This week the Federal government announced the details of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy.

The key eligible criteria is you revenue in March, April and May 2020 compared to the same months of 2019. If the revenue dropped by 30% or more due to COVID crisis and its economic consequences, your business or organization is eligible.

The amount of the wage subsidy equals 75% of the remuneration up to $847 per week per employee.

How to Apply? Applicants will need to re-apply monthly. Application forms will be available on CRA website, My Business Account section. If you don’t have the business account with CRA, it is time to create it as soon as possible. We expect the application forms will be available next week.

Please visit the Anti-Crisis Solution page now and fill the form on the right hand side if you need help to determine which option is right for you or your clients, partners or suppliers.

Please stay at home if you can. We will get through this together. Our team is fully available.

ANTI-CRISIS SOLUTION

First of all, I hope you and your loved ones are safe and doing well. If we spoke last week, we will get back to you today or tomorrow.

Secondly, we continue to closely watch the announcements of the response measures at all levels of governments to help businesses survive the tough time. This week some of the programs kicked off and we can’t wait to share them with you.

We designed an Anti-Crisis Funding Solution. The solution has multiple options, and not all may apply to you, but I suggest you to visit the above link asap and find the solution that is right for your unique situation.

1. Avoid layoffs
2. Get cash injection & stabilize cash flow
3. Recover as much funding as possible for you past and future projects
4. Manage debt in uncertain times
5. Make products, deliver services or develop technologies to help fight the pandemic

Please visit the Anti-Crisis Solution page now and fill the form on the right hand side if you need help to determine which option is right for you or your clients, partners or suppliers.

Please stay at home if you can. We will get through this together. Our team is fully available.

Just like you, I am deeply concerned with the impact of the global pandemics on our economy and your business. I see the businesses being disrupted and closing their operations until further notice.

We are closely watching the announcements of the response measures at all levels of governments to help businesses survive the tough time. Although it will take another few days or even weeks to get the details of the announced programs, here is what we already know and what you can do about it.

1. Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP) is a $10-billion credit facility that will be provided by the crown corporations, EDC and BDC, to the creditworthy Canadian companies. It will be an interest-based loan focused on maintaining your cash flow, but we expect that the terms and application process will be outlined shortly. For now, if you have EDC or BDC financing, contact your account manager to inquire about principal postponement.

2. Temporary Wage Subsidy was announced on Wednesday, March 18. The subsidy will be equal to 10% of remuneration paid during that period, up to a maximum subsidy of $1,375 per employee and $25,000 per employer. The application guideline is not available yet, but we expect it to be available shortly.

3. If you already have the approved government grant or interest-free loan, the situation will impact your project. Please, reach out to your funding organization contacts to discuss contingency plan or project timeline extension. There is an understanding of the situation among all levels of government and you won’t be penalized for what is out of your control.

There are other measures to support the individuals and businesses impacted by the crisis. I will keep you posted as more information becomes available.

We are currently working on an anti-recession solution to address all possible negative scenarios and help you get through the difficult time. Please, help us to shape the solution by answering a short anonymous survey here.

Remember. We will get through this together. Our team is fully available.

Anonymous Survey: Impact of the Pandemic on Your Business

We have some exiting announcements for you. If you have been waiting to apply for the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster Funding (Capacity Building Projects) now is the right time to do it. The deadline for the first round is April 15, 2020.

NGen will invest up to $12 million of Supercluster funding to be matched by a minimum of an additional $12 million of industry investments in Capacity Building projects targeted at Canadian SMEs before the end of March 2023. NGen’s capacity building initiatives are designed to address some of the common challenges that SMEs face in adopting and scaling up technologies in manufacturing, and in participating as partners in larger Supercluster projects.

In the effort to support your application process and give you some direction on where to start, NGen is organizing a Free Project Application Workshop. And I would like to extend an invitation to all of our readers to register and attend the event.

