Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund
The Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund (CIRIF) is part of the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative, which is designed to attract globally recognized researchers, strengthen Canada’s innovation leadership, and enhance its competitiveness on the world stage. Its core objective is to transform groundbreaking discoveries into innovative products, policies and solutions that benefit Canadians.
Key documents:
How does CIRIF contribute to the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative?
As part of the Government of Canada’s International Talent Attraction Strategy and Action Plan to attract talented individuals currently living abroad to Canada, Canada’s 2025 federal budget introduced funding for the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative. This initiative includes:
- $1 billion for a program administered by the Tri-Agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (TIPS) called Canada Impact+ Research Chairs to recruit international researchers
- $120 million for a program to attract international early career researchers, also administered by TIPS, called Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders
- $400 million for the CFI to establish the Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund (CIRIF) to provide funding for research infrastructure to support the work of newly recruited research chairs, as well as early career researchers, if applicable
- The Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards will invest $133.6 million over three years to enable top international doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers to relocate to Canada.
What are the strategic priority areas targeted by the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative?
The Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative is intended to target researchers from eight strategic priority areas identified by the Government of Canada. They are:
- Advanced digital technologies (including AI, quantum and cybersecurity)
- Health, including biotechnology
- Clean technology and resource value chains
- Environment, climate resilience and the Arctic
- Food and water security
- Democratic and community resilience
- Manufacturing and advanced materials
- Defence and dual-use technologies.
By building and sustaining expertise in these areas, the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative will foster high-impact research teams and incentivize strategic partnerships across sectors — including industry, health systems, government and non-profit organizations — to accelerate research translation and maximize long-term impact.
How do researchers access funding for research infrastructure?
Institutions will apply to the CFI for funding through CIRIF on behalf of researchers they recruit through the Canada Impact+ Research Chairs program. The CFI is a separate organization dedicated to providing researchers with leading-edge research equipment and facilities. The CFI does not fund individual researchers directly. Research institutions, including universities, colleges and research hospitals, submit funding proposals to the CFI in support of researchers.
What are the important dates?
| Activity | Intake 1 | Intake 2 |
|---|---|---|
| CFI publishes call for proposals | March 2026 | |
| TIPS releases results of the Chairs competition to institutions | June 2026 | September 2026 |
| Chairs and institutions accept award in Convergence portal | One month after results | |
| Institutions submit proposals to the CFI | October 2026 | February 2027 |
| CFI Board of Directors makes decisions | March 2027 | June 2027 |
| All infrastructure expenditures must be incurred | September 30, 2032 | |
| All O&M expenditures must be incurred | March 31, 2035 | |
For questions or clarifications on the information provided to date, please contact:
impactplus [at] innovation.ca (impactplus[at]innovation[dot]ca) for the Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund
impactplus [at] chairs-chaires.gc.ca (impactplus[at]chairs-chaires[dot]gc[dot]ca) for the Canada Impact+ Research Chairs and Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders programs
Who can apply to this funding program?
Canadian institutions recognized as eligible to receive funding from the CFI and which have accepted at least one Canada Impact+ Research Chair award may apply to this funding program.
What does an institution need to do before applying?
To participate in any of our funding competitions, first make sure your institution is eligible to apply for funding, has signed an institutional agreement and that you have an account on our CFI Awards Management System (CAMS).
How much will institutions be allocated and how can the allocation be used?
At each intake, institutions will receive an allocation of $4 million for each Canada Impact+ Research Chair who accepts to join the institution.
The allocation may be used at the institution’s discretion to support the infrastructure and O&M needs of its chairholders. Institutions are responsible for managing this allocation across all CIRIF proposals submitted in each intake. Following the chairholders’ acceptance deadline set by TIPS, the CFI will receive a list of accepted chairholders and will confirm each institution’s allocation for the intake. Allocations will not carry over between intakes.
What can institutions apply for?
Infrastructure projects must support the needs of the chairholders (and Emerging Leaders, if applicable) and should build on existing institutional capacity.
Eligible institutions can submit proposals requesting up to $6 million from the CFI, including both infrastructure and O&M costs, as long as the total requested amount is within their institutional allocation for the intake, as indicated above. An eligible project involves acquiring or developing research infrastructure and the O&M costs to support a chairholder’s research program.
What do research institutions need to do regarding research security when they apply for CFI funding?
Institutions applying for CFI funding have research security obligations at the time of application under both the Government of Canada’s National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships and the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).
Find out what your institution needs to provide with CIRIF proposals to meet those requirements.
Where can I find out more?
Webinar: Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund from May 6, 2026
Can institutions receiving a single Canada Impact+ Research Chair submit a proposal to CIRIF for $6 million?
No, institutions who only accept one Chair award will only have an allocation of $4 million and will only be able to request up to this amount from the CIRIF. All institutions will receive the same allocation of $4 million per Chair award accepted per intake. This ensures that all Chairs have access to funding through the CIRIF and can request what they need without competing with each other. This approach was validated in consultation with several institutions during the planning for CIRIF.
