Commonly Sought Authorities

From: Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Guidance is provided here for the types of authorities and approvals most often sought in Treasury Board submissions. This page provides:

information on the policy requirements and the need for specific authorities or approvals
wording for Treasury Board submission proposals
links to useful tools and additional information

Information on the authorities and approvals most commonly sought from the Treasury Board is presented in the following sections:

Financial management authorities
Transfer payments
External fees
Contract entry approval
Investment planning
Project approval
Real property
Crown corporation corporate plans
Governor in Council approvals
Non-delegated organization and classification of executive positions

Financial management authorities

Financial proposals presented to the Treasury Board usually affect an organization’s votes as listed in the Estimates or in the allotments within its individual votes (for example, personnel costs, other operating costs, capital, grants and contributions).

Some financial authorities require a separate financial table to be inserted as an appendix to the submission. Such authorities will be specifically identified in this section.

Before contacting your program analyst at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS), you should first consult your organization’s financial management advisors for guidance on preparing all financial proposals, tables and appendices.

Financial authorities through estimates votes

Adjustments to reference levels

This type of proposal is required when an organization seeks access to new funding through the Estimates. The amount should be broken down by organization(s) under “New Funding” in the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table(s) by Estimates Vote Structure.

Use this wording to request authorities to adjust reference levels

Provide authority to adjust departmental reference levels [and increase or list grants if required] as set out in the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

Accommodation premium

The accommodation premium levied on new salary resources accommodated by Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is 13 per cent. If this premium does not apply to your submission (for example, your organization owns its own facility) or only a portion of the salary is accommodated by PSPC (for example, 60 per cent of salaried personnel are in PSPC accommodations and 40 per cent are in custodial laboratory facilities), you must explain the amount provided to PSPC in a footnote to the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

Amount allocated for Shared Services Canada central earmark authority

Any amounts being held centrally for Shared Services Canada should appear in the appropriate row of the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

Transfers between votes (within or between organizations)

When you are seeking to transfer funds between votes within your organization or to another organization, the amounts should be indicated as follows.

The amounts shown as being transferred from one vote to another vote must be the same. As a general rule, when transferring salaries from one organization to another, the increase in the personnel sub-allotment of the receiving organization should be offset by an identical reduction in the personnel sub-allotment of the sending organization. If that is not possible, the transfer to or from the operating budget allotment should be made entirely within the other operating costs sub-allotment, which should also include the appropriate employee benefit plan (EBP) amount.

The amounts to be transferred should be indicated under “Transfers” in the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

For transfers between organizations or between votes within an organization, the following applies:

Include the amount to be transferred in the “New Funding” or the “Existing Funding” areas of the sending organization’s Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure, as appropriate.
In the “Transfers” area of this table, indicate in “Sending Organization” and “Receiving Organization” the transfer by organization, vote and input factor (the “Sending Organization” amount will show as negative and the “Receiving Organization” amount will show as positive). The “Transfers” area should total to zero.

Use this wording to transfer funds between votes

Provide authority to transfer from [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] to [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required], in order to [insert purpose].

Temporary access to Treasury Board Vote 5 – Government Contingencies

Access to Treasury Board Vote 5 – Government Contingencies is generally sought when an organization has insufficient spending authority to cover existing requirements. Access to Treasury Board Vote 5 provides authorities that are urgently required before the next parliamentary supply process is completed. Similar to a loan, Treasury Board Vote 5 is repaid once the supply is granted.

Treasury Board Vote 5 may also be used to do either of the following:

provide authority for new grants that are within the legal mandate of the organization
increase existing grants before obtaining approval from Parliament through an appropriation act as proposed in the associated Estimates

The amount sought from Treasury Board Vote 5 should be indicated in a footnote to the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

Use this wording for temporary access to Treasury Board Vote 5

Provide authority for temporary access to Treasury Board Vote 5 – Government Contingencies in an amount up to $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year], in order to supplement [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] for [insert purpose], based on an updated cash flow to be provided to Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to reaffirm actual requirements once the cash supply of the aforementioned organization’s vote is close to depletion. The amount granted from Treasury Board Vote 5 is to be reimbursed upon the approval of the appropriation act related to the Estimates that provides funding for this initiative.

Deletion of debt owed to the Crown

Guidance is provided here on proposals related to the deletion of debts owing to the Government of Canada in accordance with the Financial Administration Act (FAA).

Before undertaking any deletion of debt, it is important that you clearly ascertain the legal framework that applies to the financial accounts relating to the debt. The government has put in place a comprehensive system of statutory and regulatory controls that must be followed when handling deletions. These controls can be derived from the specific program legislation under which the debt was created, such as the Income Tax Act or the FAA. When program legislation specifically addresses the topic of debt deletion, the legislation applies.

When deleting a debt under the FAA, you also need to determine what type of financial transaction generated the debt that is to be deleted. There are two types of transactions: budgetary and non-budgetary.

The decision to forego collection of a debt has a fiscal impact on the Government of Canada. Therefore, every debt deletion implicitly has a source of funds. There are instances where a minister has authority to delete debts under regulatory powers granted to them (that is, the power to write off budgetary debts). In instances where a Treasury Board submission is required, a source of funds will need to be confirmed before the submission is considered by the Treasury Board.

The default source of funds is the organization’s reference levels. The reference level is generally confirmed through establishing a lapsing frozen allotment (refer to the Permanent frozen allotments section of this document) that is equivalent to the amount of the debt being forgiven. If your organization is unable to manage this funding pressure from existing reference levels, you should contact your program analyst at TBS to discuss options.

The FAA authorizes four forms of debt deletion:

write-off
forgiveness
remission
waiver of interest and administrative charges

A summary of these forms of deletion can be found in Table 1: Financial Administration Act (FAA) debt deletion actions.

Note: In the case of forgiveness, remission, and waiver of interest or administrative charges, the debt is legally extinguished. The Crown loses its right to collect or reinstate the debt, and an authority is created to make an accounting entry that permanently removes the debt from government accounts.

Debt write-off

All or a portion of the debt may be written off under the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994, if one or more of the following situations exists:

the debt is uncollectible
the costs of collecting the debt outweigh the amount of the debt
there is a Department of Justice Canada compromise settlement for the debt
there is a present-value payment for a future debt

Section 6 of the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994, establishes when a debt is considered uncollectible. Under these regulations, an organization is allowed to write off debts that are considered uncollectible with one exception. Treasury Board approval is required to write off debts resulting from accountable advances and overpayments of salaries, wages or employment-related allowances made to public servants who are currently employed.

When amounts are written off for budgetary transactions, no budgetary appropriation is charged because the organization has already charged the appropriation.

To process non-budgetary write-off transactions, subsection 25(2) of the FAA requires that a budgetary appropriation be charged for the amount of the debt and the related outstanding interest because Parliament did not grant a budgetary appropriation authority for the original expenditure.

The approval process for these write-offs includes the following:

the organization’s internal review process set out in the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994
a Treasury Board submission
an appropriation act (or another act of Parliament) because a source of funds is a precondition for an appropriation

A new budgetary vote must be created in the Estimates in order to write off this debt.

Use this wording to write off non-budgetary debts

Under the provisions of section 25 of the Financial Administration Act, authorize [insert organization name] to write off from its accounts $[insert amount] (including $[insert amount] of capital funds and $[insert amount] of interest) in [insert fiscal year] for [insert purpose].

Use this wording to write off debts resulting from accountable advances and overpayments of salaries, wages or employment-related allowances made to public servants who are currently employed

Under the provisions of the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994, authorize [insert organization name] to write off from its accounts $[insert amount] (including $[insert amount] of capital funds and $[insert amount] of interest) in [insert fiscal year] for [insert purpose].

Note: You also require an authority to include an item in the Estimates to write off these debts.

Forgiveness of a debt

According to subsection 24.1(2) of the FAA, “No debt or obligation referred to in paragraph (1)(a) shall be forgiven unless the amount to be forgiven is included as a budgetary expenditure in an appropriation Act or any other Act of Parliament.” For non-budgetary transactions, a budgetary appropriation must be charged for the amount of the debt and related outstanding interest. Further, a source of funds is required for debt forgiveness.

A debt or a portion of a debt for a non-budgetary transaction may be forgiven under section 24.1 of the FAA. There are no set criteria for determining when such debts may be forgiven, and any and all non-budgetary debts may be submitted for forgiveness. A budgetary transaction where a Crown corporation owes debts to the Crown requires forgiveness under section 24.1.

You must request forgiveness of the initial amount of the debt and the related outstanding interest through a Treasury Board submission. Forgiveness also requires parliamentary approval through legislation, such as an appropriation act (that is, a new budgetary vote must be created in the Estimates). Forgiveness is effected by including the amount to be forgiven in the Main or Supplementary Estimates.

