Flood Resilience and Adaptation Program (PRAFI) - Resilient Development Component

• Financial assistance covers up to 75% of eligible project expenses.
• Total public funding, including this aid, must not exceed 95% of eligible expenses.
• Eligible land acquisition costs are limited to 50% of the property valuation and may not exceed 25% of the total eligible project expenses.
• Incidental professional fees are capped at 20% of the direct eligible costs.
• Approved funding is disbursed as expenses are incurred and documented, with payment limited to 90% of the awarded amount until final verification.

• The applicant must be a Quebec-based local municipality, central agglomeration municipality, regional county municipality (MRC), metropolitan community, intermunicipal board, or a grouping of such organizations.
• The project must primarily aim to protect people and property from flood risks or watercourse mobility.
• The applicant must have the financial capacity to carry out the project.
• The project must align with the current intervention plan on the territory, if applicable, and be accompanied by all information required by the program, including a council resolution (when relevant).
• The applicant must attest to ensuring the sustainability of the resilient measures realized through the project.

Who is eligible?

• Local municipalities
• Central municipalities of agglomerations
• Regional county municipalities (MRC)
• Metropolitan communities
• Intermunicipal boards
• Groups of the above-mentioned organizations

Who is not eligible

• Companies whose projects are funded or under evaluation by other similar government programs (e.g., Wetland and Water Habitat Restoration and Creation Program, OASIS program, Disaster Prevention Framework of the Ministry of Public Safety).
• Organizations whose primary goal is not to reduce flood risk or vulnerability related to the movement of waterways.
• Organizations presenting projects related to coastal submersion or erosion caused by coastal submersion.
• Companies listed in the Registry of Enterprises Ineligible for Public Contracts or on the List of Companies Non-Compliant with the Francization Process of the OQLF.
• Projects having a significant negative impact on threatened or vulnerable wildlife species.

Eligible expenses

• Costs of awarded contracts for preparation (plans, specifications, cost estimates), execution and control of the work, as well as for conducting preliminary studies or solution analysis.
• Laboratory fees, site surveying, and quality control of materials on the job site.
• Purchase of materials, rental fees for tools, equipment, and machinery necessary and directly related to the project.
• Work performed in-house: salaries of municipal employees assigned to the project, purchase of materials and supplies, and rental of tools and machinery according to current rates.
• Costs related to the purchase of infrastructure, real estate transfer taxes, and costs of acquiring land or easements essential to the project (subject to conditions). The cost of demolishing buildings on the acquired land is covered, but not the cost of acquiring the buildings themselves.
• Costs of mandatory public communications, permanent plaques, and actions required by authorities (such as construction site signage).
• Fees related to obtaining government permits, impact studies, archaeological studies, and excavations, where applicable.
• Lump-sum professional fees (engineers, planners, technicians, project managers, biologists, etc.) directly related to the project.
• Costs associated with an independent auditor required by the Ministry.
• Costs related to the installation of flood markers and the process of obtaining a protection or conservation status for a created or restored wetland.
• Net taxes applicable on eligible expenses.

Eligible geographic areas

• Quebec

• Safety of individuals.
• Protection of property.
• Scope of the project at the watershed level.
• Coexistence with water.
• Demonstration of the relevance of the solution, impact on the environment, and the applicant's ability to carry out the project.

• The program rules and standards came into effect on June 15, 2021, and will end on March 31, 2026.
• The Ministry reserves the right to withhold or refuse financial aid if project requirements or reporting standards are not met.
• All original supporting documents for expenditures must be kept for at least three years after the final expense claim is submitted.
• A conflict of interest must be reported immediately to the Ministry, and appropriate measures must be taken to address it.