Canadian Government Funding Programs

  • Did you know that 17 percent of Canadian entrepreneurs indicate “obtain financing” as an obstacle to growth? The challenge facing most businesses is how to find and take advantage of what is out there. Most business owners receive financing through banking institutions. However, funding resources are available to small businesses from both the provincial and federal levels of government. Canadian small business grants and other funding vehicles are increasing their penetration in Southern Ontario, since the formation of the Economic Action Plan – all to the advantage of businesses.

    FedDev Ontario has received an additional $920 Million for Canadian government funding initiatives including IRAP

    Government funding programs can help small companies tackle financing barriers so they can achieve growth and prosper. Whether the requirement is working capital, expanding the business, software or hardware investment or purchasing equipment, there are many creative ways to approach financing to solve innovation challenges.

    Available Canadian Government Funding Mechanisms for Businesses*

    *Please click on a program from the table below for more information on the specific funding mechanism

    Agri-Innovation Program (AIP): Industry-Led Research & Development
    or
    Agri-Innovation Program (AIP): Enabling Commercialization & Adoption Stream    		 Industry-led Research & Development Stream: Supports pre-commercialization R&D, leading to new agri-based products, processes, and practices.
    ● Combines industry, academia, & government expertise to promote innovation
    ● Scope may be national, regional, or localEnabling Commercialization & Adoption Stream: Accelerates the rate of identification, assessment, development and adoption of innovation-based products.
    ● Commercialization projects of a new product or innovation
    ● Technology adoption projects to improve internal operations or end products    		  X  X  X
    Agri-Marketing Program

    		 Provides support to industries by allowing them to identify market priorities and increase their chance of global success.
    ● Non-repayable contributions
    ● Focuses on organizations promoting exports of Canadian agriculture, agri-food, fish and seafood products.    		 X
    Agri-Processing Initiative

