eligible for CEAP-SB if they meet all of the following criteria:

• The customer has an active account with an electricity distributor, a USMP or a natural gas distributor.
• The customer’s account falls within the following class:
  • For customers of an electricity distributor, the General Service less than 50 kW rate class.
  • For customers of a USMP, the relevant commercial class that uses less than 150,000 kWh of electricity annually.
  • For customers of a natural gas distributor, a non-residential rate class that uses less than 50,000 cubic meters of gas annually.

Customers can find information about their class on their bill, or they can contact their energy distributor or USMP.

You are eligible for this program if you meet all the following criteria:

1. As of the date you are applying, your small business or registered charity has an active account with an electricity distributor or a unit sub-meter provider. You will be required to provide your registered business number or registered charity number.
2. Your small business or registered charity is classified as a general service less than 50 kilowatt (kW) customer if the account is with an electricity distributor.
3. Your small business or registered charity is using less than 150,000 kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity annually if the account is with a unit sub-meter provider.
4. As of the date you are applying, your small business or registered charity has any overdue amounts owing from one or more previous electricity bills since March 17, 2020, the date of the initial Provincial Declaration of Emergency.

If you previously received funding under this program and are reapplying based on overdue amounts still owing, you may qualify for additional funding up to a total combined maximum credit of $1,500.

Yes, but customers can only receive a CEAP-SB credit once for electricity and once for gas.

Customers must apply for CEAP-SB through their electricity or natural gas distributors or USMPs.

Starting August 31, 2020, electricity and natural gas distributors and USMPs will be making the CEAP-SB application form available on their websites and directly to any small business or registered charity customer that requests it.  Customers should contact their electricity or natural gas distributor or USMP directly as each may have a unique approach for application in-take.

At a minimum, customers can apply for CEAP-SB by email or by mail.  Some electricity and natural gas distributors and USMPs may also have the capability to allow their customers to apply online or by phone.  Customers should contact their electricity and natural gas distributor or USMP to find out what options are available.

CEAP-SB funding is limited. Submitting an application for CEAP-SB to a electricity distributor, natural gas distributor or USMP does not guarantee funding.

Electricity and Natural gas distributors and USMPs are expected to process applications in the order in which they are received, and to process complete applications within 10 business days of receipt.

No, but funding for the program is limited, and distributors and USMPs are expected to process applications in the order in which they are received. CEAP-SB funding is not guaranteed even after a complete application has been submitted.

The government is making $8 million available for CEAP-SB to support small business and registered charity energy customers.  Each electricity and natural gas distributor and USMP has been allocated a share of that amount, based on their reporting on customer numbers.  Each electricity and natural gas distributor or USMP will stop accepting applications and providing CEAP-SB credits once their allocated share of CEAP-SB funding has run out.

Electricity customers

Eligible small business and registered charity customers may qualify for a one-time CEAP-SB credit equal to the electricity charges that are overdue on the date of their application for CEAP-SB:

• up to a maximum of $1,500

Natural Gas customers

Eligible small business and registered charity customers may qualify for a one time CEAP-SB credit equal to the natural gas charges that are overdue on the date of their application for CEAP-SB  – please contact your natural gas provider for details.

An eligible CEAP-SB small business or registered charity customer that has more than one location can receive only one CEAP-SB credit towards their electricity bill and one CEAP-SB credit towards their natural gas bill, even if they have multiple locations throughout the Province the location can be different for electricity and natural gas. The pre-set maximum amount of support for eligible customers will assist in achieving the objective of making CEAP-SB available to help the most small businesses and registered charities affected financially by COVID-19.

The pre-set maximum amount of support for eligible customers will assist in achieving the objective of making CEAP-SB available to help the most small businesses and registered charities affected financially by COVID-19. For the same reason, CEAP-SB funding will be available only once per customer for each of electricity and natural gas, and only once per location for customers that have multiple locations.

Distributors and USMPs are expected to process complete CEAP-SB applications within 10 business days of receipt.

Provided that a customer is eligible and their distributor or USMP has CEAP-SB funds remaining when they assess the application as complete, the credit will be applied to the next available bill issued after that.

The government is making $8 million available for CEAP-SB to support small business and registered charity energy customers.  Each electricity and natural gas distributor and USMP has been allocated a share of that amount, based on their reporting on customer numbers.

Each distributor and USMP has been advised by the OEB of their share of CEAP-SB funding.

If you have previously received funding, you can apply again to receive a combined funding up to a maximum of $1,500