About Boost Your Business Technology

The Boost Your Business Technology grant offers Canadian-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) support to adopt new technologies in order to increase competitiveness and resilience.

Boost Your Business Technology can help get your business online, give your e-commerce presence a boost, or digitalize your business's operations. These grants are designed to help Canadian businesses become more competitive.

In addition to helping your business scale up its technology and become more resilient and competitive, the program also offers wage subsidies to hire youth to support the implementation of new technology and strategies.

Components of the Boost Your Business Technology Grant

Eligible businesses can access the following benefits with the Boost Your Business Technology grant:

Grant

Up to 90% of costs for retaining the services of a digital advisor, to a maximum of $15,000 per SME.

Loan

Access to a 0% interest loan of up to $100,000 from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) to facilitate the acquisition of new technology.

Wage Subsidy

Opportunity to hire a youth to support the implementation of a digital adoption plan. Businesses will receive a wage subsidy of up to $7,300 through the funded work placement.

Eligibility

A business owner, or company director/president can complete the application. Alternatively, a director/president listed in the articles of incorporation can also assign a representative to apply on behalf of the company.

Eligible business can leverage this grant to pay for the services of a digital advisor up to $15,000 and access an interest free loan of up to $100,000 to acquire and implement new technologies. Before applying, your business must meet all of the following eligibility criteria:

  • Be incorporated federally or provincially, or be a Canadian resident sole proprietor
  • Be a for-profit, privately owned business
  • Have between 1 – 499 full time equivalent employees
  • Have at least $500,000 of annual revenues in one of the previous three tax years

Wage Subsidy Criteria:

Businesses that are eligible for CDAP’s Boost Your Business Technology and have completed their digital needs assessment can apply for a wage subsidy of up to $7,300 to hire youth talent to support your digital transformation. Before completing your hire, please note the following eligibility criteria for youth hires:

  • Be aged between 18-30.
  • Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or refugees with the right to work in Canada.
  • Currently enrolled in post-secondary program of study in college, university, CEGEP, Polytechnic institute or private training institution in relevant fields; or
  • Recent graduates from college, university, CEGEP, Polytechnic institute, or private training institution (digital skills programs).
  • For greater certainty, a recent graduate is a youth who has graduated from a post-secondary institution (in Canada or an international school) within the past two years. Participating youth must be:
    1. Canadian citizens,
    2. permanent residents, or
    3. refugees with the right to work in Canada.
  • The Youth must not have previously benefited from a completed CDAP Boost Your Business Technology Work Placement. Youth having previously participated in Grow Your Business Online placements are eligible.
  • The youth participant must work a total of 450 hours in order to receive the full subsidy amount. Reimbursements for part-time or shorter-term placements providing less than the full-time equivalent 450 hours (37.5 hours worked for 12 weeks) will be adjusted proportionately to the placement’s actual number of hours.

Apply Today

If you are having difficulty keeping up, or want to optimize your business’ digital capacity, consider applying. Boost Your Business Technology can help get your business online, give your e-commerce presence a boost, or digitalize your business’s operations.

Get Started

What if you already have a digital adoption plan? Get on the fast-track!

You could still benefit from CDAP! Use our fast-track option to get a loan directly from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) or a funded work placement to help implement your plan.

You may be eligible if you have a plan, created within the last 24 months, from one of the programs below:

There are a few conditions in order to utilize multiple funding programs to offset the cost of the digital adoption plan:

  • Businesses must review and meet the eligibility criteria of both programs
  • Businesses must work with a digital advisor that is recognized by both programs
  • The total of the combined grants cannot exceed the amount invoiced by the digital advisor.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to commonly asked questions like who you can hire with a Boost Your Business Technology Wage Subsidy and if a business can apply to more than one CDAP supported grant.

Learn more

For additional support and inquiries, please contact boostyourbusiness@magnet.today.