    		 Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada created the Agri-Processing Initiative to help companies in the Agri-Processing sector be more competitive and enable them to adopt new technology, products and services..
    ● Repayable contributions of up to $2 million per project
    ● Incorporated food-processing companies with ≥51% of revenue coming from food processing activities.    		 X  X
    Apprenticeship Job Tax Credit Supports the training and certification of new trades apprentices through wage subsidies. Credit covers:
    ●   Training new trades employees    		 X
    Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit Incentive to allow SME’s to hire new apprentices in trades.
    ●   Register new trades apprentices in sectors where there is high demand for skilled workers    		 X
    Canada Summer Jobs Encourages the hiring of young workers (i.e. 15-30 years) to allow for career related experience. Financial hourly wage subsidy program.
    ●   Deadline for submission: ~Q1 of each year
    ●   Part of the Youth Employment Strategy programs    		 X
    CareerConnect Program (ICTC) Wage subsidy program that supports wage of 1-2 recent graduates.  for internships at least 3 months long, ending on or before Feb. 28, 2014.
    ●  Covers 50% of wage, up to a max of $16K
    ●  Can apply for 1-2 IT, online marketing, or graphic design roles    		 X
    Colleges Ontario Network for Industry Innovation (CONII) Assists SME’s with applied research and commercialization by tapping into 20 Southern Ontario post-secondary institutions to help with:
    ●   Proof of principle projects and testing
    ●   Prototype and process development
    ●   Business planning, marketing strategies, market research
    ●   Industrial design and other commercialization strategies    		 X X X
    Connect Canada Internship Allows companies to solve a R&D problem through the hiring of an intern over 4-6 months. Eligible projects include:
    ●   Market Research
    ●   Applied Scientific Research
    ●   Technical Problem Solving
    ●   Software Solutions    		 X X
    CME SMART Prosperity Now Helps fund SMEs capital expenditures and expansion into new domestic and international markets by providing 33.3% in grants, up to $75,000, for eligible projects, such as:
    ●     Operational efficiency improvements
    ●     Global expansion activities
    ●     Marketing expenses for new domestic and international markets
    ●     Energy efficiency and environmental reduction programs    		 X X
    Eastern Ontario Development Fund (EODF) This program is designed to support business expansion projects that create jobs within Eastern Ontario, provides up to $1.5M in grant funding or a $5M fully repayable loan depending on the project size. Eligible costs include:
    ●     Capital Equipment
    ●     Leasehold Improvements
    ●     Direct Labour
    ●     Skills Training    		 X X  X
    ecoENERGY Efficiency for Industry Program: ISO 50001 Provides grant funding for companies registered under NRCan as a CIPEC Leader to obtain ISO 50001 certification. Eligible costs include:
    ●   Accreditation
    ●   Development of energy baseline
    ●   Energy use assessment
    ●   Energy performance monitoring and reporting
    ●   Professional fees and training    		 X
    Export Market Access (EMA) Funding available through FedDev Ontario and the Ontario Chamber of Commerce to assist SMEs in their international ventures. Grant covers 50% eligible expenses up to max of $30k such as:
    ●      Marketing brochures, sell sheets, pre & post show mailers
    ●      Trade shows and related exhibition costs, display panels, banners
    ●      Translation and freight
    ●      Flights and per diem allowance for meals/lodging
    ●      Industry Market or competitive research
    ●      Also includes foreign bidding projects    		 X
    FedDev Ontario – Prosperity Initiative Repayable loan to supports 50% of project costs and meet the objectives of three different strategic projects that include:
    ●      Regional diversification
    ●      Productivity enhancements
    ●      Competitive advantage    		 X X
    Going Global Innovation (GGI) Non-repayable grant (i.e. up to $75k) for activities to solve R&D challenges and create partnerships with experts in other countries, including:
    ●      Meeting and travel costs to allow formal discussions to initiate collaborations on future R&D opportunities
    ●      Innovative developments to reach working agreement (i.e. letter of intent) and leads to new commercialization results in a new global market    		 X X
    Graduate Enterprise Internship (GEI) Program/iSTEM Geared towards hiring graduates in the science, technical, engineering, and math fields on a 6-month intern contract.
    ●      Wage subsidy (i.e. up to max of $15k) for hiring 4-year diploma graduates from a Southern Ontario University or College    		 X X X
    HTX Innovation and Development (IDP) Program Develop pre-commercialization health technology or innovation to commercial market.
    ●      Wages/Salaries with Benefits
    ●      Direct R&D Costs
    ●      Commercialization & Regulatory Costs
    ●      Capital Expenses    		 X X X
    HTX Ontario Flagship Program Funding support anchoring MNE global research and development.
    ●      Wages/Salaries with Benefits
    ●      Direct R&D Costs
    ●      Commercialization & Regulatory Costs
    ●      Capital Expenses    		 X X X
    HTX Ontario Sells Program Funding supports expansion of MAT products for global market.
    ●      Ontario-based SME in health sector    		 X
    HTX Technology Acceleration Program (TAP) Funding supports commercialization of advanced stage health technology.
    ●      Wages/Salaries with Benefits
    ●      Direct R&D Costs
    ●      Commercialization & Regulatory Costs
    ●      Capital Expenses    		 X X X
    HTX Technology Implementation Program (TIP) For clinical implementation of new MAT products and technologies. Eligible groups:●      Public health centres
