Tourism Industry Recovery Assistance Program (TIRAP)

• A business plan covering the organization, project, market analysis, marketing plan, operations, human resources, financing, and curriculum vitae.
• Documents confirming each source of the required equity contribution and any loans or other financing.
• For municipal entities and recognized Indigenous communities or nations, a municipal council or board resolution confirming the minimum contribution and post-completion operating responsibility.
• Financial statements for the required past periods and three forecast financial statements, including assumptions and any related-party structure document if applicable.
• As applicable, supporting documents for the eco-responsibility bonus, AEQ Qualité-Sécurité compliance, the arts integration policy review, Indigenous status, and landowner authorization if the applicant does not own the site.

Who is eligible?

• For-profit organizations
• Non-profit organizations
• Cooperatives
• Municipal entities
• Recognized Indigenous communities or nations

Who is not eligible

• State-owned corporations, ministries, and government agencies
• Businesses under creditor protection or bankruptcy proceedings
• Organizations listed in the Register of Enterprises Ineligible for Public Contracts (RENA)
• Organizations that failed to meet obligations tied to past financial assistance

Eligible expenses

• Construction, reconstruction, expansion, adaptation, conversion, and equipment replacement costs
• Land development, landscaping, survey, and quality control costs
• Specialized equipment, furniture, boats, and rolling stock
• Professional fees, consulting, and project management costs
• Project preparation studies, business plan, and eco-responsible development plan

Ineligible Costs and Activities

• Business acquisition and related infrastructure costs
• Promotion, marketing, and website redesign costs
• Operating, financing, travel, and administrative expenses
• Costs incurred before the application is filed
• Gifts, in-kind contributions, and refundable taxes

Eligible geographic areas

• For new tourist accommodation projects of the établissement hôtelier type, eligible regions are Bas-Saint-Laurent, Cantons-de-l’Est, Charlevoix, Chaudière-Appalaches, Gaspésie, Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Lanaudière, Laurentides, Mauricie, and Montérégie.
• These new tourist accommodation projects cannot be located in a municipality within the Montréal or Québec census metropolitan area.

• Projects are assessed on relevance (30 points), including response to a regional need recognized by the Ministère, innovation, distinctiveness, quality, and appeal to tourism clientele.
• Projects are assessed on potential regional tourism benefits (30 points), including tourism revenues, overnight stays, attractiveness, structuring of the tourism offer, and season extension.
• Projects are assessed on responsible and sustainable profile (20 points), including quality jobs, accessibility, stakeholder support, structured sustainable development commitment, and local or circular economy.
• Projects are assessed on feasibility (20 points), including realistic financing, profitability, short-term delivery, marketing strategy, organizational capacity, and application quality.
• For each call for projects, priority is given to applications that best meet the prioritization criteria, including structured sustainable development engagement, alignment with nature access, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, or agritourism, social acceptability, innovation, regional alignment, season extension, and fit within a regional development strategy.

• Applications were reviewed in batches for each call for projects.
• The analysis of submitted files is complete, and responses have been sent to proponents.
• Approved applicants must sign a financial assistance agreement with the Ministère du Tourisme to receive the funding.
• Funding is paid after signature of the agreement and after receipt of the required accountability documents, with a third instalment in specific cases.
• At the end of the project, the recipient must submit an audited report from an external accounting firm covering the work dates, actual project costs, and financing sources.

• Projects are assessed in batches by call for projects.
• A public tender is required for construction contracts of $100,000 or more.
• A financial assistance agreement must be signed before funding is paid.
• Annual tourism impact reporting is required for five years after the work is completed.