SR&ED Tax Credits and Grants Blog

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CPA Professional Development

At this time of the year, many Accountants and Accounting Firms are planning for their own Professional Development and training of their staff and partners in the Fall.  We get many requests from accounting firms for information, updates and strategy regarding...

Covid-19 Funding

With Covid-19 continuing to change the way in which we work, this blogpost will serve as a consolidated platform where we will continue to share the updates and changes various funding programs have in light of Covid-19. Please note that the information below is...

A Look at the Top 3 Business Grants for 2020

For over 30 years, we at RDP have been assisting companies to apply for business grants; so we know a thing or two about government funding programs.  The following are what we predict to be the best grants to apply for in 2020: 1. Canexport This program is an...

How Does SR&ED Work? An Infographic on SR&ED Tax Credit Rates

The Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Credit is a federal tax incentive administered by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) since 1986. Its purpose is to encourage Canadian businesses of all sizes and in all sectors to conduct research and...

Understanding Recent Changes to COJG Guidelines

There have been recent changes to the Canada-Ontario Job Grant (COJG) program. COJG is a government funding scheme designed to support employers that invest in staff training. Since 2014, the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development has been providing...

How Do You Choose the Right SR&ED Consultant?

When it comes to selecting a SR&ED consultant, the task is usually assigned to the CFO, or in smaller organizations, the owner. The selection process is typically based on receiving recommendations from a trusted friend or business associate. However, it is worth...

Had an Unpleasant SR&ED Claim Review by CRA?

The SR&ED tax credit program is odd in that from a tax policy viewpoint it is an incentive program, nudging companies to carry out more R&D in Canada and develop innovative products and processes. However, because the program is administered by CRA, one must...

A Look at the Climate Action Incentive Fund (CAIF)

The Climate Action Incentive Fund (CAIF) is a new grant that will provide funding to SMEs ranging from $20,000 to $250,000 CAD covering up to 25% of a project’s eligible costs. The funding is for projects that lower GHG emissions and energy usage. The program is...

How to Win Large Business Grants

Canadian government grants don't just cover small businesses. They're also available to selected large industrial projects When it comes to grants provided to businesses for Innovation, Canada has been a very generous country. Not many other industrialized countries...

A Tale of Two Budgets

It seems the Federal and Ontario Governments have truly opposing agendas and policies. While areas like carbon tax receive a lot of press coverage, each government’s position on SR&ED tax credits and innovation, in general, appears to be heading to different...

NGen: Canada’s Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster

Many companies in Canada have been waiting the for 5 Superclusters to open. NGen is now accepting applications for membership. The focus of this Supercluster is on advanced manufacturing. Membership to NGen is free. Once you become a member, you can access information...

Whose SR&ED is it Anyway?

When companies develop new products, be it software, machinery, consumer goods, or technology, it is not unusual for the corporation, particularly SMEs, to hire a contractor to perform some or all of the work. Historically, over 90% of the time, these corporations...

Six Ways to Spot Grant Scams

When the Going Gets Tough...the Funding Gets Fake For small business owners starting up or growing a business, grant funding can be an excellent source of support to tackle big projects and improve your bottom line. Most business funding is offered by government...

New CleanTech Fund for Plastic Innovations

Innovative Solutions Canada Challenges is a federal government procurement program providing over $100 million to support the scale-up and growth of Canada’s innovators. Twenty different federal departments and agencies contribute funding to this program, and each...

Innovation Starts, Develops, and Ends with People

For all the chest beating about technology, industrial disruption and the new economy, the simple fact of the matter is that innovation strategy starts, develops and ends with people. And for the most part, it is well understood by business, research and...

An In-depth Look at Ontario Agri Grants

With dozens of different streams of funding to support a wide range of business activities, Ontario’s Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP) program offers grants to businesses in the agriculture sector. They include farmers, cannabis growers, and food and beverage...

6 Steps to Never Miss a Grant Deadline

The government of Canada offers a multitude of small business grants to encourage growth, innovation, and economic development for Canadian small businesses. These government grants can provide a significant cash injection to jumpstart a project and become a key...