    ●      Hospitals
    ●      Rehabilitation centres    		 X X
    Investing in Business Innovation (IBI) Additional government funding (i.e. up to $1M) to commercialize new products, practices or processes of start-up businesses after obtaining angel or venture capital investments. Government repayable loan may support:
    ●      Capital expenses
    ●      Employee costs for growth innovation
    ●      Marketing studies
    ●      Proof of concept, engineering design, technology development
    ●      Piloting and demonstration and problem-solving    		 X X
    IRAP – Accelerated Review Process (ARP) Non-repayable grant (i.e. up to $50k) to support innovation or technological improvement projects. Various aspects supported:
    ●      Software implementation
    ●      Productivity improvements
    ●      Production design
    ●      Marketing projects    		 X X X
    IRAP – Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program (DTAPP) Up to $100k in grant funding to assist SME’s with technology adoption, including:
    ●      Software analysis
    ●      Software implementation
    ●      Customization of software code
    ●      Training on software systems    		 X X X
    IRAP Youth Employment Program (YEP) Supports recent graduates by providing SME’s with a wage subsidy for full-time hire with grant up to $15k for first year. Responsibilities can include:
    ●      Research & development
    ●      Engineering
    ●      Multimedia
    ●      Market analysis
    ●      Business development
    ●      Improvement in customer service    		 X X X
    MaRS – Investment Accelerator Fund (AIF) Helps entrepreneurs with early stage technological developments. Repayable loan and 5% equity position  (i.e. up to $500k) and support sectors:
    ●      Materials and engineering
    ●      Clean technology
    ●      Information technology and health sciences    		 X X
    Mitacs Accelerate Expansion of SME’s R&D environment for a $7500 investment. Four month internship is matched for $15000 research grant. Aimed at connecting SME’s with University expertise for:
    ●      Innovative research
    ●      Methods and development of tools
    ●      Prototype models
    ●      Technology or solutions to support challenges
    ●      Graduate spends 50% of time on-site with SME    		 X X
    Mitacs-Accelerate InDev $3,500 wage subsidy for recruiting Masters and Ph.D students for a 4-month collaborative business development projects, including:
    ●      Product Development
    ●      Marketing/Competitive Research
    ●      Prototyping & Design
    ●      Strategic Planning
    ●      Production Planning    		 X X
    Mitacs Enterprise Wage subsidy for hiring Bachelors graduates ($10K), Masters graduates ($15K), Ph.D graduates ($15K), or current Masters/Ph.D students ($7.5K) in the science, tech, engineering, or math fields for a 6-month internship to focus on one of the following topics:
    ● R&D innovation
    ● Adoption or adaptation of technology
    ● Prototype models
    ● Technology or solutions to support challenges    		 X X X
    NextGen Biofuels Fund Repayable loan for support of full scale-up and process integration projects for technical and financial performance of technologies at first-of-kind facility. Assists with:
    ●      Project assessment, definition
    ●      Building construction
    ●      Environmental assessment
    ●      Design/Engineering
    ●      Production equipment, and
    ●      All labour costs related to the above    		 X X X
    New Horizons for MedTech (NHM) Grant funding to support export market development projects carried out by Southern Ontario MedTech companies, supporting 12-month projects with up to $30k or 50% of the eligible project activities, including:
    ●      Foreign Market Research
    ●      Foreign Legal & IP
    ●      International Marketing & Trade Shows
    ●      Foreign Market Regulation Compliance
    ●      Consumer Testing    		 X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Emerging Technology Program Aids capital construction costs in businesses:
    ●      Marketing
    ●      Training
    ●      Land servicing
    ●      Equipment    		  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Enterprises North Job Creation Program Supports eligible projects that help create job opportunities:
    ●      50% of project costs or max $1M
    ●      Bring new jobs
    ●      Create economic prosperity    		  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Infrastructure and Community Development Program Helps communities improve critical infrastructure and develop effective partnerships. Eligible projects includes:
    ●      Industrial parks
    ●      Winter roads
    ●      Waterfront development
    ●      Community facilities    		  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Northern Energy Program Motivates clients to invest in renewable energy generation projects divided into two programs:
    ●      Renewable Energy Planning
    ●      Internal Energy Generation    		  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Northern Ontario Entrepreneur Program Aims to mobilize entrepreneurs in the North and foster long-term job creation. Eligible requirements include:
    ●      Proposed business operate full-time
    ●      Results in job creation
    ●      Resident of Northern Ontario
    ●      Must be new venture    		  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Northern Ontario Youth Entrepreneur Program The program is focused on keeping young people in Northern Ontario and helping them contribute to the economic growth of the region. The program is open to youth between the ages of 18 and 29. Costs covered by the funding include: capital costs related to starting a business – such as office furniture, fixtures and equipment.  X X  X
    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) Youth Internship and Co-op Program Eligible sectors include:
