Museums Assistance Program — Recovery Fund for Heritage Organizations

• Completed application form and attestation
• 2019 financial statements or last pre-pandemic year statements
• Proof of legal status or unincorporated applicant form
• Proof of signing authority
• Direct deposit enrollment information

Who is eligible?

• Not-for-profit organizations such as museums, archives, and historic sites
• Indigenous organizations
• Official language minority community organizations
• Municipal museums with a distinct budget
• University museums with a distinct budget

Who is not eligible

• Organizations without a heritage collection
• Zoos, public libraries, aquaria, botanical gardens, artist-run centres, and virtual museums
• Federal, provincial, and territorial crown corporations, agencies, and departments
• Non-profit organizations supporting or managing a heritage collection owned by a federal entity
• Groups already receiving reopening or recovery funding from certain Canadian Heritage or Canada Council programs in 2022-2023

Eligible expenses

• Ongoing operations and day-to-day collections management
• Salaries, wages, utilities, insurance, materials and supplies
• Accessibility costs and Indigenous languages translation
• Minor capital costs, up to 10% of the amount awarded

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Professional development activities
• Travel, hospitality, feasibility and market studies
• Project proposal or application development for MAP or other federal programs
• Taxes
• Expenses already covered by other government COVID-19 recovery funding

• Organization capacity, including at least three years in operation and a basic governance structure.
• Applicant attestation of COVID-19-related financial hardship and need for government funding.

• Step 1: Read the guidelines
  • Review the application guidelines in full before starting.
• Step 2: Prepare the application package
  • Complete the application form and attestation.
  • Gather the required supporting documents.
• Step 3: Submit online
  • Submit the application and supporting documents through the Canadian Heritage Funding Portal.
  • Send the application by the online deadline.
• Step 4: Receive confirmation
  • Online submissions receive an automated email acknowledgement.
  • Other submissions are acknowledged after receipt.

• Applications are first reviewed for eligibility.
• Eligible applications are then assessed against national evaluation criteria.
• Applicants receive a funding decision within 16 weeks of a complete application.
• Funding decisions on eligibility and amounts are final.
• If approved, funding is provided as a grant or contribution under an agreement with conditions.

• Applications are reviewed for eligibility before evaluation.
• Funding decisions are final.
• Applicants should keep records for five years.
• Recipients may be required to acknowledge Government of Canada support in English and French.