Use this wording to forgive a debt

Under the provisions of section 24.1 of the Financial Administration Act, authorize [insert organization name] to forgive certain debts and accrued interest in the amount of $[insert amount] (including $[insert amount] of capital funds and $[insert amount] of interest) in [insert fiscal year] for [insert purpose].

Note: You also require an authority to include an item in the Supplementary Estimates to write off this debt.

Remission of a debt

Remission of debts owed to the Crown is authorized by section 23 of the FAA. It is applicable to budgetary transactions only.

Debts due to taxes, penalties and associated interest may be remitted by an order-in-council on the recommendation of the appropriate minister. Other debts and associated interest may be remitted by the Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Treasury Board. Where Treasury Board approval is required, you must prepare a Treasury Board submission, which includes a copy of the order-in-council.

An associated Governor in Council submission must be prepared, in accordance with the Process Guide for Governor in Council Submissions (Other than Regulations). The order-in-council and the explanatory note that accompany the Governor in Council submission must state the actual or estimated amount of the debt being remitted, and the justification for the remission. Once the debt remission is approved by the Governor in Council, the order-in-council and explanatory note are published in the Canada Gazette, Part II.

Remissions are granted when collecting the debt would be considered any of the following:

unreasonable
unjust
not in the public interest for any of the following reasons:
- compassion (for example, severe hardship)

equity (for example, unfairness resulting from administrative errors)
administrative ease (for example, anticipation of a change in the law)
policy considerations (for example, unfairness or unintended results)

When the amounts are remitted, no budgetary appropriation is charged because the organization has already incurred expenses in order to generate that revenue. A source of funds is required for debt remission.

Use this wording to remit a debt

Under the provisions of section 23 of the Financial Administration Act, recommend Governor in Council approval of the order-in-council attached to the submission approving the remission of up to $[insert amount] owing to the Crown on loans and accrued interest for [insert purpose].

Waiver of interest or administrative charges

If the debt deletion involves only deleting the related interest or administrative charges, the debt may be waived by your minister under the Interest and Administrative Charges Regulations in certain situations set out in subsections 9(1) and 9(2). Administrative charges may be waived by your minister under subsections 12(1) and 12(2) of the regulations. Treasury Board authority is not required.

No budgetary appropriation is charged since the amounts are generated by normal budgetary expenditures.

Table 1: *Financial Administration Act* (FAA) debt deletion actions
	Write-off		Forgiveness		Remission	Waiver
Transaction type	Budgetary	Non-Budgetary	Budgetary	Non-Budgetary	Budgetary	Budgetary
Authority	Section 25 of the FAA and Debt Write-off Regulations	Subsection 25(2) of the FAA and Debt Write-off Regulations	Section 24.1 of the FAA	Section 24.1 of the FAA	Sections 23 and 24 of the FAA	Interest and Administrative Charges Regulations
Level of approval required for deletion	Departmental	Parliamentary	Parliamentary	Parliamentary	Governor in Council order on recommendations of appropriate minister (taxes, penalties) or the Treasury Board (other debts)	Departmental
Applicability	Applies to all budgetary debts.	Applies to all non-budgetary debts.	Under FAA, section 24.1, budgetary forgiveness applies to budgetary debts owed by a Crown corporation.	Under FAA, section 24.1, non-budgetary forgiveness applies to: a) debts included in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities where forgiveness would require a charge to a budgetary appropriation b) non-budgetary debts owed by a Crown corporation	Under section 23 of the FAA, remission may be applied to debts not covered by the criteria of section 24.1. Interest may be included in the remission. Remission may also be applied to debts already paid.	Applies to budgetary debts for interest and administrative charges.
Effect	The debt is removed from the books of the account, but it is not extinguished. In the case of compromise settlements, the debt is extinguished.	The debt is removed from the books of the account, but it is not extinguished. In the case of compromise settlements, the debt is extinguished.	Debt is removed from the books of the account and extinguished, and the debtor is released from all liability. Forgiveness may be conditional or unconditional. Where forgiveness is conditional, it is deemed not to have been granted if the condition is not fulfilled.	Debt is removed from the books of the account and extinguished, and the debtor is released from all liability. Forgiveness may be conditional or unconditional. Where forgiveness is conditional, it is deemed not to have been granted if the condition is not fulfilled.	Debt is removed from the books of the account and extinguished, and the debtor is released from all liability. Remission may be conditional or unconditional. Where remission is conditional, it is deemed not to have been granted if the condition is not fulfilled.	Debt is removed from the books of the account and is extinguished, and the debtor is released from all liability.
Criteria	Criteria contained in sections 4 and 6 of the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994.	Criteria contained in sections 4 and 6 of the Debt Write-off Regulations, 1994.	Parliamentary discretion as criteria are not specified	Parliamentary discretion as criteria are not specified	Debts may be remitted when collection is deemed unjust, unreasonable or not in the public interest.	Criteria contained in sections 9 and 12 of the Interest and Administrative Charges Regulations.
Reporting	Reported in the Public Accounts of Canada.	Reported in the Public Accounts of Canada.	Reported in the Public Accounts of Canada.	Reported in the Public Accounts of Canada.	Reported in the Canada Gazette, Part II, and the Public Accounts of Canada.	Reported in the Public Accounts of Canada.
Appropriation impacts^{table 1 note *}	Debt deletion does not result in a charge to an appropriation.	Debt deletion results in a charge to a budgetary appropriation.	Debt deletion does not result in a charge to an appropriation.	Debt deletion results in a charge to a budgetary appropriation.	Debt deletion does not result in a charge to an appropriation.	Debt deletion does not result in a charge to an appropriation.
Table 1 Notes Table 1 Note 1 Debt deletions that require a Treasury Board submission require that a source of funds be confirmed. The default source of funds is the organization’s existing reference levels. Return to table 1 note * referrer

Financial authorities for allotments

Temporary frozen allotments

A proposal to establish and ultimately seek the release of a temporary frozen allotment is required if your organization has been directed by the Treasury Board or the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) to withhold spending on a specific initiative until the organization has met one or more conditions. Usually either the sponsoring organization or TBS proposes the establishment of these allotments.

Table 2 should be completed and included as an appendix to a submission to establish or release a frozen allotment.

Note: You can add different columns or rename columns for different expenditures (for example, personnel, other operating, capital, grants or contributions). The frozen allotments exclude charges for employee benefit plans.

Table 2: template for a temporary frozen allotment table

Temporary frozen allotment corresponding to paragraph [insert paragraph number]

[Insert name of organization]

[Insert name of frozen allotment]

Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] Temporary frozen allotment: [insert the sum of the amounts in the Total column]
Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Personnel	Other	Total
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
Note: If the proposal is to release a frozen allotment, this table should show negative amounts.

a) Use this wording to establish a temporary frozen allotment

Provide authority to establish a frozen allotment to be entitled [insert allotment name] in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] (excluding employee benefit plans), if the following condition or conditions are not fulfilled by the next eligible supply period:

[insert first condition];
[insert subsequent condition]; and
[insert last condition].

If this proposal involves personnel, the following applies:

the proposal paragraph also states that the frozen amount excludes employee benefit plans (EBPs)
the specific EBP amount (that is, 27% of personnel costs) that is excluded must be stated

Note: Effective fall 2018, (with the Budget 2019 call letters issued by the Minister of Finance) EBP rates have been updated to 27% for the public service, 44% for Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) members, and 67% for Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members.

If you also wish to seek the Treasury Board’s delegation of its authority to release a frozen allotment, add the wording under b) to the above wording for a) immediately following the conditions.

b) Use this wording to seek delegation of the Treasury Board’s authority to release a temporary frozen allotment

Provide authority to release all or part of this frozen allotment upon confirmation by the [insert “program executive director” or other specified position] that the aforementioned condition or conditions have been met.

Releasing a frozen allotment without delegated authority

In this case, you are required to seek a separate authority using the following wording once the condition or conditions that were previously referred to have been met.

Use this wording to seek the release of a temporary frozen allotment where the Treasury Board has not delegated its authority to release the allotment

Provide authority to release the frozen allotment entitled [insert allotment name] in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] since [insert condition] has been met.

Permanent frozen allotments

A proposal to establish a permanent frozen allotment is required if your organization has been directed by the Treasury Board to permanently withhold spending on a specific initiative that affects the current fiscal year or the next fiscal year. For example, you would seek this authority to move funds (that is, reprofile) in your organization’s reference levels in a given fiscal year to a future fiscal year. The amounts to be included are to be indicated in the “Existing Funding” section of the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure.

In addition, Table 3 should be completed and included as an appendix to a submission to establish a permanent frozen allotment. You can add different columns or rename columns for different expenditures (for example, personnel, other operating, capital, grants or contributions). The permanent frozen allotments exclude charges for employee benefit plans.

Table 3: template for a permanent frozen allotment table

Permanent frozen allotment corresponding to paragraph [insert paragraph number]

[Insert name of organization]

[Insert name of frozen allotment]

Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] Permanent frozen allotment: [insert the sum of the amounts in the Total column]
Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Personnel	Other	Total
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]

Use this wording to establish a permanent frozen allotment

Provide authority to establish a permanent frozen allotment to be entitled [insert allotment name] in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] (excluding employee benefit plans) due to [insert reason].

