On November 6, 2020, the Government of Canada announced over $155M to extend NRC IRAP Innovation Assistance Program (IAP) funding for existing recipients who qualified and received IAP funding from April 1 to June 23, 2020.
In April 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced an additional $250M in funding through the NRC-IRAP IAP to support innovative, early-stage companies that are unable to access existing COVID-19 business support measures. This additional funding provided a wage subsidy of up to 12 weeks to eligible employers; however, the initial call for applications closed on June 23, 2020.
The eligible claim period for the second round of IAP funding is June 24, 2020, to December 19, 2020. Existing IAP funding recipients will be contacted by program representatives with further information on how to access funding from the extended program. Requests for funding will be assessed based on merit criteria and eligibility and funding decisions will be made on a priority basis.
Government investment in early-stage companies is of particular importance at a time when there is a growing concern that many Canadian startups that rely on angel investors may be losing access to funding due to global uncertainty and border restrictions.