Mark D. Penner on Canada’s New IP Strategy

Introduction: Mark D. Penner is an intellectual property (“IP”) lawyer with Fasken. He works in the firm’s Intellectual Property practice group. Mark’s practice focuses on all aspects of the acquisition, protection, enforcement, and strategic use of a wide range of...

SR&ED Incentives in Ontario Budget Like OITC

The recent 2018 Ontario budget announcement includes some changes designed to make it easier to grow your business. Ontario-based businesses can benefit from increases to the provincial funds available under the Scientific Research & Experimental Development...

Amir Feizpour on Canadian AI

Amir Feizpour is a Senior Manager at the Enterprise Data Science team at the Royal Bank of Canada. He is also a Scientific Advisor at SEMA Lab. At RBC, Amir manages a small team with a focus on enabling internal clients with data science tools and practices. Prior to...

How Does IT Fit in a New Grant Landscape?

The following piece was originally published in IT Business Canada Over the last two years, the federal government has introduced many new incentives for research and development, mainly by way of small business grants or non-repayable contributions. In addition,...

Is SR&ED Properly Rewarding FinTech Companies?

Filing for SR&ED tax credits today in Canada is facing a new reality. CRA now screens over 60% of SR&ED claims and carries out site audits on at least 20% of them. Moreover, depending on your geographic location, when site audits are carried out, claims are...

Are Government Grants a Right Funding Mechanism?

The following piece was originally published in ITBusiness.ca Many people are surprised to learn that Canada gives out more grants to businesses, small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in particular, than most other countries. When we compare grant funding for...

The State of SR&ED Tax Credits: How Did We Get Here?

As you may have seen, back in July 2017, the Canadian Advanced Technology Association (CATA) published its “Update on SR&ED Tax Credits” and the news was concerning, to say the least. The headline news was that in the 7 years from 2009 to 2016, the aggregate tax...

When Should I Apply For a Government Business Grant?

Applicants for government grant programs are never guaranteed approval, as there is a range of factors at play impacting their eligibility. It is best to maximize your chances of approval by focusing on aspects of your business that you have some control over. It is...

Jennifer Zelmer on Canadian Healthcare Innovation

Dr. Jennifer Zelmer is President and CEO of the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement. She is also President of Azimuth Health Group. In this capacity, she provides a range of advisory services to local, national, and international clients who seek to advance...

A Look at SR&ED and Beyond

The following piece was originally published in IT WORLD Canada The SR&ED tax credit program has been in existence since 1985. The Budget Papers published in 1985 stated that the purpose of the program was to keep Canadian businesses competitive and growing. Since...

A Roadmap to a Successful Product Development

Product development is hard, time-consuming and requires great diligence. In working with thousands of businesses over the past 30 years, who develop new products each year, today there is even more demand to get a new product out on the market sooner. It is easy to...

Janice Francisco on Canadian Innovation

Introduction Janice Francisco is the CEO of BridgePoint Effect, a Toronto-based firm that helps managers and their teams solve the mystery of what it means to be innovative, and teaches them how to use creativity to get innovation done. Operating at the intersection...

An Update on CME Smart Program

In June and July of 2017 the Canadian Manufacturing Exporters (CME), in partnership with the Government of Ontario launched a $25 million fund known as CME SMART Green Program. The Fund was designed to assist eligible small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME)...

How Canada is Conquering the FinTech Space

Insights from Industry Leaders Canada’s FinTech industry today is one of the most dynamic—and for good reason—the coolest industries on the Canadian tech scene. All signs point to its ability to fundamentally reinvent the existing order in the country’s financial...

Lessons Learned: SR&ED and New Product Development

I don't like to prepare for it Most companies hate preparing for, or participating in SR&ED claims. It goes without saying that preparations for SR&ED and efforts to ensure eligibility of work in SRED take an enormous amount of time and internal resources. But...

A look at the Innovation Debate: Small Guys vs. Big Shots

For many years, the debate about innovation has centered around the merits of large companies vs small ones. I’d like to offer some of our observations that are based on what we have seen at RDP in over three decades of helping our clients of all sizes maximize the...