If the proposal involves personnel, the following applies:

the wording also states that the frozen allotment excludes employee benefit plans (EBPs)
the EBP amount (that is, 27% of personnel costs) must be stated

Special purpose allotments

This type of proposal is required when either TBS recommends or your organization proposes creating a special purpose allotment (SPA). An SPA is used to set aside a portion of an organization’s voted appropriation for a specific program or initiative, thereby prohibiting its use for another program. An SPA is established, for example, when the Treasury Board wishes to impose special expenditure controls.

Any unspent funds remaining at year-end in an SPA are not eligible to be carried forward to the next fiscal year under the TBS operating budget carry-forward guidelines, unless separate Treasury Board approval has been obtained. If such an approval has been obtained, then that amount within the SPA is carried forward and placed in an SPA for the next fiscal year.

Table 4 should be completed and included as an appendix to a submission to establish, increase or reduce an SPA.

Note: Columns can be amended for different expenditure types (for example, personnel, other operating, capital, grants or contributions). These allotments exclude charges for employee benefit plans.

Table 4: template for a special purpose allotment table

Special purpose allotment corresponding to paragraph [insert paragraph number]

[Insert name of organization]

[Insert name of special purpose allotment]

Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] Special purpose allotment: [insert the sum of the amounts in the Total column]
Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Personnel	Other	Total
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]

Use this wording to establish a special purpose allotment

Provide authority to establish a special purpose allotment to be entitled [insert allotment name] in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] (excluding employee benefit plans) upon the next eligible supply period, in order to [insert purpose].

If this proposal involves personnel, the following applies:

the wording also states that the SPA amount excludes employee benefit plans (EBPs)
the specific EBP amount (that is, 27% of personnel costs) that is excluded must be stated

Use this wording to increase or decrease a special purpose allotment

Provide authority to [insert “increase” or “decrease”] the special purpose allotment entitled [insert allotment name] in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name], in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] (excluding employee benefit plans) upon the next eligible supply period, in order to [insert purpose of adjustment].

If this proposal involves personnel, the following applies:

the proposal paragraph also states that the SPA amount excludes employee benefit plans (EBPs)
the specific EBP amount (that is, 27% of personnel costs) that is excluded must be stated

Financial authorities for vote-netted revenue

This section should be used for establishing or modifying vote-netted revenue within your organization.

Parliamentary approval is required for your organization to apply revenues toward related costs incurred for specific activities. Parliament votes the net financial requirements (that is, the estimated total expenditures minus the estimated revenues) for one fiscal year at a time (except for organizations that have parliamentary approval to spend their net financial requirements over two fiscal years). This arrangement permits users to finance a program’s cost, either in whole or in part, while any remainder is financed by other sources of government revenue (that is, appropriations).

Vote-netted revenue authority is provided through subsection 29.1(2) of the Financial Administration Act in conjunction with an organization’s specific vote wording in the annual appropriation acts. Your organization must present a Treasury Board submission to establish a vote-netted revenue arrangement or to add any activities or sources of revenue to an existing vote-netted revenue authority (that is, net vote).

The information required in a submission that seeks Treasury Board approval to establish and use vote-netting will vary. However, the estimated amount of revenue that may be used to offset expenditures needs to be indicated in the “Authorities sought from the Treasury Board” section of the submission and also in the “Adjustments to Vote-Netted Revenue” section in the Cost, Funding Requirements and Source of Funds Table by Estimates Vote Structure spreadsheet.

1a) Use this wording to establish vote-netted revenues

Provide authority to establish vote-netted revenues in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] from [insert activity or sources of revenue] with an offsetting increase to the operating budget.

If there are any elements of revenues collected that do not represent the recovery of expenditures (for example, employee benefit plans) charged against your organization’s vote, the sentence under 1b) should be added to the wording under 1a).

1b) Use this wording for recovery of expenditures not charged against the vote

Furthermore, direct [insert organization name] to record, as non-respendable, non-tax revenue, the recoveries associated with expenditures not charged against the vote.

Note: The estimated amount requested for vote-netted revenue authority excludes the elements of revenues to be collected that relate to expenditures not charged against the vote. Once the Treasury Board has approved the submission, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) will amend your organization’s vote wording in the next Estimates for subsequent approval from Parliament

The amended vote-wording will include the following text:

Operating or program expenditures … and, pursuant to paragraph 29.1(2)(a) of the Financial Administration Act, authority to expend revenues received from … to offset related expenditures incurred in the fiscal year.

When an organization establishes a vote-netted revenue authority for an activity being funded through appropriations, the organization’s reference levels will be reduced as a consequence. This will result in the creation of a frozen allotment in the current year, and a reduction to the vote in future years to reflect that the activity is now funded from revenues rather than appropriations. Consult your program analyst at TBS for further direction.

Modifying the approved amount of vote-netted revenue authority to which the organization can offset expenditures

This section refers to modifications related to an increase or decrease in the amount of revenues to be collected (that is, changes due to volumes). The vote wording in the Estimates is not likely to change for modifications related to an increase or decrease in the amount of revenue to be collected, as long as the activity or source of revenue remains the same; therefore, Parliament’s authority is not required. However, Treasury Board approval is required for these modifications.

The following wording should be included in a Treasury Board submission.

2a) Use this wording to increase or decrease vote-netted revenues

Provide authority to [insert “increase” or “decrease”] vote-netted revenues in [insert organization name] Vote [insert vote number] – [insert vote name] in the amount or amounts of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year]; [insert “and ongoing” if required] from [insert activities or sources of revenue], with an offsetting [insert “increase” or “decrease”] to the operating budget.

If there are any elements of revenues collected that do not represent the recovery of expenditures charged against your organization’s vote, the sentence under 2b) should be added to the wording under 2a).

2b) Use this wording for recovery of expenditures not charged against the vote

Furthermore, direct [insert organization name] to record, as non-respendable, non-tax revenue, the recoveries associated with expenditures not charged against the vote.

Note: The estimated amount requested for vote-netted revenue authority excludes the elements of revenues to be collected that relate to expenditures not charged against the vote.

Financial authorities for revolving funds

As a funding mechanism for certain cost-recovery activities, a revolving fund is a non-lapsing authorization by Parliament to make payments out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, in excess of revenues collected, up to a stipulated limit (for example, the drawdown authority). Generally, revolving funds are suited for activities that:

are large and self-sustaining
operate on a business cycle (usually three to five years)
have identifiable client groups to which full costs can be charged

Revolving funds are not intended to accumulate significant surpluses or deficits over a business cycle.

During a business cycle, all cash surpluses should be accessed before requesting access to the drawdown authority. The drawdown authority is similar to a bank line of credit, and any access to the drawdown must be repaid with interest. If the financial risk is deemed high, the Treasury Board may require a source of funds to guarantee repayment to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

Planned access to these unused authorities should be:

included in the annual multi-year business plan that is required for each revolving fund
submitted to TBS for approval during the Annual Reference Level Update exercise

Any amendment to a revolving fund’s drawdown limit must be approved by the Treasury Board and by Parliament. An appropriation act is required for Parliament to approve the new drawdown limit. TBS will create a new vote with the required wording for inclusion in the appropriation bill.

Use this wording to request an increase or decrease to the drawdown authority for a revolving fund

Provide authority to include an item in Supplementary Estimates for [insert fiscal year] in a new vote for [insert organization name] for the purpose of [insert “increasing” or “decreasing”] the drawdown authority for [insert name of revolving fund] from $[insert amount] to $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal year] [insert “and ongoing” if required], due to [insert reason why your organization requires the adjustment].

Changes to vote wording

You do not need to include a proposal to amend or create the vote wording, if an authority has an effect on your organization’s vote wording in the Estimates (for example, debt write-off, establishment or modification of vote-netted revenue). Once the Treasury Board has approved the related submission, officials at TBS will amend your organization’s vote wording in the next Estimates period for parliamentary approval. You can identify the proposed change to the vote wording in the main body of the relevant Treasury Board submission

Amortizable capital assets and land acquired with new funding

If new funding is included for spending on amortizable capital assets or land, you must complete and append Table 5 to the submission.

In the table, provide the cash profiles of new funding to be used for purchases of land and amortizable capital assets. In addition, for amortizable capital assets, provide the full amortization profile.

If an amortizable capital asset has a salvage value at the end of its useful life, this amount is deducted from the cost of the asset before you calculate amortization amounts. You can show the salvage value in column 4.

For amortizable assets, the cash profile of new funding amount indicated in column 2 should be equal to the amortization profile of new funding amount in column 3 plus the salvage value of amortizable capital assets amount in column 4. The amounts for all relevant assets should be given for each fiscal year and the total amounts should be indicated in the last row.

