No repayment. No equity. Most founders who qualify never apply — because nobody told them they could.
Run by the CRA. Claimed on your corporate tax return. You do not have to succeed to qualify — you have to genuinely investigate.
Building on top of existing software can qualify. The CRA specifically includes incremental improvements to existing products under experimental development. You are not disqualified because something similar already exists.
A personal support worker contracted with multiple agencies. She wanted an app to manage her own certifications, availability, and compliance from one place.
The problem: every tool that existed was built for agencies, not workers. Nobody had solved it from her side. That is what made it SR&ED eligible. Not that the technology was new. That the problem, from that angle, had never been solved.
It means you did not know at the start whether your approach would work. Not "we were not sure which tool to use." More like: we did not know if this was technically possible at all, and we had to experiment to find out. The personal support worker story is a clean example. A similar app existed. Her uncertainty was whether the problem, from that angle, had ever been solved. It had not.
The one question that decides everything: are you solving a problem where the technical answer is genuinely unknown? Or are you implementing something that has been done before? SR&ED is for the first one only.
The CRA does not just want to know what you built. They want to know what you were trying to solve, what you tried, and what you learned. Start keeping records from day one. Not at tax time.
A failed experiment with thorough documentation qualifies. A successful product with no paper trail does not.
If your developers are contractors, their work can count. 80% of what you paid an arm's length contractor counts as eligible spending. Then the 35% credit applies to that amount. Paid a contractor $100,000? $80,000 enters the calculation — you get $28,000 back. Work must have been done in Canada and must have directly supported the R&D. How you structure your development partnerships matters from day one.
One founder paid $28,000 to build her MVP. She received $10,000 in non-dilutive funding through Alberta Innovates first. She is now applying SR&ED credits to recover a portion of what she paid out of pocket. One build. Multiple layers of funding working together.
Cash, not a tax credit. Run by the National Research Council of Canada. One phone call to find out if you qualify.
What it is for: companies actively doing technical R&D with a real plan to bring something to market. Not research for research's sake. You need to demonstrate credible commercial intent.
Micro Voucher: up to $10,000 | Digital Traction: up to $50,000 | Voucher Program: up to $100,000
One client received the $10K grant, then $50K, then $100K. Each built on the credibility of the last.
Market Readiness Program, VIP Program. Ontario Innovation Tax Credit (8%) stacks with SR&ED. Combined recovery up to 43%.
Quebec R&D tax credit (CRIC). Among the highest provincial R&D credits in Canada.
Up to $100,000 at 50% of eligible expenses per year. Plus a 45% tax credit for investors in eligible SK tech startups.
Innovation Growth Program. Contact directly for current intake windows and amounts.
Accelerate Program and Innovation Rebate Program. Check for open intake windows before applying.
Business development programs for PEI-based companies. Contact directly for tech-specific streams.
Supports startups across all four Atlantic provinces.
Territory-specific tech programs are limited. Your strongest path is SR&ED and IRAP directly.
Programs change. Verify current terms before planning around them.
These layer on top of federal programs. Apply separately for each. Most are reimbursement-based and require a cash contribution from you first.
To claim SR&ED or receive IRAP funding, the work and the code must legally belong to you. Not your developer. Not your agency. Most contracts are not written to protect the founder. Read our IP Protection guide before you sign anything. Free. No email required.
You spend first. You apply. Then you wait. Then you get some back. This is not a way to fund a project from zero. It is a way to recover a meaningful portion of money you were going to spend anyway. Our Tech Innovation Roadmap covers every option with real numbers.
That is who we work with at this stage. If you want a second opinion on whether your project sounds SR&ED or IRAP eligible, we are happy to take a look. We know what documentation matters. And if you need a SR&ED consultant, we can make an introduction.
No pitch. No pressure. Just a straight conversation.