AEBHS — Programme d'aide financière aux entrepreneurs (FIE)

• Completed, dated, and signed financial aid application form
• Business plan or detailed project description, detailed breakdown of project expenses, and project financing plan with confirmation of other funding
• Financial statements for the last three years
• Interim financial statements if the latest statements are older than six months or the business has been operating for less than one year, and forecast financial statements
• Francization compliance declaration or francization certificate, equal employment compliance declaration or copy of the Programme d'accès à l'égalité en emploi, and any other document requested by the MRC

Who is eligible?

• Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for profit legally constituted under the laws of Quebec or Canada
• Collective enterprises, including cooperatives and OBNLs under the social economy law
• Self-employed workers and micro-enterprises under the FLI self-employed stream

Who is not eligible

• Applicants registered in the Registre des entreprises non admissibles aux contrats publics (RENA), including subcontractors registered in the RENA for the project
• Applicants that do not comply with the francization process under the Charter of the French Language, including businesses with 25 employees or more in Quebec for at least six months that do not hold the required Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) documents or are listed as non-compliant
• Applicants that failed, in the two years before the application, to meet obligations after formal notice linked to previous financial aid
• State-owned companies, companies controlled directly or indirectly by a government, majority state-owned companies, and applicants under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act or the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act
• Applicants with unethical, environmentally irresponsible, or labour- or human-rights-related non-compliance histories

Eligible expenses

• Working capital needed for the project
• Capital costs directly linked to equipment, technology, land, buildings, and machinery
• Construction, renovation, expansion, and site or premises development
• Professional fees such as feasibility studies, external audits, and project implementation support
• Acquisition and transaction costs for business succession projects

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Expenses incurred before the application is submitted
• Debt service, repayment of future loans, capital losses or capital replacement, and capital payments
• Transactions between related businesses or partners, research and development expenses, normal operating expenses, and Quebec sales taxes
• Projects limited to subcontracting or outsourcing operations, as well as pre-start-up projects, controversial weapons, fossil fuel activities except transition projects, gambling, violent games, combat sports, sexual exploitation, and real estate management or development except certain tenant or resident service projects
• Tobacco or drug-related activities, except certain cannabis and industrial hemp activities; for cannabis and hemp, recreational products, non-homologated medical products, and additional cannabis products are not authorized

Eligible geographic areas

• Territory of the MRC of Beauharnois-Salaberry

• Economic viability and repayment capacity
• Promoters’ knowledge and relevant experience
• Environmental and social benefits of the project
• Openness toward workers and labour relations
• Project contribution to local economic development

• Step 1: Prepare the application
  • Complete and sign the financial aid application form.
  • Prepare the business plan or detailed project description.
  • Gather the financial statements and financing information requested.
• Step 2: Submit the file to the MRC
  • Send the complete application file with all required documents.
  • Include any other documents requested by the MRC.
• Step 3: File review and decision
  • The MRC reviews the file, analyzes it, and prepares a recommendation.
  • The Joint Investment Committee makes the funding decision.
• Step 4: Finalize the financing
  • If approved, sign the loan agreement and complete the required administrative steps.

• Applications are reviewed continuously once all required information and documents are provided.
• The MRC first analyzes eligibility and prepares a recommendation file.
• Complete files are then submitted to the Joint Investment Committee for review and decision.
• The committee may approve, refuse, or request changes to the project.
• If approved, authorized signatories carry out the required administrative, financial, and legal steps.

• Support and technical assistance are available throughout the application process.
• Additional documents may be requested by the MRC.
• Interest rates vary according to project risk.
• Application review is handled continuously once the file is complete.