Table 5: template for a table showing amortizable capital assets and land acquired with new funding
Fiscal year (for example, 2020–21)	Land (cash profile of new funding) (1)	Amortizable capital assets (cash profile of new funding) (2)	Amortizable capital assets (amortization profile of new funding) (3)	Salvage value of amortizable capital assets (4)
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
[Insert fiscal year]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]
Total	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]	$[insert amount]

Note: Add as many rows as required for full profiles to be displayed.

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Transfer payments

Transfer payments are monetary payments or transfers of goods, services or assets that are made on the basis of an appropriation to third parties, including Crown corporations. Transfer payments do not result in the acquisition of any goods, services or assets by the Government of Canada.

This section describes authorities that can be requested from the Treasury Board for managing transfer payments in compliance with the Policy on Transfer Payments and the related Directive on Transfer Payments.

Unless otherwise directed, departments, as defined in section 2 of the Financial Administration Act, are required to obtain Treasury Board approval for the following:

new terms and conditions or funding agreements for grant or contribution programs
terms and conditions or funding agreements for upfront, multi-year transfer payments
exemptions from the Policy on Transfer Payments
exceptions from existing terms and conditions
amendments to terms and conditions or funding agreements, as applicable (if previously approved by the Treasury Board)
a program or financial authority not covered or addressed under a Treasury Board policy, directive or legislation

You may also wish to consult three guidelines that complement the Policy on Transfer Payments and its directive:

Note: The complete terms and conditions must be attached to the Treasury Board submission when the submission relates to:

new terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs
amendments to terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs
approval of a funding agreement
approval of an upfront, multi-year payment

1) Use this wording for new terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs

Approve new terms and conditions for [insert title of grant or contribution program] attached as Appendix [insert letter] to be listed in the Estimates as [insert name to appear in the Estimates].

2) Use this wording for amendments to terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs

Approve the amendment or amendments to the terms and conditions for the [insert “grant” or “contribution”] program [insert title of program] attached as Appendix [insert letter].

In the “Context” section of the submission, the proposed changes should be identified individually or as a whole, depending on the context, with an appropriate rationale to support and explain what is being proposed.

If the amendment to the terms and conditions results in incremental costs that would not otherwise have been incurred under the program, use the following wording to indicate the amount of incremental costs, total program costs, and the source of funds in the “Costs” section of the submission:

The amendment to the terms and conditions of this program will result in incremental yearly costs of $[insert amount], bringing the total yearly anticipated costs to $[insert amount]. The source of funds is the organization’s existing reference levels.

Use the following wording to indicate that the amendment does not result in incremental costs in the “Costs” section:

The amendment to the terms and conditions of this program will not result in incremental costs. Total yearly program costs are $[insert amount], as previously approved by the Treasury Board.

3) Use this wording for approval of a funding agreement

Approve the funding agreement in order to make a [insert “grant” or “contribution”] in the amount of $[insert amount] to [insert name of recipient] under the [insert title of program].

4) Use this wording for approval of an upfront, multi-year payment

Approve the [insert “funding agreement” or “terms and conditions”] in the form of an upfront, multi-year payment to [insert name of recipient or group of recipients] for an amount of $[insert amount], to be listed in the Estimates as [insert name to appear in the Estimates].

Note: Adequate justification must be provided in the “Context” section of the Treasury Board submission when the submission relates to:

approval of an exemption from the Policy on Transfer Payments
approval of an exception from existing terms and conditions
approval to enter into a funding agreement that exceeds a minister’s financial authority

5) Use this wording for approval of an exemption from the Policy on Transfer Payments

Approve the following exemption or exemptions to [identify each section of the policy] of the Policy on Transfer Payments for [insert the title of the program or the title of the grant or contribution].

6) Use this wording for approval of an exception from existing terms and conditions

Approve the exception or exceptions [identify each exception] from the terms and conditions of the [insert title of grant or contribution].

7) Use this wording for approval to enter into a funding agreement that exceeds a minister’s financial authority

Provide approval to [insert “enter into a contribution agreement with” or “make a grant payment to”] [insert name of recipient] for an amount of $[insert amount] under the [insert name of transfer payment program].

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External fees

Consult your program sector analyst at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) early in the process if your organization:

is a department that is listed in schedules I, I.1 and II of the Financial Administration Act (FAA)
plans to recover expenditures or costs through fees or charges from persons or entities that are not listed in those schedules

You should also consult your organization’s legal services early on to determine whether the proposed fees or charges are subject to the Service Fees Actand the Directive on Charging and Special Financial Authorities.

Section 19 of the FAA allows the Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Treasury Board, to set the fees or charges to be paid for:

a service
the use of facilities
licences, permits or other authorizations by regulations

The fees or charges established pursuant to the FAA are subject to the Service Fees Act, unless they have been designated as exempt from the act. When the Governor in Council authorizes a minister to set fees, the authorization is subject to the terms and conditions specified by the Governor in Council. The Statutory Instruments Act applies and the regulatory process, in accordance with the Cabinet Directive on Regulation, must be followed, which includes publication in the Canada Gazette.

Fee-setting authorities, other than the FAA, can also be found in the enabling statutes of various departments. Pursuant to these other authorities, the recommendation or approval of the Treasury Board may also be required. The enabling statutes of some departments authorize a minister to establish external fees and charges without specifying that they be set by a regulation or an order. In these cases, the department is not required to follow the regulatory process; however, these statutes usually require that a notice of the fee or charge be published in the Canada Gazette.

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Contract entry approval

The Treasury Board provides policy direction on federal government contracting to ensure fairness, openness and transparency. Treasury Board approval is required for entry into certain contracts and contractual arrangements. A contract is an agreement between a department or an agency and a private party (that is, a person or a firm) to provide a good, perform a service or carry out a construction. A contractual arrangement is an agreement between a department or agency and a Crown entity (for example, provinces, some Crown corporations, some municipalities) to provide a good, perform a service or carry out a construction.

Treasury Board approval is required for organizations to do the following:

enter into (or amend) a contract or contractual arrangement when the contract value (including all taxes) exceeds the limits set out in Appendix C to the Contracting Policy
create or amend a department’s or an agency’s contracting entry limits in Appendix C, including exceptional contract entry limits
make advance payments if the contract, contractual arrangement or amendment requires Treasury Board approval
obtain an exemption from Treasury Board policies
obtain ratification when a department or agency has not previously obtained Treasury Board approval for entry into a contract or contractual arrangement, and such approval is required
indemnify a proposed contractor
in some instances, enter into a contract or contractual arrangement containing provisions that limit the proposed contractor’s liability
in some instances, take title to intellectual property arising under a contract
establish certain expenses or remuneration in service contracts (applicable only to some organizations and commissions of inquiry, where required by legislation)

Drafting a procurement proposal

Treasury Board approval to enter into or amend a contract does not convey other approvals or authorities to the sponsoring minister. You are to bring separate proposals to the Treasury Board for real property transaction approval, project approval, expenditure authority, and any other necessary approval or authority. You may, however, include all of these in the same Treasury Board submission.

Your organization is to use the “Authorities sought from the Treasury Board” section of the submission to seek Treasury Board approval of contract entry, contract amendments or policy exemptions. In the “Authorities sought from the Treasury Board” section, you should:

provide a brief description of the proposed work in this section
indicate the type of proposal (that is, whether you wish to enter into or amend a contract)
provide the name and address of the contractor and the work description, such as the goods, services or construction being acquired
state the proposed duration of the contract (for a multi-year contract)

When ministers require approval for advance payments, a separate proposal is required. If you are requesting approval of one advance payment, the timing and amount should be presented in the “Authorities sought from the Treasury Board” section. For approval of more than one advance payment, you also need to set out the timing and amounts of the advance payments in the “Costs” section of the submission.

You are to include planned amendments, such as exercising contractor options for additional work, as part of the initial contract value when determining whether a contract exceeds the limits set out in Appendix C to the Contracting Policy.

For contracts that require Treasury Board approval, the value of planned options is included in the submission that seeks approval to enter into the contract. Thus, the total contract entry amount approved by the Treasury Board includes the estimated value of the planned options. Descriptions of when and how contract options will be exercised are included in the main body of the submission.

If the value of an additional or unplanned amendment exceeds the approval limits in Appendix C to the Contracting Policy, your organization is required to seek Treasury Board approval as early as possible. The submission should include information about:

the initial process of awarding the contract
contract governance
the reasons for the unplanned amendment
how the contract is being managed to avoid or mitigate the risk of future unplanned amendments

For a non-competitive procurement, the contract is to be treated as a sole-source contract, and the lower contract entry limits apply. Any proposed contracts with former public servants are analyzed against references in the Contracting Policy.

1) Use this wording to enter into a contract or contractual arrangement

Approve entry into a [insert “competitive” or “non-competitive”] [insert “contract” or “contractual arrangement”] with [insert name of contractor, city, province] to provide [describe goods or service] for [insert name of department or agency] from [insert award date] to [insert end date] at a total cost [insert “not to exceed” or “of up to”] $[insert amount], including $[insert amount] of [insert “GST,^{Footnote 1}” “HST^{Footnote 2}” or other applicable taxes].