Date And Time: Thu, 26 March 2020, 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM EDT

Location: McMaster Innovation Park, 175 Longwood Road South, Hamilton, ON L8P 0A1

RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/ngens-project-application-workshop-registration-95695799713

Can’t attend the event? Don’t wait and check eligibility of your company and your project for the government funding now by submitting eligibility check form.

CHECK ELIGIBILITY NOW

Join us on February 27th, at the Breakfast seminar about Selling the Business, Alternative Lending and Government Funding for Businesses. Complimentary light breakfast will be served.

Sign up now to RSVP for our special event where you’ll learn:

• Psychology of Selling the Business
• Alternative Lending Instruments for your Business
• Government Funding Programs for Businesses & Latest Program Updates
• Questions & Answers
• Elliott Matsuura Canada Showroom Tour & Equipment Demonstration

Seminar Speakers:

• Doug Robbins, President & Founder, Robbinex
• Olga Baldin, VP Business Development, Grand Financial
• Igor Chigrin, Business Funding Expert, Fair Grant Writing

Date and Time: February 27, 2020, 8:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Doors open at 7:30 a.m.

Venue: 2120 Buckingham Rd, Oakville, ON L6H 5X2 (Elliott Matsuura Canada)

Learn more and get your tickets here: https://z2k71z3d.pages.infusionsoft.net/.

CLICK HERE TO RSVP NOW

I would like to invite you to join us at the upcoming seminar “Elevate Your Business – Commercial Financing and Investing”.

This meeting is dedicated to Elevating your business to the next level with different financing strategies, advisory services, real estate for business use and investment, legal tips and government grants!

Date: Thursday, November 28, 2019

Time: 6:30pm to 9:30pm

Location: Improve Canada, 7250 Keele Street, 2nd Floor Auditorium, Vaughan, ON L4K 1Z8

Featured Speakers:

• Katerina Bylen – Commercial Account Manager, BDC
• Nassib El Tenn – Business Account Manager, Royal Bank of Canada
• Nazar Bylen – CFP, Commercial Account Manager, Royal Bank of Canada
• Kirill Perelyguine – Commercial Real Estate Broker, Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd.
• Pavel Malysheuski – Lawyer, Lockyer + Hein LLP
• Igor Chigrin – Business Funding Expert, Fair Grant Writing Inc.

Learn more and get your tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/elevate-your-business-commercial-financing-and-investing-seminar-tickets-79296208093

Don’t wait and check eligibility of your company and your project for the government funding now by submitting eligibility check form.

I would like to invite you to join us at the upcoming seminar “Government grants available to Small Business”.

Date: Thursday, November 07, 2019

Time: 6:00pm to 7:30pm

Location: RBC South Hill, 9325 Yonge St., Richmond Hill

Guest Speaker: Igor Chigrin, Business Funding Expert, Fair Grant Writing

RSVP by contacting: Sam-H-Oshaghi at 905-780-8169 | sam.h-oshaghi@rbc.com

Please RSVP by: Thursday October 31, 2019

Don’t wait and check eligibility of your company and your project for the government funding now by submitting eligibility check form.

As a result of the Federal election, we are now in a minority government situation. Here are some consequences of this fact for Federal government funding for businesses.

1. Continuity. Even though it is a minority government, it will still be the Liberal government, and we expect that all government funding programs maintained or launched in the past four years will be in place. Such programs include but are not limited to SR&ED, IRAP, CanExport, Business Scale-Up & Productivity and Yves Landry Foundation’s (AIME Initiative).

2. Focus on Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction. The Carbon Tax is here to stay, which means that a portion of its revenue will be invested in Climate Action Incentive Fund and R&D funding programs for the clean technology sector.

3. Industry Focus. Other than the cleantech, the automotive, agriculture, food and beverage industries were listed as priority ones during the election campaign. Given the Liberal party’s defeat in some Western Canada, the funding for the natural resources sector may be released.

4. Geographic Focus. The ruling party got a significant hit in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, and Rural Southern Ontario, which means there may be new funding programs for those regions.

