What better way to start 2023 than with some free grant funding?

The New Year is a time for personal reflection, resolutions, and change. The same applies to businesses! January marks the start of a new chapter for businesses across the country as they make their plan for the year to come. 

An important part of this planning process is financial planning. This extends to hiring, training, and expansion initiatives as all of these activities cost money. As you plan out the next 12 months, be sure to consider how grant funding can support your business goals. Grants can cushion your bottom line and give you some financial breathing room at a time when finances are a challenge for many small businesses. 

To help you with your planning, we’ve put together a list of grants that are open in January 2023. These grants are for a range of industries and regions in Canada. To make it easier, we’ve categorized them into hiring, training, market expansion, and others. It’s important to note that this list isn’t exhaustive – we’ve chosen to highlight the most popular grants to look out for this month. 

Hiring grants open in January 2023

• Propel Student Work Placement Program: provides funding to hire students in all tourism and hospitality roles for one or more semesters. All restaurant roles are also eligible.
  • Grant value: 70% of wages up to $7,000
  • Region: all of Canada
• Food Processing SWPP: provides funding to food and beverage manufacturers to hire student talent for one or more semesters
  • Grant value: 70% of wages up to $7,000
  • Region: all of Canada
• Trucking HR SWPP: provides businesses with trucking or logistical components to hire student talent for one or more semesters
  • Grant value: 70% of wages up to $7,000
  • Region: all of Canada
• Financial Wage Incentive – Trucking HR
  • Grant value: 75% of wages up to $15,000
  • Region: all of Canada
• WorkBC Wage Subsidy: provides all BC businesses with a wage subsidy to hire unemployed workers for a maximum duration of 24 weeks
  • Grant value: Up to $12,000
  • Region: British Columbia
• Mitacs KPU: provides funding for employers to hire 3rd & 4th-year business students for a duration of 6 months
  • Grant value: Up to 75% of wages to a maximum of $7,500
  • Region: British Columbia

Training grants open in January 2023

• BC Employer Training Grant: provides funding to employers to support skills training for their new or current employees.
  • Grant value: Up to $10,000
  • Region: British Columbia
• Canada Ontario Job Grant: offers training subsidies to businesses and non-profits in Ontario who are looking to invest in their workforce
  • Grant value: Up to $15,000
  • Region: Ontario
• Canada Alberta Job Grant: provides a training subsidy to Alberta employers offering external training to their employees
  • Grant value: $15,000
  • Region: Alberta

Market expansion grants open in January 2023

• Strategic Innovation Fund: offers funds for large-scale projects that contribute to advancing innovation and promoting Canada’s long-term competitiveness.
  • Grant value: Up to $20MM
  • Region: all of Canada
• Start-Up & Scale-Up: offers funding to start-up or scale-up companies with promising clean technology development and demonstration projects.
  • Grant value: Up to $4MM
  • Region: all of Canada

Other grants open in January 2023

• LevelUp: offers a wage subsidy and bridges businesses looking for young talent and students searching for work experience
  • Grant value: $1,400
  • Region: All of Canada
• WorkXP: funds 400-hour internships to help internationally educated professionals gain Canadian work experience
  • Grant value: $5,000
  • Region: Metro Vancouver
• CLAC Apprenticeship Support Program (CASP): provides funding to small- and medium-sized businesses to hire new first-year apprentices in one of 39 Red Seal trades
  • Grant value: Up to $10,000
  • Region: all of Canada, except Quebec
• Digital Modernization and Adoption Plan: to support SMEs to work with a Digital Adoption Consultant to generate a Digital Modernization and Adoption Plan tailored specifically to their organization’s digital needs.
  • Grant value: Up to $15,000
  • Region: Ontario
• Technology Demonstration Program: provides funding to businesses that have completed a Digital Modernization and Adoption Plan (DMAP) project to adopt and implement the digital technology identified in their DMAP
  • Grant value: $150,000
  • Region: Ontario

Before you apply for these grants, you should pay close attention to the start dates. Some hiring grants are open for new hires that already started, while others may be for new hires that haven’t yet started. Although the grant is open now, you may not receive the funding this quarter, so be on the lookout for start dates that match what your business needs. 

If you need help applying for grants, Granted is here to help! We have industry-specialized Grant Consultants so your business can maximize its funding potential. Head over to our Grant Calculator to see how much grant funding your business could get.