2) Use this wording to amend a contract or contractual arrangement

Approve amending a [insert “competitive” or “non-competitive”] [insert “contract” or “contractual arrangement”] with [insert name of contractor, city, province] to cover [describe additional goods or services] for [insert name of department or agency] by extending the end of the contract period from [insert current end date] to [insert new end date], at a total cost not to exceed $[insert amount] (including $[insert amount] of [insert “GST,” “HST” or other applicable taxes]), for which $[insert amount] (including $[insert amount] of [insert “GST,” “HST” or other applicable taxes]) was approved.

3) Use this wording to make advance payments (if the contract or amendment requires Treasury Board approval)

Approve the amount and timing of an advance payment of $[insert amount] on [insert either the “day-month-year” of the advance payment or insert “as detailed in the Costs section”].

4) Use this wording to obtain exemptions from the Contracting Policy

Exempt [specify which proposal is being recommended for exemption] from the Contracting Policy, [insert section number and title].

Drafting a procurement submission

A submission seeking a procurement approval should include the following information:

full identification of the work being contracted, including its relationship to a specific program or project and other associated contracts in order to provide context for the work and indicate whether a further phase may be required
other relevant authorities, such as a prior Treasury Board decision or order-in-council
an explicit statement of the urgency of a submission (if required), including the expiry date of the received bids, or the effect of any delay on your organization’s operations or project coordination
reference to any Treasury Board policies, guidelines or socio-economic factors that impact the proposed contract
whether there was an interdepartmental procurement review and what the results were
whether the contractor has provided a certificate of commitment to implement employment equity
information about the applicability of regulations (for example, the Government Contracts Regulations), trade agreements, or government or Treasury Board contracting policies to the contract, including any exceptions to or derogations from regulations, trade agreements or policies
information about fairness-monitoring measures
details and supporting rationale for the evaluation methodology, criteria and basis of selection
information on the bid evaluation results, including the number of bidders and the relative evaluation results for unsuccessful bidders
information about price negotiation, as applicable, that:
- provides a complete price breakdown
- cites historical prices, profit levels and comparisons
- indicates whether the contract is a firm price contract or a unit price contract
information that identifies the basis of payment, the cost control mechanisms, and the governance and contract administration that will be undertaken
information about the proposed start date, location of the work, delivery schedule and contract completion date
an explanation of why advance payments are required, as applicable
an explanation of risk responses for non-performance, such as a penalty for late delivery

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Investment planning

Investment planning is the process of allocating and reallocating resources, from all sources available to a department, to both existing and new investments in a diligent and rational manner to support program outcomes and government priorities. The investment plan is an output of the investment planning process.

In April 2019, the Treasury Board approved the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes.^{Footnote 3} The Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and its supporting instruments apply to all departments and agencies, including departmental corporations and branches designated as departments for purposes of the Financial Administration Act, unless otherwise excluded by other acts, regulations or orders-in-council.

The policy and its supporting instruments do not apply to the staff and offices listed in paragraph (c) of the definition of “department” found in section 2 of the Financial Administration Act.

Under the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments, the investment plan:

covers at least five years
is submitted to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) at least every three years (except in the case of small departments and agencies, which are no longer required to submit their investment plans to TBS)

If requested by TBS, the plan is to be submitted to Treasury Board ministers for approval of the management principles, processes and practices reflected in the investment plan. TBS’s decision will be based on a number of factors, including:

the significance and risk of your organization’s planned investments
your organization’s management performance as established through appropriate management accountability mechanisms and other monitoring activities
the magnitude of the changes in the planned investment or the capacity to deliver them

Approval of an Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment class

To obtain a project approval limit above $2.5 million, organizations must seek approval of their Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment (OPMCA) class, in accordance with Appendix A to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes. Typically, when an organization seeks Treasury Board approval of an OPMCA class, their investment plan is included in the Treasury Board submission.

A separate paragraph in the Treasury Board submission is needed to seek approval for the OPMCA class. The investment plan should provide the relevant context for the project approval authority limit established by the OPMCA (refer to the assessment tool), since the authority limit provides Treasury Board ministers with an understanding of the organization’s capacity to manage all planned projects. The content of the Treasury Board submission should:

highlight the key elements of the investment plan
demonstrate the organization’s approach to planning, decision-making and governance

This content is the basis for Treasury Board approval of an OPMCA class.

The investment plan should be funded from an organization’s existing reference levels. However, your organization may include unfunded projects that are a priority in your investment plan submission.

In addition, your organization’s investment plan submission can include an authority to fund the project from reference levels if the project is within your organization’s project approval limit (that is, your organization still needs to seek the Treasury Board’s authority to bring the funding into reference levels).

The investment plan is not a vehicle for Treasury Board approval of individual projects, programs, contracts, real property transactions or other activities cited in the plan. Individual projects that exceed an organization’s project approval authority limit, as described in Appendix C to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes, require separate and explicit Treasury Board project approval and expenditure authority before any project funds are expended.

The submission should include the elements of the investment plan that warrant Treasury Board consideration, such as:

a brief summary of the organizational context described in the investment plan
confirmation of the affordability of the investment plan and the sustainability of operations over the planning horizon
a description of the organizational governance and processes for making decisions about resource allocation, highlighting any changes from your organization’s most recent investment plan
a general summary of planned investments
a brief, high-level summary of each of the high-profile, complex and high-risk investments included in the plan
a brief description of the most critical risks identified by the organization in the planning horizon, along with the relevant mitigation strategies
reference to any major project risks that warrant Treasury Board attention

As required by the Treasury Board Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments, the investment plan is to be included as an appendix to the submission. A table of all planned projects and programs above $2.5 million should also be appended to the submission. The table is to include all available Project Complexity Risk Assessment (PCRA) scores, along with total project and non-project costs, timelines and other key details, such as the procurement strategies or options for each (refer to Annex A of the Guide to Investment Planning – Assets and Acquired Services). According to subsection 4.1.6 of the Treasury Board Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments, an update of this table must be submitted annually to TBS.

The OPMCA class being proposed to the Treasury Board is expected to reflect an appropriate capacity for effectively managing all planned projects to achieve project outcomes, while limiting risks and demonstrating value for money and sound stewardship.

The Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments states that deputy heads are responsible for ensuring that their respective organizations consult TBS when determining the appropriate investments to highlight in an investment plan.

For more information on investment planning and the content of investment plans, consult Appendix B to the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and the Guide to Investment Planning – Assets and Acquired Services.

1) Use this wording for approval of an investment plan

Approve the management principles, processes and practices reflected in the [insert organization name] Investment Plan [insert fiscal year] to [insert fiscal year], attached as Appendix [insert letter] for the period ending three years from the date of Treasury Board approval.

2) Use this wording for approval of an Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment class

Approve the [insert organization name] Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment class [insert class number], thereby establishing the [insert organization name] project approval authority limit, for the period ending three years from the date of Treasury Board approval.

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Project approval

Management of projects

In April 2019, the Treasury Board approved the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes.^{Footnote 3}
Government of Canada projects have the following characteristics:

they consist of an activity or series of activities with a beginning and an end
they produce defined outputs and realize specific outcomes in support of a public policy objective, within a clear schedule and resource plan
they are undertaken within specific time, cost and performance parameters

Government projects support organizational mandates and contribute to the expected results of individual organizations. Such projects can also relate to government-wide objectives and horizontal initiatives. The underlying principle is whether the project activity or series of activities would benefit from the application of project management practices. Your organization’s program analyst at TBS can provide further information about what constitutes a project.

Sound project management addresses value for money by controlling the costs, scope and schedule of projects. By seeking to ensure that risks are effectively identified and mitigated, project management contributes to the successful delivery of programs and ensures results for Canadians while demonstrating sound stewardship of public funds.

All departments and agencies subject to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes have a base project approval authority limit of $2.5 million (inclusive of the goods and services tax and the harmonized sales tax). For a department to have a project approval limit above $2.5 million, the Treasury Board must have approved a capacity-based limit in accordance with Appendix A to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes. Under this directive, project approval authority limits are based on:

an organization’s assessed capacity to manage its planned portfolio of projects
the complexity and risk of those individual projects

The Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes states that senior designated officials are responsible for ensuring that their organization’s capacity to manage projects is accurately assessed in order to comply with Appendix A to the directive.

Under the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes, project sponsors are responsible for ensuring the completion of assessments of project complexity and risk in accordance with Appendix B to the directive. TBS also has a responsibility to review assessments of project complexity and risk; an online application is in place to support TBS’s review. Project sponsors are responsible for ensuring that Project Complexity and Risk Assessments (PCRAs) are updated during the life of the project when there are significant changes in risk or complexity. If these changes increase the PCRA level such that it exceeds the organization’s Treasury Board–approved capacity class, you are required to seek approval through a Treasury Board submission.

