PRIMA — INNOV-R SME

• Applicant Guide INNOV-R PME
• Letter of Intent Form
• Complete Application Form

Who is eligible?

• Québec SMEs
• Companies established under federal or Québec laws
• Companies with a place of business in Québec and production and/or RSDE activities in Québec
• Public research institutions as partners
• Public organizations as partners
• Companies outside Québec as third partners

Who is not eligible

• Companies listed on the register of enterprises ineligible for public contracts (RENA), including subcontractors registered with RENA expected to perform project work.
• Companies that failed to meet obligations after formal notice related to previous financial assistance from MEIE or IQ under the Economic Development Fund or IQ equity funds.
• Companies under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act or the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.
• Holding companies.
• Companies with unethical conduct that could tarnish the Government of Québec’s image of integrity and probity.

Eligible expenses

• Professional fees for specialized services, including subcontracted services.
• Direct labor costs associated with the project, including social benefits and mandatory contributions.
• Travel and accommodation expenses related to project execution, in alignment with the Government of Quebec's current management policy handbook.
• Direct costs of materials and inventory.
• Direct equipment costs, calculated based on project duration compared to the equipment's useful life ratio.
• Equipment rental fees.
• Costs for acquiring studies or other documentation.
• Platform fees.
• Costs for preparing an intellectual property protection strategy, obtaining intellectual property rights, or licenses, including patent-related fees.
• Costs for obtaining necessary homologation or certification for commercialization.
• Management fees up to 5% of eligible project expenses, shared between the industrial partner(s) and the Ministry of Economy, Innovation, and Energy (MEIE) for the management of the measure.
• Expenses incurred for the final external audit of the project (end of project, conditional for obtaining the 20% withholding).

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Expenses incurred before the date of submission of the file, including expenses for which the company has entered into contractual commitments.
• Debt service fees, repayment of future loans, capital loss or capital replacement, and any capital payment or disbursement.
• Operating expenses for regular activities.
• Recurring fees such as annual subscription fees and software update fees.
• Commercialization expenses.

• Degree of innovation of the solution developed.
• Quality of the project team, partnership, and project management.
• Commercial potential or deployment potential of the solution developed.
• Ability of the SME to carry out the project with financial and human resources.
• Social, environmental, economic, or other benefits for Québec.
• Capacity of the solution to reduce GHG emissions in Québec during the first 10 years of commercialization.
• Quantification of GHG emissions reduced or avoided in tonnes of CO2e per year in Québec.
• Cost per tonne of CO2e reduced or avoided in Québec.
• Risks related to the deployment of the solution.

• Submit the letter of intent before March 20, 2025.
• After approval, receive the detailed application form.
• Submit the detailed application to the relevant RSRI by May 16, 2025.

• The letter of intent is analyzed and the eligibility criteria of sections 4.1 and 4.2 of the guide are verified.
• Financial statements submitted with the letter of intent are evaluated by an external evaluator, who issues a recommendation regarding the company’s solvency.
• A response is sent on April 4, 2025.
• If the project is approved, the applicant receives the detailed application form.
• The detailed application is then reviewed, and funding confirmation for retained projects is sent by email from the RSRI.

• Financial partners of a project must approve a single budget presenting all project activities; matching an already funded project with new activities funded by the RSRI is not in accordance with the measure.
• Co-financing sources identified must be free of existing commitments.
• Support for the GHG portion is offered later for detailed applications only; the letter of intent does not require extensive calculations.
• The detailed application must be submitted to the relevant RSRI by May 16, 2025.