5. Next Budget Will Be a Tough Sell. The Liberals won’t be able to approve the next budget in the Parliament alone without the support of the other parties. Expect delays in the Federal budget process. We expect that the new Federal government funding programs (e.g. a replacement of Canada-Ontario Job Grant) will be announced in the next budget. The next government fiscal year starts on April 1st, 2020.

What Do You Think?

Let me know what you think about the future of Federal government funding by replying to this email. And remember, the government funding programs come and go. The only way for you to stay up-to-date is to check your eligibility regularly.

As we get ready for the election day on Monday, I thought it is a timely idea to forecast what Federal government funding programs may be impacted by the election results. I split the programs by impact.

A big disclaimer: this is a non-partisan and non-solicitation newsletter, and it only reflects my opinion. Your vote is your choice.

Low Impact

It is unlikely that the R&D funding programs like SR&ED and IRAP will be significantly altered. They were around for a number of years. In addition, CanExport program, will likely stay as is or go through minor adjustments since all major parties committed to the Canadian export growth.

Medium Impact

The mandate of the regional development agencies (FedDev and FedNor in Ontario) may be revised depending on the election result. However, those agencies already survived the change in Federal government 4 years ago. They provide interest-free loans such as Business Scale Up & Productivity and funding for Yves Landry Foundation’s skills training fund (AIME Initiative).

Depending on the budget constrains, the Federal portion of the Canadian Agricultural Partnership may be slightly adjusted. But overall, the agri-food sector is on the list of the priorities of all political parties.

High Impact

All Federal programs that depend on the Federal carbon tax, such as Climate Action Incentive Fund, may be significantly impacted if the tax is reduced or scrapped. Other incentives for clean technology research, development and adoption and energy efficiency may also be impacted.

Anything New to Expect?

Two Canada’s leading political parties committed to the automotive industry growth. However, it is unclear how exactly this commitment will be delivered. It may be similar to the provincial Ontario Automotive Modernization Program.

Both parties also committed to skills training so we expect the launch of a replacement of Canada-Ontario Job Grant sometime in 2020.

What Do You Think?

Let me know what you think about the future of Federal government funding by replying to this email.

And remember, the government funding programs come and go. The only way for you to stay up-to-date is to check your eligibility regularly.

This week marks the 10th anniversary of my arrival to Canada. I am so grateful that, in celebration of this significant milestone, I am sharing with you complimentary show floor pass to the Canadian Manufacturing Technology Show (CMTS 2019)! You may also take advantage of 20% off conference rates as my guest.

This time we won’t be exhibiting, but I managed to get a small speaking engagement.

Show & Conference Dates: September 30 – October 3, 2019

Venue: The International Centre, 6900 Airport Rd, Mississauga, ON L4V 1E8

I look forward to seeing you at the show!

Oh, and if you want to give a gift to me, forward this email to your friends, clients, partners or suppliers. They can register at CMTS 2019 or check their eligibility for government funding.

I hope your long weekend went well! This week I wanted to share some updates about Canada-Ontario Job Grant. The updates were introduced mid-August but I thought it is best to bring them up now that you are likely back to work this week.

What is New in COJG Program?

• Past performance is now important. If you’ve applied before, make sure that your previous training funded by the program was completed successfully.
• Membership, subscription and annual fees as well as professional association costs are no longer eligible.
• Employer and Trainer Attestation Forms were introduced. This is extra paperwork that must be submitted in case if your trainer is a private company.
• Trainer Qualification Criteria were introduced. The trainer must meet these criteria.

Other than that the program remains the same. There were no changes in eligibility rules, application forms or assessment criteria. Businesses located in Ontario can take advantage of the COJG funding for skills training and get 50%-86% of eligible training cost up to a maximum of $10,000 per trainee (in certain cases up to $15,000).

Knowing how popular the training funding among our clients, we recommend you to check your eligibility and start the application process today.