The project approval limits associated with each approved OPMCA class are set out in Appendix C to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes. The authority to proceed with projects differs from the authority to enter into contracts or to complete real property transactions. For a project that includes a real property transaction and exceeds your organization’s project approval limit, Treasury Board approval is required; a separate real property transaction approval may also be required.

For contracts, Treasury Board approval is required if the value of the contract is above the limits set out in Treasury Board policy. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is normally the contracting authority for large, complex goods and services contracts, which can often represent the major cost of a project.

Information requirements for submissions related to project approval

Project approval

Project approval authority limits provide the threshold above which ministers are to seek project approval and expenditure authority from the Treasury Board. Government organizations normally request project approval when the initial planning and identification phase is complete, but before the project definition phase starts. The initial planning and identification phase, also commonly referred to as the “pre-definition” or “pre-planning” phase, is usually considered to be complete when the organization has developed a project business case that includes an options analysis and recommended option. The initial planning and identification phase would also include:

the development of a project charter
an initial project management plan
a project-gating plan
a procurement plan
a project sponsor appointment letter (where applicable)
a concept case (for digital projects)
a Project Complexity and Risk Assessment (PCRA)
a project brief
a Treasury Board submission
any other plans or documents that TBS may request in support of a submission that seeks project approval and expenditure authority

If the PCRA level of a project is higher than the approved Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment (OPMCA) class of the organization, Treasury Board approval of the project is required.

In providing project approval, Treasury Board ministers agree that:

a program requirement has been identified
there is adequate justification for meeting that requirement through a particular project

Project approval should be obtained before the authority required to expend resources is sought in order to fully define the selected project option.

Project approval or expenditure authority from the Treasury Board does not convey other approvals or authorities to the sponsoring minister. You are to bring separate proposals to the Treasury Board for:

approval of a real property transaction
approval to enter into or amend a contract
any other necessary approval or authority

You are encouraged to include all relevant approvals and required authorities in the same Treasury Board submission.

The project approval proposal in the submission is to include, at a minimum, an indicative cost estimate for the entire project (consult the definitions in Glossary of Terms for Investment Planning and Project Management). Project cost estimates are to include the full costs of all activities and deliverables that are necessary to realize specific outcomes and support public policy objectives, regardless of the source of funds. The cost estimate is expected to include such provisions as the costs of appropriate employee benefit plans for all salaries charged to the project and normal contingencies, such as inflation and foreign exchange. For multi-year undertakings, costs are to be expressed in both constant and current dollars.

Project cost estimates in the project approval proposal include all activities and deliverables from the project definition phase through to and including project close-out. Therefore, project approval proposals are not to include costs that are part of the initial planning and identification phase, such as an initial analysis of possible options. Nor are they to include operations and maintenance costs that will be incurred once the project output is in service. Additional guidance on project costing is available from TBS, and you are encouraged to consult your TBS program sector analyst.

Under the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments, the Treasury Board submission for a project approval needs to establish the project parameters, which include cost, schedule and performance. The submission must include a project brief in an appendix. The requirements for a project brief are described in Appendix E to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes, in accordance with which the brief is to:

contain all the baseline data and information concerning the project
provide a synopsis of the business case, project charter and the project management plan

Additional guidance can be found in the Guide to a Project Brief. The Treasury Board submission should include a summary of key information featured in the project brief.

In addition, a project close-out report is expected at the completion of each project.

Government organizations are encouraged and enabled through policy to consider innovative approaches and solutions for delivering their projects. The project proposal:

is expected to reflect the management framework that best positions the proposed project to achieve its defined outcomes
should ensure that the Treasury Board is appropriately engaged at all key decision points over the planned project’s life cycle

To better position projects to fully meet the business requirements that they are intended to achieve, additional guidance and tools are available:

A Guide to Project-Gating for IT-Enabled Projects
Business Case Guide
Business Case Template
Executive Project Dashboard
Guide to Executive Project Dashboards
The Independent Reviewer’s Handbook
Project Charter Guide
Project Charter Template
Project Plan Template
Concept Case Template

Project expenditure authority

Government organizations are required to seek and secure expenditure authority along with project approval before starting any defined phase of a project. The cost estimate for expenditure authority is to be substantive in nature. Only those phases of a project that have been appropriately defined and costed can be approved.

The total estimated project costs indicated in the Treasury Board submission for project approval may differ in subsequent submissions that seek expenditure authority. If, at the time you request expenditure authority, the estimated project costs significantly exceed the indicative estimate included in the project approval proposal, the options analysis is to be reviewed to ensure that the selected option continues to represent the most cost-effective approach to fulfilling the defined requirements.

Furthermore, under the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes, an amended project approval decision is required when you are seeking expenditure authority if there are any significant changes to the project baseline that was established by the previous project approval. In other words, if you exceed expenditure limits or expect a significant change to anticipated outcomes and benefits, you need an amended project approval.

The “Amended project approval and amended expenditure authority” section further on provides more information on amendments to project decisions. An exception is that the Treasury Board, in its project-approval role, may wish to impose a cap or other constraint on a project. This would force the project to use a design-to-cost approach during the project definition phase.

The following wording is for projects that are divided in two distinct phases: a definition phase and an implementation phase.

1) First submission seeking project approval for the project and expenditure authority for the definition phase

Use this wording for project approval and expenditure authority for the definition phase:

Provide project approval for [insert name of project] at an indicative cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST^{Footnote 1}/HST^{Footnote 2} of $[insert amount]) in order to [insert brief description of the issue or opportunity that the project is addressing]; and
Provide expenditure authority to undertake [insert brief description of activities, deliverables or phase] at a substantive cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]).

2) Second submission seeking expenditure authority for the implementation phase, with a note to ministers regarding project approval

Use this wording for the note to ministers regarding project approval

Note that there have been no significant changes to the project parameters established in the most recent project approval decision, and that the project now has a total substantive^{Footnote 5} cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]).

Use this wording to request expenditure authority for the implementation phase

Provide expenditure authority for the [insert brief description of activities, deliverables or phase] of [insert name of project] at a substantive cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]).

Amended project approval and amended expenditure authority

Under the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments, deputy heads are responsible for ensuring that:

a department’s capacity to manage projects is accurately assessed in order to comply with Appendix A to the Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes
the assessment meets the requirements of the standard

Deputy heads are responsible for ensuring that departments assess the complexity and risk level of all projects estimated to cost more than $2.5 million using the Project Complexity and Risk Assessment (PCRA) tool.

Project sponsors are responsible for providing TBS with relevant information, including PCRAs, to support TBS’s monitoring responsibilities. Project sponsors are also responsible for ensuring that PCRAs are updated during the life of projects when there are significant changes to risk or complexity.

If these changes increase a project’s PCRA level so that it exceeds the department’s Treasury Board–approved capacity class, then a Treasury Board submission is required for project approval. If the project has already received Treasury Board approval, any significant changes to the project baseline require an amended project approval decision or an amended expenditure authority decision, as appropriate, by the Treasury Board. Examples of significant changes include if the total estimated costs exceed expenditure limits or if there is a significant change to the anticipated outcomes and benefits.

If, at the time of a subsequent submission requesting expenditure authority, the estimated project costs significantly exceed the indicative estimates in the project approval proposal, the options analysis is to be reviewed to ensure that the selected option continues to represent the most cost-effective approach to fulfilling the defined requirements. You are encouraged to discuss such changes to a project with your program analyst at TBS as soon as possible.

The following information is to be included in the submission that seeks to amend the applicable Treasury Board decision:

reasons for the proposed amended project approval or amended expenditure authority decision, along with an explanation of what actions have been taken or considered by your organization
Treasury Board approval decisions to date, including any contract approvals, that have led to the currently approved project baseline
a comprehensive explanation of any changes that are required to the cost, schedule, scope, industrial and regional benefits, or other approved parameters and objectives, and to the estimated cash flow (changes to contracts should be referenced where relevant)
reference to a communications plan, if the subject matter is likely to attract public attention that requires a response from the government
an updated project brief

Additional documentation may be requested by TBS as required.

The following wording is for projects that are divided into a distinct definition phase and a distinct implementation phase.

Use this wording for a submission that seeks amended project approval and amended expenditure authority for the implementation phase

Provide amended project approval for [insert name of project] at a revised total substantive^{Footnote 6} cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]) to [insert brief description of the issue or opportunity that the project is addressing]. This represents [insert “an increase” or “a decrease” as applicable] of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]) from the total indicative cost estimate established by the previous project approval decision in [insert month and year]; and
Provide amended expenditure authority to undertake [insert description of activities, deliverables or phase] in support of [insert name of project] at a revised substantive cost estimate of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]). This represents an increase of $[insert amount] (including GST/HST of $[insert amount]) from the total substantive cost estimate established by the previous expenditure authority decision on [insert month and year].

