Self Employment Program (SEP)

däna Näye Ventures offers the Self-Employment Program (SEP) to people who currently are unemployed and interested in starting a business. The SEP can give you up to 52 weeks of regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits while you establish your new business. If you already own a business, you are not eligible for this program.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the SEP, you must:

• Be in receipt of an active EI claim.
• Or have had a regular EI claim within the last three years.
• Or have had a maternity or parental claim start within the last five years.

In addition to these conditions, you must:

• Be unemployed and not have a job to return to.
• Be eligible to work in Canada.
• Be a resident of the Yukon at the time of your application, and remain in the Yukon during the entire period of your subsidy.
• Prove that you are looking for work, in order to remain eligible for your EI benefits while waiting for your acceptance into the SEP.
• Work at least 35 hours per week (full-time) on your business while receiving funding through the SEP.

Note: If you are on leave from your job and would have to quit your job to be unemployed than you are not eligible. Likewise you are not eligible if you refuse work to be on the Self-Employment Program.e

Summary

To apply to the Self-Employment program:

• Attend a Self-Employment Program Information Session at däna Näye; sessions are held at 2pm on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month.
• Register with one of the SE Program Referral Agents to obtain a referral to the program.
• Meet with the SE Coordinator to discuss your business idea; bring a completed SEP application and provide your resume.
• Complete a Feasibility Study.

Once you submit your program application and business idea, a Business Services Officer will review your application with you. Your next step will be to attend our 4-day Feasibility Study Workshop. Following this Workshop you will develop and submit a Feasibility Study for your business idea. You may elect to complete your Feasibility Study without attending the Workshop, however, because an approved Feasibility Study is a pre-requisite to being approved for the Self Employment Program, we do recommend participation in the Feasibility Study Workshop.

A review of your Feasibility Study is done "in-house" by our Review Committee. If business feasibility has been proven then your application is forwarded to Service Canada for their approval. Approved participants will be offered a seat in the next Self Employment Small Business Planning Course at däna Näye Ventures, and will be required to sign a Self-Employment Program agreement with Service Canada. The agreement allows you to continue receiving insurance benefits or an employment allowance while attending class and developing your business plan. On completion of this course a business plan is submitted and reviewed by an independent Review Committee consisting of local Yukon business people, and then reviewed by Service Canada. Upon approval you will continue to receive your EI benefits or employment allowance for the remaining weeks of your agreement as you proceed with the implementation of your business plan. DNV will monitor your business activity for program compliance and provide nurturing and entrepreneurial support during the term of your agreement.

You should keep the following guidelines in mind when considering options for your business:

• Choose a service or product which is not likely to create undue competition for existing businesses or not currently available in the local community.
• Provide a product which may be sold locally, but produced outside the Territory.
• Your product or service should have a broad client base.
• Offer a product or service, which you could produce locally at a lower cost.
• Provide goods or services which will use scrap or waste from existing businesses.
• Invent, produce and market a new product.
• Repackage and resell an existing product.

Keep in mind that if you are going into partnership with other SEP applicants, you must share the controlling ownership equally among you.

Your business will not be considered for funding under this program if:

• It is controlled by someone other than the person receiving financial assistance through the SEP.
• You rely on commissions for the majority of your business income.
• It is a subsidiary or business that receives financial support from other companies and you are an agent or sub-contractor for other businesses.
• It exploits sex, religion, or politics.
• It is a seasonal business UNLESS it provides a viable annual income and there are aspects of the business to carry on throughout the year in order to meet the minimum contribution of 35 hours per week.

Yukon Contact(s):
däna Näye Ventures
409 Black Street
Whitehorse, Yukon  Y1A 2N2
Telephone: (867) 668-6925
Fax: (867) 668-3127
Toll-free (information): 1-800-661-0448
E-mail: dnv@dananaye.com