I’m pleased to share two exciting news with you.

First of all, Federal government launched a new incentive program for businesses in Ontario, New Brunswick, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, called Climate Action Incentive Fund (CAIF) which provides 25% of the project cost up to a maximum of $250,000. The purpose of CAIF is to facilitate greenhouse emission reduction projects in the following categories:

• Retrofitting and upgrading of existing production equipment
• Fuel switching to lower emitting energy sources
• Process changes to reduce energy
• Waste-heat recovery
• Building retrofit including HVAC, lighting, building envelope upgrades and building automation
• Heavy-duty vehicle retrofits
• Changes to agricultural processes to improve energy efficiency
• Fuel switching to lower emitting energy sources in agricultural operations

The deadline is October 15, 2019 but don’t wait until the last moment.

CHECK ELIGIBILITY NOW

Secondly, this is an exciting limited time opportunity for the businesses to take advantage of stacking two government energy conservation incentives – Federal (CAIF) and Provincial.

With products and services from our partner Green Management Group this opportunity can enable your business to reduce the price of energy conservation upgrades for your buildings such as LED lighting.

We will apply on your behalf for both the Federal, Climate Action Incentive Fund, incentive (open till mid October 2019 or fund depletion) and the longstanding saveONenergy provincial incentive to reduce the cost of energy saving building retrofits by up to 50% or more.

Energy conservation retrofits significantly reduce fixed overheads and free up cash and electrical capacity for other equipment. Attached please find further information regarding this limited-time funding opportunity.

Other renewable energy projects such as roof-top solar PV, Solar heating etc. from Green Management Group are eligible for CAIF funding that will cover up to 25% of the installed project cost.

CONTACT GREEN MANAGEMENT

DOWNLOAD BROCHURE

I hope you are staying productive this summer and remembering to enjoy the gorgeous weather over the weekend. Meanwhile, our team is working hard to keep you up to date with the government funding programs that are coming out. This week we want to share with you the Rural Innovation Initiative Eastern Ontario (RIIEO) – Regional StreamProgram.

The purpose of the program is to support projects that accelerate the growth of SMEs on the innovation track, with benefits to multiple communities within Eastern Ontario.

Projects will demonstrate sustainability, drive prosperity and job creation, sustainability through innovation, research and development, commercialization, and business practices that work to position the region for global competitiveness, export markets, and economic diversification.

Selected projects will be eligible for a non-repayable performance-based contribution and require a minimum 50 percent cash contribution by the recipient on eligible expenses net of HST. The minimum project size for an Eastern Ontario Innovation Initiative regional stream project is $200,000 resulting in a minimum contribution of $100,000 by the recipient.

The combined Stream total support to for-profit recipients will not exceed $100,000.

The program is already accepting applications with all projects through 15 Eastern Ontario counties being targeted for completion by December 31st, 2020.

Check eligibility of your company and your project for the government funding by submitting eligibility check form.

CHECK ELIGIBILITY NOW

I’m happy to share some good news about CanExport Program.

As of August 22, 2019, the CanExport will increase project funding limit up to $75,000 to cover up to 75% of eligible expenses. The program will also be expanded to include agriculture, agri-food and agri-products industry, including fish and seafood. Eligible expenses are related to marketing the business or product in a new export market including but not limited to the following:

• Business travel;
• Participation at trade fairs, trade shows, conferences, trade missions;
• Shipping and handling costs related to the participation;
• Translation & interpretation costs;
• Market research;
• Adaptation of marketing tools for a new market; and
• Legal fees associated with a distribution/representation agreement.

In order to make the changes to our systems, the CanExport for SMEs application system will be closed from August 9 to 21 and will re-open on August 22. Any current projects and those submitted before August 9 will continue to have access to a maximum of $50,000 in funding to cover up to 50% of eligible expenses.

Check eligibility of your company and your project for the government funding by submitting eligibility check form.

Check eligibility of your company and your project idea by submitting eligibility check form.