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Real property

The Treasury Board provides policy direction on real property transactions to ensure fairness, openness and transparency. Treasury Board approval is required for entry into certain transactions when:

the value of the property being acquired or disposed of is greater than transaction limits and conditions
policy requirements are not being met
the legislative authority requires Governor in Council approval on the recommendation of the Treasury Board

Real property transactions can be acquisitions or disposals of real property by:

purchase
lease
licence
exchange
gift
easement
expropriation
transfer or acceptance of administration
transfer or acceptance of administration and control

The authority to undertake real property transactions is provided through legislation. You must always:

confirm the legislation under which your minister is required to make a real property transaction
follow any conditions or requirements specified in the legislation

Authority is given specifically in such legislation as the Expropriation Act, the National Capital Act, the Canada National Parks Act, the Nunavut Act, the Canada Wildlife Act and the Broadcasting Act.

If there is no authority under any other act to acquire or dispose of real property, your organization would complete the transaction under the authority of the Federal Real Property and Federal Immovables Act or the Federal Real Property Regulations.

Your minister must seek Treasury Board approval when the value of the transaction exceeds the approval limits and conditions for a real property transaction, or when a transaction does not comply with other policy requirements. Your minister may also request approval for transactions that are under your organization’s limits, but that have risks, sensitivities or complexities that require Treasury Board approval.

Legislation may require that a real property transaction be approved by the Governor in Council. Transactions requiring approval by the Governor in Council may include ones with provinces under the Federal Real Property and Federal Immovables Act. Transactions using the authority of the Federal Real Property and Federal Immovables Actrequire a recommendation from the Treasury Board. In such cases, your organization’s legal services should be consulted to determine the process and proper wording of the order-in-council, and your regulatory affairs analyst should be consulted.

Treasury Board approval of a real property transaction does not convey other approvals or authorities to the sponsoring minister. You are to bring separate proposals to the Treasury Board for:

approval to enter into or amend a contract
approval of a project
expenditure authority
any other necessary approval or authority

You may include all of these proposals in the same Treasury Board submission.

Real property submissions often require that you examine a number of considerations, such as links to your organization’s broader strategies and acquisition or disposition issues, Indigenous interests or obligations, and environmental or heritage factors. These considerations are detailed in Considerations for Real Property Submissions.

Your minister may also seek Treasury Board approval of special transaction approval limits for real property transactions based on your organization’s needs and capacity. When requesting special limits, your submission will include:

an assessment of operational needs
the inherent risks
the sensitivities and complexities of your organization’s typical transactions
the capacity of your organization to manage those transactions

The following Treasury Board real property policies and publications provide guidance on all aspects of real property management:

Real property submissions must also demonstrate compliance with other related Treasury Board policy instruments, such as the following:

Your submission may also be required to demonstrate compliance with other applicable legislation, such as the following acts:

The following are other web pages that can help you prepare real property submissions:

A comprehensive list of document references is provided in the Guide to the Management of Real Property.

1) Use this wording to enter into a lease

Approve entry into a lease with [insert name of lessor] for [insert number] square metres of [insert type or types of space] space at [insert address or location of property] for [insert number of years] years at an annual consideration of $[insert amount per year] and a total consideration of $[insert amount for the full life of the lease including options].

Note: If your submission seeks a lease approval, in the “Costs” section you need to indicate:

the initial fit-up costs (if they are part of the lease)
the base rental costs per year
the total cost of the lease plus option periods, as appropriate

You need to be clear whether the lease price is fixed throughout the lease or is estimated based on utility usage, an escalation clause or other factors.

2) Use this wording for authority to purchase real property

Approve the purchase from [insert name of individual or entity] of [insert description of property] located at [insert address of property, municipality and province] for $[insert amount].

3) Use this wording for authority to sell real property

Approve the sale of [describe property] located at [insert address of property, municipality and province] for $[insert amount] to [insert name of individual or entity].

4) Use this wording for approval to transfer or to accept a transfer of administration and control to or from a province when an order-in-council is required

Recommend to the Governor in Council approval to [insert “transfer the administration and control” or “accept the transfer of administration and control”] [insert “to” or “from”] the Province of [insert name] for $[insert amount] of real property in [insert city and province], described in the attached order-in-council.

5) Use this wording to transfer administration between federal organizations

Approve the transfer of administration of the property located at [insert address of property] from the [insert organization name] to the [insert organization name] for $[insert amount].

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Crown corporation corporate plans

Crown corporations listed under Schedule III, Part I, of the Financial Administration Act (FAA) are required to submit, each year, a corporate plan, operating budget and capital budget for Treasury Board approval. Crown corporations listed under Schedule III, Part II, of the FAA may have to submit only a corporate plan and a capital budget. The Treasury Board submission package includes 10 copies of the plan in both official languages.

The content requirements for corporate plans and budgets are set out in the FAA and in the Crown Corporation Corporate Plan, Budget and Summaries Regulations. In general terms, the corporate plan of a parent Crown corporation must encompass all the businesses and activities, including investments, of the corporation and any wholly owned subsidiaries. More information is available in Guidance for Crown Corporations on Preparing Corporate Plans and Budgets.

Treasury Board can approve the corporate plan, capital budget and operating budget through a single Treasury Board submission.

Use this authority wording

It is proposed that Treasury Board:

Pursuant to subsection 123(1) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the [insert fiscal year] operating budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
Pursuant to subsection 124(1) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the [insert fiscal year] capital budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
Pursuant to subsection 122(1) of the Financial Administration Act and Order in Council P.C. 2018-0536, dated May 11, 2018, approve the corporate plan of [insert Crown corporation] for the [insert fiscal year] to [insert fiscal year] planning period.
Authorize the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to issue a letter informing the [insert title of responsible person] of [insert Crown corporation] of the Treasury Board decision.

Use this wording to request authority to amend corporate plans and budgets

It is proposed that Treasury Board:

Pursuant to subsections 123(1) and 123(4) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the amended [insert fiscal year] operating budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
Pursuant to subsections 124(1) and 124(6) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the amended [insert fiscal year] capital budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
Pursuant to subsections 122(1) and 122(6) of the Financial Administration Act and Order in Council P.C. 2018-0536, dated May 11, 2018, approve the amended corporate plan of [insert Crown corporation] for the [insert fiscal year] to [insert fiscal year] planning period.
Authorize the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to issue a letter informing the [insert title of the responsible person] of [insert Crown corporation] of the Treasury Board decision.

Exceptions

Use this wording to request approval for one year of a corporate plan (for a five-year planning period)

It is proposed that Treasury Board:

Pursuant to subsection 123(1) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the [insert fiscal year] operating budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
Pursuant to subsection 124(1) of the Financial Administration Act, approve the [insert fiscal year] capital budget projected to be in the amount of $[insert amount] for [insert Crown corporation].
It is proposed that Treasury Board, pursuant to subsections 122(1) of the Financial Administration Act and Order in Council P.C. 2018-0536, dated May 11, 2018, approve the portion of the [insert fiscal year] to [insert fiscal year] corporate plan of [insert Crown corporation] relating to the period beginning on [insert day-month-year] and ending [insert day-month-year].
Authorize the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to issue a letter informing the [title of the responsible person] of [insert Crown corporation] of the Treasury Board decision.

Presenting Crown corporation budget information in the Costs section of a submission

The cost of the Crown corporation’s planned operating and capital budgets on a cash basis should be identified in the “Costs” section of the submission, along with the source of funds.

For Crown corporations that do not receive parliamentary appropriations, the source of funds can be identified as revenues. For appropriated or partially appropriated Crown corporations, the source of funds will be a combination of existing funding, new funding or revenues.

If the corporate plan submission also includes authority to incorporate new funding for land or amortizable capital into reference levels, an “amortizable capital assets and land acquired with new funding” table (see Table 5) should be completed and appended to the submission.

For non-appropriated Crown corporations, the following wording can be used in the “Costs” section:

For appropriated or partially appropriated Crown corporations, the following wording can be used in the “Costs” section for new funding for land and capital:

On a cash basis, the total cost is $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year], consisting of $[insert amount] for the operating budget and $[insert amount] for the capital budget. Of this amount, $[insert amount] is sourced from existing reference levels, $[insert amount] is sourced from revenues and $[insert amount] is sourced from the fiscal framework.

The related accrual expenses are:

$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year].

Remaining amortization expenses of $[insert amount] will be incurred over [insert fiscal or calendar year] to [insert fiscal or calendar year].

The total costs of the remaining four years of the corporate plan are:

$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]

The following amounts are funded from existing reference levels:

$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]

The following amounts are funded from revenues:

$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]
$[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year]

New funding of $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year] and $[insert amount] in [insert fiscal or calendar year] is funded from the fiscal framework.

Given that the authority to include new funding for amortizable capital assets and land is being sought from the Treasury Board, the submission would also include an “amortizable capital assets and land acquired with new funding” table (see Table 5) as an appendix.

