CRA obliquely confirms that there is no adverse CEWS impact of a non-resident parent paying dividends to individuals

CRA was presented with the proposition that publicly traded companies or their subsidiaries are not entitled to any CEWS grants for the claim period in which dividends were paid to individuals who are holders of common shares, and with the example of a parent company listed on the Paris stock exchange, with a Canadian subsidiary in Canada and an individual shareholder, which declares a dividend to be paid on March 31, 2022. CRA effectively indicated that the payment of a dividend at the parent level was irrelevant, and there would only be an adverse CEWS impact under the rules in ss. 125.7(2.01) and (14.1) if the Canadian subsidiary itself paid a dividend to an individual.

Neal Armstrong. Summary of 7 October 2022 APFF Federal Roundtable, Q.3 under s. 125.7(2.01).