Open
Source verified September 28, 2026
Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance
Liquidity support for tariff-affected businesses
Funding available
$ 2,000,000
Deadline
Open continuously
Location
Canada
Who can apply
Incorporated for-profit businesses located and operating in southern Ontario.
See full eligibility
Overview
Regional Tariff Response Initiative in southern Ontario provides liquidity assistance up to $2 million and 50% of eligible costs for incorporated for-profit businesses in southern Ontario affected by tariffs. It helps maintain Canadian operations and employment through payroll support and essential recurring costs such as rent, utilities, and business insurance.
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Opportunity Score
Moderate potential, but conditions must align.
At a glance
Funding available
Financing goals
- Ensure financial sustainability
Eligible Funding
- Maximum amount : 2,000,000 $
- Up to 50% of project cost
Eligible candidates
Eligible Industries
- All industries
Location
- Canada
Legal structures
- For-profit business
Annual revenue
- $ 1,000,000 minimum revenue
Organisation size
- All organization sizes
Audience
- All groups
Next Steps
1
Determine your project
2
Validate your eligibility
Availability timeline
2026
Periods: 1
Activities funded
- Short-term support to maintain operations and employment.
- Support to address liquidity pressures caused by tariffs.
Documents Needed
- Financial statements: annual statements for the last 2 fiscal years and the most recent interim financial statement.
- Articles of incorporation/amendments, constating documents, by-laws, or similar documents.
- Payroll records for the last month, including the number of employees, salaries paid, and employee benefits.
- Evidence to support liquidity requirement for the requested period, including a cash flow forecast.
Official resources
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
- Incorporated for-profit businesses located and operating in southern Ontario.
- Businesses affected by ongoing trade disruptions, including U.S. tariffs, Canadian countermeasures or countervailing duties.
- Businesses in tariff-impacted sectors.
Who is not eligible
- Not-for-profit organizations and governments seeking liquidity support for their own operating expenses.
- Businesses that are unable to demonstrate direct or indirect tariff exposure.
Eligible expenses
- Employee salary and wages.
- Essential recurring operating expenses related to rent or commercial lease payments, utilities, business insurance, and property taxes.
Ineligible Costs and Activities
- Tariffs, customs duties or export taxes, penalties or similar government charges.
- Other types of operating costs or lease payments, raw materials, inventory and other direct production inputs, capital purchases, debt principal repayments, interest expenses and other financial costs, dividends, shareholder distributions, or costs unrelated to ongoing operations.
- Payments to contractors or contracted service providers, employee bonuses including retention bonuses, employee severance costs, payments to employees working outside Canada, and the portion of payroll costs covered by another government program including support provided through EI Work-Sharing.
Eligible geographic areas
- Southern Ontario
Selection criteria
- Applications are assessed based on program criteria, demonstrated need, and the business’s proposed response to tariff impacts.
How to apply
- Gather your mandatory and supporting documents.
- Download the Application for Funding to your computer; iPads, tablets, and cell phones cannot be used.
- Open the application in Acrobat Reader 10 or later, not in your web browser.
- Review the Application Guide and complete the application, saving your work often.
- Click Add Attachments to add all necessary attachments to the Application for Funding.
- Before submitting, ensure your company can enter into legally binding agreements and that the person submitting is authorized to bind the company, then click Submit and keep the confirmation message and a copy for your records.
Processing and Agreement
- Should your project be approved, FedDev Ontario will ask for additional documentation to satisfy the terms and conditions set out in a contribution agreement, including insurance coverage, conflict of interest, financial management, project expenditures, and performance measurement and reporting.
Contacts
Other components of this program
Explore related funding streams and grants that belong to the same program.
- FedNor — Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Northern Ontario — Pivot projectsFunding for Northern Ontario pivot projects that improve productivity, diversify markets or strengthen supply chains in response to tariff impacts.
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (Prairies) — Liquidity assistanceTemporary liquidity support for Prairie businesses
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) – Atlantic Canada — Pivot projectsSupport for tariff-affected Atlantic Canadian businesses and business-support organizations to implement pivot projects, improve productivity, diversify markets and strengthen supply chains.
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Atlantic Canada — Liquidity assistanceLiquidity support for businesses affected by tariffs
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — British Columbia — Liquidity assistanceHelp for businesses affected by tariffs
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — British Columbia — Pivot projectsFunding for B.C. pivot projects that strengthen productivity, competitiveness and supply chain resilience in response to tariffs.
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Northern Canada — Pivot projectsFunding for pivot projects by tariff-affected businesses and business-support organizations in Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and Yukon to improve productivity, diversify markets and strengthen supply chains.
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Prairie Provinces — Pivot projectsSupports tariff-affected Prairie businesses with pivot projects that improve productivity, develop markets and strengthen supply chains, and organizations helping these businesses adapt.
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Quebec — Liquidity assistanceSupport for Quebec businesses affected by tariffs
- Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) — Quebec — Pivot projectsFunding for Quebec pivot projects that improve productivity, diversify markets and strengthen supply chains in response to tariffs.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance Program
What is the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance?
Regional Tariff Response Initiative in southern Ontario provides liquidity assistance up to $2 million and 50% of eligible costs for incorporated for-profit businesses in southern Ontario affected by tariffs. It helps maintain Canadian operations and employment through payroll support and essential recurring costs such as rent, utilities, and business insurance.
How much funding can be received?
Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance Funds up to 50% of admissible expenses, capped at $2,000,000 per project.
What is the deadline to apply?
The program is accepting continuous intake
Who is eligible for the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance program?
To be eligible for the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance program, you must:
The applicant must be an incorporated for-profit business located and operating in southern Ontario.
The business must have at least $1 million in annual revenue in one or both of its last two fiscal years.
The business must have been viable before tariffs and must show tariff-related impact.
What expenses are eligible under Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance?
Short-term support to maintain operations and employment.
Support to address liquidity pressures caused by tariffs.
Who can I contact for more information about the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance?
You can contact Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev) by email at info@feddevontario.gc.ca or by phone at 1-866-593-5505.
Where is the Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance available?
The Regional Tariff Response Initiative in Southern Ontario — Liquidity assistance program is available across Canada.