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Governor in Council approvals

Treasury Board approval of orders-in-council under certain management policies

Since 2001, the Treasury Board can serve as the Cabinet committee advising the Governor General on the approval of orders-in-council for the following management matters:

agreements between the federal, provincial and territorial governments, the federal and territorial governments or between First Nations and the federal government
assets or real property management
some Crown corporation corporate transactions
pension plan benefits for federal employees, which can include regulations

You should consult your Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) program analyst and regulatory affairs analyst to confirm whether a proposal qualifies as one of the above cases. Once confirmed, you can work with your program analyst to prepare the Treasury Board submission, including the necessary order-in-council documentation.

If your organization is required to prepare such an order-in-council, you can prepare both a Treasury Board submission and a Governor in Council submission. The wording for the Governor in Council submission is provided below. Examples of orders-in-council may also be found on the Privy Council Office’s orders-in-council database.

The proposal wording in a Treasury Board submission must be same as the wording used in the order-in-council.

If the legislation enabling the order-in-council requires a recommendation from the Treasury Board to the Governor in Council, the following wording applies.

a) Use this wording for a Treasury Board submission

In addition to the specific program authorities and approvals sought from the Treasury Board:

It is proposed that the Treasury Board recommend that the Governor in Council authorize the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] to [insert required authority]; and
It is also proposed that the Governor in Council authorize the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] to [insert required authority].

b) Use this wording for an order-in-council

[His or Her] Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] and the Treasury Board, hereby [insert required text].

If the legislation enabling the order-in-council does not require a recommendation from the Treasury Board to the Governor in Council, the following wording applies.

a) Use this wording for a Treasury Board submission

In addition to the specific program authorities and approvals sought from the Treasury Board, it is also proposed that the Governor in Council authorize the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] to [insert required authority].

b) Use this wording for an order-in-council

[His or Her] Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of [insert department or portfolio], hereby [insert required text].

Examples of orders-in-council may be found on the Privy Council Office’s orders-in-council database.

Treasury Board recommendation of orders-in-council

An order-in-council for matters other than those covered in the “Treasury Board approval of orders-in-council under certain management policies” section may require the recommendation of the Treasury Board to the Governor in Council according to the legislation enabling the order. In these cases, both a Treasury Board submission and a Governor in Council submission are prepared. The Governor in Council can also request that the Treasury Board approve related program authorities, such as funding or terms and conditions. The Treasury Board submission is sent to the Treasury Board Submission Centre, while the Governor in Council submission is sent to Privy Council Office’s Orders in Council Division. The two groups work together to seek the required approvals.

a) Use this wording for a Treasury Board submission

In addition to the specific program authorities and approvals sought from the Treasury Board, it is proposed that the Treasury Board recommend that the Governor in Council authorize the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] to [insert required authority].

b) Use this wording for an order-in-council

[His or Her] Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of [insert department or portfolio] and the Treasury Board, hereby [insert required text].

Examples of orders-in-council may be found on the Privy Council Office’s orders-in-council database.

In some cases, program authorities may be required from the Treasury Board in relation to proposals that relate to a Governor in Council submission, but where the Treasury Board does not need to recommend the order or regulation to the Governor in Council. In these cases, the Treasury Board submission is sent to the Treasury Board Submission Centre, while the Governor In Council submission is sent to the Privy Council Office’s Orders in Council Division, who work together to seek the required approvals. The “Context” section of the related Treasury Board submission may reference the related order-in-council (for example, for a regulation) for information purposes only.

If your organization wishes to bring forward an order-in-council that does not require a Treasury Board submission, consult with your organization’s regulatory affairs analyst at TBS.

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Non-delegated organization and classification of executive positions

Treasury Board approval is required for an organization to increase its total baseline of EX-04 and EX-05 positions or to increase the number of EX-05 positions in its approved EX-04 and EX-05 baseline.

You are expected to provide your submission and supporting documentation (for example, job descriptions, classification rationales and organizational charts) to your TBS program analyst, who will consult with the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer.

1) Use this wording for approval to establish a baseline

Approve, effective [insert date], the establishment of a new baseline for [insert organization] consisting of [insert number] EX-04 positions and [insert number] EX-05 positions.

2) Use this wording for approval to increase a departmental baseline

Approve, effective [insert date], the following changes to the [insert organization] baseline:

an increase of [insert number] EX-05 positions; and
an increase of [insert number] EX-04 positions, resulting in a new departmental baseline of [insert number].

Footnotes

Footnote 1

GST = goods and services tax

Return to footnote 1 referrer

Footnote 2

HST = harmonized sales tax

Return to footnote 2 referrer

Footnote 3

The new policy and directive replaced the following instruments:

Policy on Investment Planning: Assets and Acquired Services
Policy on the Management of Projects
Policy Framework for the Management of Assets and Acquired Services
Procurement Review Policy
Standard for Organizational Project Management Capacity
Standard for Project Complexity and Risk

Return to footnote 3 referrer

Footnote 4

In this wording, the total cost of the project is “substantive” as all cost estimates are now substantiated.

Return to footnote 4 referrer

Footnote 5

In this wording, the total cost of the project is “substantive” because it assumes that the definition phase of the project was successful in fully defining the implementation phase of the project.

Return to footnote 5 referrer

Page details

Date modified:: 2020-11-25

Commonly Sought Authorities

Financial management authorities

Financial authorities through estimates votes

Adjustments to reference levels

Use this wording to request authorities to adjust reference levels

Accommodation premium

Amount allocated for Shared Services Canada central earmark authority

Transfers between votes (within or between organizations)

Use this wording to transfer funds between votes

Temporary access to Treasury Board Vote 5 – Government Contingencies

Deletion of debt owed to the Crown

Debt write-off

Use this wording to write off non-budgetary debts

Use this wording to write off debts resulting from accountable advances and overpayments of salaries, wages or employment-related allowances made to public servants who are currently employed

Forgiveness of a debt

Use this wording to forgive a debt

Remission of a debt

Use this wording to remit a debt

Waiver of interest or administrative charges

Table 1 Notes

Financial authorities for allotments

Temporary frozen allotments

a) Use this wording to establish a temporary frozen allotment

b) Use this wording to seek delegation of the Treasury Board’s authority to release a temporary frozen allotment

Use this wording to seek the release of a temporary frozen allotment where the Treasury Board has not delegated its authority to release the allotment

Permanent frozen allotments

Use this wording to establish a permanent frozen allotment

Special purpose allotments

Use this wording to establish a special purpose allotment

Use this wording to increase or decrease a special purpose allotment

Financial authorities for vote-netted revenue

1a) Use this wording to establish vote-netted revenues

1b) Use this wording for recovery of expenditures not charged against the vote

Modifying the approved amount of vote-netted revenue authority to which the organization can offset expenditures

2a) Use this wording to increase or decrease vote-netted revenues

2b) Use this wording for recovery of expenditures not charged against the vote

Financial authorities for revolving funds

Use this wording to request an increase or decrease to the drawdown authority for a revolving fund

Changes to vote wording

Amortizable capital assets and land acquired with new funding

Transfer payments

1) Use this wording for new terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs

2) Use this wording for amendments to terms and conditions for grant or contribution programs

3) Use this wording for approval of a funding agreement

4) Use this wording for approval of an upfront, multi-year payment

5) Use this wording for approval of an exemption from the Policy on Transfer Payments

6) Use this wording for approval of an exception from existing terms and conditions

7) Use this wording for approval to enter into a funding agreement that exceeds a minister’s financial authority

External fees

Contract entry approval

Drafting a procurement proposal

1) Use this wording to enter into a contract or contractual arrangement

2) Use this wording to amend a contract or contractual arrangement

3) Use this wording to make advance payments (if the contract or amendment requires Treasury Board approval)

4) Use this wording to obtain exemptions from the Contracting Policy

Drafting a procurement submission

Investment planning

Approval of an Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment class

1) Use this wording for approval of an investment plan

2) Use this wording for approval of an Organizational Project Management Capacity Assessment class

Project approval

Management of projects

Information requirements for submissions related to project approval

Project approval

Project expenditure authority

1) First submission seeking project approval for the project and expenditure authority for the definition phase

2) Second submission seeking expenditure authority for the implementation phase, with a note to ministers regarding project approval

Amended project approval and amended expenditure authority

Use this wording for a submission that seeks amended project approval and amended expenditure authority for the implementation phase

Real property

1) Use this wording to enter into a lease

2) Use this wording for authority to purchase real property

3) Use this wording for authority to sell real property

4) Use this wording for approval to transfer or to accept a transfer of administration and control to or from a province when an order-in-council is required

5) Use this wording to transfer administration between federal organizations

Crown corporation corporate plans

Presenting Crown corporation budget information in the Costs section of a submission

Governor in Council approvals

Treasury Board approval of orders-in-council under certain management policies

a) Use this wording for a Treasury Board submission