Alberta Innovates Voucher Program Opens Again 

As businesses expand and grow, they need to invest in new technology as well as research and development. The Voucher Program  by Alberta Innovates encourages high-potential small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with promising technologies, strong management, and an identified market fit to accelerate their new product commercialization. 

Through this program, businesses can offset a portion of their costs related to technology development and building a working prototype. 

The funding is awarded as a voucher which companies can use to pay product and service providers for their contributions towards the project, including costs for labour and material. 

Funding Snapshot: Alberta Innovates Voucher Program 

Funding Amount 

Successful applicants may access vouchers to offset $10,000 to $100,000 in product or service costs incurred when trying to accelerate technology development projects. Applicants of the program must pay at least 25 percent of the total project costs. 

Eligible Applicants 

Eligible applicants for this program must: 

• Exist as a corporate person, with up-to-date corporate filings;
• Be for-profit organizations;  
• Be incorporated in Alberta or extra-provincially registered in Alberta; 
• Prove there is zero conflict of interest between the Applicant and Service Provider; 
• Be in good financial standing with Alberta Innovates, as well as any of AI’s subsidiaries; and 
• Be an SME (less than 500 FTEs & $50M in annual gross revenue). 

Eligible Service Providers 

Eligible service providers must: 

• Be a registered corporate entity, or a sole proprietorship, and where applicable be in good standing with the appropriate corporate registries; 
• Be authorized to undertake the proposed project; 
• Have no legal relationship with the Applicant; 
• Provide the service or product at reasonable market rates; 
• Provide a letter indicating the Service Provider’s intention to participate in the Project at the time of application; and 
• Show tangible resources committed to the project. 

Eligible Activities 

The Voucher Program can help cover the costs of up to three contracted service providers supporting the following project activities: 

• New product research and development; 
• Leading-edge design, engineering, and prototype development; 
• Advanced product testing and refinement; 
• Patent development; and 
• Market assessments. 

Project Deadline 

The Alberta Innovates Voucher Program accepts a continuous intake of applications. Application approvals take 6-8 weeks from date of submission. 

Access More Funding for Research & Development and Capital & Tech Adoption 

Canadian government funding programs help offset major business costs across all kinds of activities. When used strategically, these funding programs can be leverages for most growth and investment related projects.  

Our easy-to-use funding directory is divided by funding activities – if you are interested in Research and Development funding, or trying to offset Capital and Tech Adoption costs, you can build a starting point by browsing our categorized lists.  

We at Mentor Works, a Ryan Company also offer you grant application writing services. As Canada’s top government funding writers, we can help you save time and curate your application, so that you can get approved for funding.  

As you think about your funding approach, make sure to check out our guide on how to build a funding plan. Stay tuned on future funding updates by subscribing to our weekly newsletter.