How are the $4M allocation and the $6M max CFI request related?
The $4 million allocation is the amount that is provided to each institution to apply to the CIRIF that can be split between all the projects that are being submitted in one intake based on the number of chairs that accept their awards. No project can exceed $6 million requested from CIRIF.
Example 1: One Chair accepts to join institution A, which then receives an allocation of $4 million. The institution submits one proposal to CIRIF for $4 million from the CFI.
For institutions where more than one Chair accepts to join, the allocation may be used at the institution’s discretion to support the infrastructure and O&M needs of its chairholders. Institutions are responsible for managing this allocation across all CIRIF proposals submitted in each intake.
Eligible institutions with large enough allocations (that is, with two or more Chairs) can submit proposals requesting up to $6 million from the CFI, including both infrastructure and O&M costs, as long as the total requested amount is within their institutional allocation for the intake.
Example 2:
Three Chairs accept to join institution B, which then receives an allocation of $12 million ($4 million x three Chairs).
The institution submits to CIRIF (equal to the maximum total allocation of $12 million):
- One proposal for $6 million (the maximum possible)
- One proposal for $5 million
- One proposal for $1 million.
Are database subscriptions an eligible cost under CIRIF?
Yes, database subscriptions are an eligible cost under CIRIF. We will soon update our policies to reflect this change; however, institutions can consider this as eligible in their CIRIF applications. This change reflects the now common practice of accessing databases through subscriptions. Institutions must make the case in their proposals for why subscriptions are necessary.
Can Emerging Leaders and Impact+ Chairs also apply to the John R. Evans Leaders Fund?
Yes, Emerging Leaders and Impact+ Chairs funded through CIRIF can also apply to the John R. Evans Leaders Fund, provided they meet the eligibility requirements.
When is the deadline to apply to the CIRIF?
The deadline to submit a proposal to CIRIF is three months after the deadline for an Impact+ Chair to accept the position. When we receive the list of Chairs who have accepted their position from the Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat, we will send institutions information about their allocation along with the deadline for their proposals.
Will institutions be able to make changes to the budget after the project is funded?
Yes, institutions can make changes to the budget after the project is funded by following our standard amendments process. To maximize the use of the funding we provide through CIRIF, we plan to provide more flexibility to institutions to make changes to the budget to support the needs of the chairholders once they arrive in Canada.
Can funding from CIRIF be used to support the operation and maintenance of non-CFI-funded research infrastructure?
Yes, funding from CIRIF can be used to support the operation and maintenance of non-CFI-funded research infrastructure, and those O&M costs can be included in the CIRIF budget, regardless of how the procurement of the research infrastructure was funded, as long as that infrastructure supports the research program of the Chair.
Are institutions required to find matching funds?
No, institutions are not required to find matching funds as the CFI will fund up to 100 percent of a project’s costs. However, we encourage institutions to look for opportunities to expand the support for Impact+ Chairs and Emerging Leaders and institutions can include funding partners in their proposals.
If the institution has secured partner funding for a project, can the total eligible costs in the proposal be over $6 million?
Yes, the total eligible costs in the proposal can be over $6 million provided that the institution has secured partner funding to cover the difference, the partner funding can be in-kind and/or cash contributions.
How are proposals assessed?
First, we make sure it is complete and adheres to our guidelines. Then, it is assessed through our review process.
The merit of each proposal will be evaluated by a multidisciplinary committee with appropriate expertise.
The committee(s) will make funding recommendations for each proposal to the CFI’s Board of Directors.
What will be assessed in the review process?
For the purposes of this funding program, the core of the review process will be based on the justification of the need for the infrastructure and O&M budget. The intent of CIRIF is to support the infrastructure needs of all chairholders. As such, proposals will not compete against one another. Since the chairholder’s research program and qualifications will have been assessed through their application submitted to TIPS, the CFI will not reassess these elements, but we ask institutions to include them in the proposal for context.
The proposal must demonstrate that the requested infrastructure and/or O&M support complements existing institutional capacity and creates an environment that fully supports the chairholder’s research program (and that of the Emerging Leader, if applicable) in Canada.
See the call for proposals for details on how to address the budget justification.
If your institution receives funding through this funding program, there are a few things you will need to do to finalize, manage and report on your award.
How are awards finalized?
Funded recipients need to submit an award finalization form in the CFI Awards Management System (CAMS). Funded recipients must finalize their award before we can release funds to their institution. It is expected that projects will be finalized promptly and completed within a reasonable time frame.
What do institutions need to do for research security after they receive CFI funding?
Institutions applying for or receiving CFI funding have research security obligations both when they apply for funding as well as after they receive funding and throughout the life of the project.
Learn what institutions need to do for research security after they receive CFI funding
Read and share good practices for managing your funding
Staff at our funded institutions have developed good practices, policies and processes for managing the funding they receive from the CFI.
Browse our good practices for institutions and write to us at good.practices [at] innovation.ca (good[dot]practices[at]innovation[dot]ca) to share your own.
$400M
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CFI investment through this funding program
$1.7B
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Government of Canada investment in the
Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative