MRC Portneuf — Business Support Fund

• Complete business plan, including profitability, market validation, project timeline, sales strategy and marketing strategy.
• Project financial information showing three-year financial viability, including project cost, financing structure, budget forecasts and cash budget.
• CVs of the promoter or promoters, credit bureau authorization, and personal financial statements.
• Proof of the equity contribution and written authorizations for financing granted by financial partners.
• Required municipal and government authorizations, notarized shareholder agreement or incorporation contracts, opening or closing balance sheet, and the last three years of financial statements, except for a new enterprise.

Who is eligible?

• Promoters aged 18 and over who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
• Non-profit organizations, cooperatives, and for-profit enterprises with a NEQ.
• For-profit enterprises may be incorporated, registered, or partnerships, provided they have a NEQ.

Who is not eligible

• Individuals not in business, except for people covered by an agreement with the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ).
• Applicants registered with the Registre des entreprises non admissibles aux contrats publics (RENA).
• Applicants not compliant with the francisation process under the Charte de la langue française, including enterprises with 25 employees or more in Québec for at least 6 months that do not hold a valid certificate of francisation or one of the required OQLF documents, or that are listed by the OQLF as non-compliant.
• Applicants who failed to meet obligations linked to previous financial assistance from the MRC de Portneuf during the two years before the application, or who are under the protection of the Loi sur les arrangements avec les créanciers des compagnies or the Loi sur la faillite et l’insolvabilité.
• Projects in the sectors listed in Annex A.

Eligible expenses

• Land, building, equipment, machinery, rolling stock, and acquisition of tangible or intangible assets.
• Incorporation fees and acquisition of shares.
• Professional and expertise fees related to capital, equipment, installation, legal matters, succession plans, and employee training.
• Technologies, software or progiciels, patents, licences, manufacturing agreements, and similar costs, excluding research and development.
• Working capital for first-year operations or increased operations, external research and development, and related innovation or expansion costs.

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Expenses incurred before the MRC de Portneuf receives the official assistance request.
• Debt service, future loan repayments, operating deficits, interest, loan repayment, and replenishing working capital.
• Regular operating expenses and current management expenses.
• Expenses related to moving a company or part of its production outside the MRC de Portneuf.
• The refundable QST and GST portion, and for Volet 3, basic operating items such as cell phones, tablets, laptops and smartwatches.

Eligible geographic areas

• The territory served by the MRC de Portneuf.

• The CDSÉ studies projects according to the priorities and orientations of the MRC de Portneuf.
• The MRC may refuse a project it considers incompatible with its orientations.

• Step 1: Check eligibility and request the application form.
• Step 2: Prepare the required application documents.
• Step 3: Submit the complete file to the MRC of Portneuf.
• Step 4: File review and analysis by the MRC and CDSÉ.

• The economic development team verifies project admissibility before the request is submitted.
• The MRC provides technical support to analyze the business plan and checks that the required documents are complete.
• The Service de développement économique reviews financing options, performs due diligence, validates that the enterprise is not listed with RENA, checks the plumitif and other relevant sources, and prepares an objective summary for the CDSÉ.
• The CDSÉ decides on the MRC’s participation, sets the funding amount, and identifies any special obligations attached to the assistance.
• The CDSÉ decision is submitted to the council of representatives of the MRC de Portneuf, which confirms it or not; accepted projects are then governed by a protocol d’entente and subject to follow-up during the request period and for two years after the last disbursement.

Here are additional relevant details for the grant applicants:

• All awarded projects will require a formal agreement outlining financial aid conditions and promoter obligations, ensuring compliance throughout project completion and for two years post-final disbursement.
• Applicants may only submit one application per 12-month period, except for research and development, allowing one application every 24 months.
• The enterprise headquarters or primary activities must be located within the MRC de Portneuf's territory.
• Funding cannot be used for debt servicing, upcoming debt repayments, or regular operations, with rare exceptions for the first operational year for social economy enterprises, extendable to two years.
• Technical support is provided by the economic development team for business plan analysis before submission to the decision-making committee.
• A project's eligibility is first reviewed by the economic development team before formal submission.
• The MRC reserves the right to reject projects deemed misaligned with its strategic directions.