Forest Sector Investment and Innovation Program

• Stage I Eligibility Checklist and Application Form
• Stage II Business Plan
• Required supplemental documents for Stage II

Who is eligible?

• For-profit manufacturers and processors of wood and forest biomass
• Sawmills and pulp and paper mills
• Secondary wood manufacturers
• Bio-economy and bio-product businesses
• Forest sector collaborations with research organizations, associations, and academia

Who is not eligible

• Harvesting and hauling companies
• Resource extraction projects
• Restructuring projects
• Mergers and acquisitions

Eligible expenses

• Facility construction, expansion, modification, or upgrades directly related to the project
• Equipment and machinery purchase, upgrade, delivery, and installation
• Project-related computer hardware, software, materials, labour, R&D, and training
• Market expansion costs, including certification, testing, translation, and trade shows
• Eligible travel, legal, accounting, and intellectual property protection fees

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Harvesting, hauling, and resource extraction projects.
• Restructuring, mergers, and acquisitions.
• Ongoing operating costs, overhead, rent, utilities, and general working capital.
• Interest costs, equipment depreciation, and maintenance.
• Meals, hospitality, memberships, and business plan preparation costs.

Eligible geographic areas

• Ontario

• Alignment with productivity, innovation, market access, and competitiveness goals.
• Positive impact on regional economies and Ontario’s broader forest sector.
• Need for government support to complete the project.
• Financial and technical due diligence, including project risk assessment.
• Competitive strength against other projects in the same round.

• Step 1: Register and complete Stage I
  • Log in to Transfer Payment Ontario.
  • Complete the Stage I Eligibility Checklist and Application Form.
• Step 2: Wait for Stage I review
  • Applications are reviewed in rounds.
  • Only submissions received by the deadline move to the next round.
• Step 3: Submit Stage II application
  • If approved, submit the Stage II Business Plan and all required supplemental documents by the deadline.
  • Provide all required information to avoid deferral or decline.
• Step 4: Receive decision and agreement
  • Successful applicants are notified in writing.
  • Approved applicants must sign a funding agreement before disbursement.

• Applications are reviewed through a two-stage competitive process.
• Stage I checks eligibility and overall alignment with program objectives.
• Stage II includes detailed evaluation, financial and technical due diligence, and project risk assessment.
• Successful applicants must sign a funding agreement before receiving any payment.
• Funding decisions are competitive and not guaranteed, even if a project meets the criteria.

• Applications are reviewed in competitive rounds.
• Approved projects must sign a funding agreement before any payment is made.
• Recipients may be subject to annual reporting and audit requirements.
• Approved projects may be publicly announced.