    ●      Healthcare
    ●      Social services
    ●      Emerging technologies
    ●      Environmental Sciences    		  X
    NSERC Engage
    or
    NSERC Collaborative Research and Development (CRD)      		 Non-repayable grant designed to connect SME’s with University researchers for research and development.
    ●      Short-term (i.e. 6 months) research and development funding grants through NSERC Engage
    ●      Long-term (i.e. 5 years) research and development funding grants through NSERC CRD
    ●      Addresses a company specific problem    		 X X
    Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) – First Job & Other Talent Programs Help for early stage SME’s to assist in research & development, commercialization and training, including:
    ●     Small R&D projects support for 4-6 months with up to $25k grant
    ●     Larger R&D projects for up to 9-12 months with 20-25% in kind contribution from SME’s
    ●     Technology validation
    ●     First Jobs (i.e. up to $40k funding) for placement of new Graduates with SME’s    		 X X X
    Ontario Exporters Fund (OEF) Grant towards the hiring of an Export Manager to help aid your international market development:
    ● Covers up to $50K of the Export Manager’s salary
    ● Gain an employee dedicated to increasing international revenue, gathering market intelligence, and generating new streams of revenue    		  X X
    Ontario Power Authority (OPA) - Conservation Fund
    		 The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) created the Conservation Fund to provide support for significant advances in new conservation and demand management programs, practices and technologies that impact Ontario’s initiative to reduce electricity consumption by 2030.  Eligible costs are those related to developing or piloting conservation programs , practices and technologies, including:
    ●      Design and development,
    ●      Installation and implementation,
    ●      Testing and mesurement    		 X X
    Ontario Regional Innovation Centres (RIC) Level-Up! Program Assists with early-stage technology entrepreneurs. $1 million dollar in funding is available to advance Ontario Companies through a strategic, short-term, high-impact projects:
    ●      Max $15,000 in grant funding
    ●      Must be in qualified sectors    		 X  X X
    Ontario Regional Innovation Centres (RIC) VentureStart Program Supports Canadian entrepreneurs with innovative products or ideas for start-up businesses. Offers two different stages:
    ●      Business Skills Development
    ●      Business Launch Support    		 X  X X
    SD Tech Fund Designed to assist with pre-commercialization strategies of clean technologies. Non-repayable grant supports productivity improvements and competitive advantage for activities such as:
    ●      Capital items
    ●      Goods and services
    ●      Personnel labour costs
    ●      Depreciation expenses    		 X X X
    Small Business Internship Program (SBIP) Government assistance as a non-repayable grant (i.e. up to 75% of salary & benefits) to aid e-business initiatives for hiring a recent marketing intern student. Responsibilities such as:
    ●      Website development and content creation
    ●      Keyword analysis and search engine optimization (SEO)
    ●      Improved conversion traffic    		 X X
    Southern Ontario Fund for Investment in Innovation (SOFII) Supports growth of knowledge-based industry SMEs through loans to meet these innovative business challenges. Loans help finance:
    ●      Late stage commercialization
    ●      New applications or markets
    ●      New product or service development
    ●      Development/Implementation of new processes or technologies    		  X X
    Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SWODF) This program is designed to support business expansion projects that create jobs within Southwestern Ontario, by providing up to $1.5M in grant funding or a $5M fully repayable loan depending on the project size. Eligible costs include:
    ●     Capital Equipment
    ●     Leasehold Improvements
    ●     Direct Labour
    ●     Skills Training    		 X X  X
    YMCA High Demand Youth Internship Program (HD-YIP) This program subsidizes wages for internships for recent graduates of high demand career fields by $8 per hour. Some of fields that HD YIP encompasses include:
    ●     knowledge-based technology
    ●     Manufacturing
    ●     Construction
    ●     Retail trade
    ●     Accounting, and more.    		  X
    Yves Landry AIME Global Initiative (Southern Ontario)
    and
    Yves Landry AIME North Initiative (Northern Ontario)    		 Non-repayable grant aimed at accelerating innovation through training support for technology development related projects. Training that leads to innovation may include:
    ●      Development of new engineering skills
    ●      Training of new IT best practices and other tools for innovation
    ●      Embracing new technologies, new materials or processes and new manufacturing methods    		 X X

    Get Started

    If you are interested in any of these programs, please click on the name of the program and fill out the form on the resulting page. Alternatively, if you are unsure of what funding mechanism(s) are best for your business, please contact us directly and we will work closely with you to determine the most appropriate funding package to achieve your business goals and reach your growth potential.

    Free 60 Minute Canadian Government Funding Workshop

    At Mentor Works, we work closely with businesses to determine the best opportunities for growth and innovation through business funding grants and other government funding opportunities. If you would like to discuss funding opportunities directly with us, please attend a Free 60 Minute Government Funding Workshop to receive helpful advice and have your questions answered by Bernadeen McLeod, founder and principle of Mentor Works.