Individual Eligibility

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To be eligible for Self-Employment Services, you must be unemployed and meet at least one of the following:

• Have an active Employment Insurance (EI) claim; or

• Have had an EI benefit period that ended within the previous 60 months; or

• Have earned more than $2,000 in insurable earnings and paid EI employee premiums on those earnings in at least 5 of the last 10 completed taxation years (years do not need to be consecutive); or

• Hold a BCEA Person with a Disability (PWD) designation; or

• Hold a BCEA Person with Persistent Multiple Barriers (PPMB) designation; or

• Be a general client with a disability

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You must also be able to dedicate a minimum of 35 hours per week to developing and implementing your business. If you are currently employed, your employment must not exceed 20 hours per week and must not interfere with your full participation in the program.
 

Business Eligibility

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To be considered for Self-Employment Services, your business must be:

• A new business; or

• An existing business in which you had no prior ownership; and

• A business that will not result in putting another individual out of business

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You are not eligible if your business is already operating, this includes having advertised, conducted business transactions, or generated any revenue prior to approval.

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All applicants must demonstrate personal investment and the ability to contribute 100% of the actual costs of launching and implementing their business, through savings, a confirmed loan, or in-kind contributions.