Business Scale-up and Productivity in British Columbia

The program is not currently open for new Expressions of Interest. Please check back for upcoming dates to submit Expressions of Interest.

The deadline to submit Expressions of Interest (EOI) for BSP was Sept 22, 2023. Please check back for upcoming dates on the next intake of Expressions of Interest.

Pacific Economic Development Canada (PacifiCan) supports innovation, business growth and community economic development in British Columbia.

PacifiCan’s goals are:

  • quality jobs for British Columbians
  • competitive industry clusters
  • globally successful businesses
  • growth that includes rural, Indigenous and underrepresented communities

PacifiCan makes strategic investments in growing companies through its Business Scale-up and Productivity (BSP) program, in both established sectors creating value now and emerging sectors growing quickly. We are working to strengthen British Columbia’s position as a domestic and international leader in these sectors.

BSP supports high-growth* businesses that are scaling up and producing innovative goods, services or technologies. It offers interest-free, repayable funding to incorporated businesses.

For information on other available business support, please visit Innovation Canada.

*A high growth business can be defined as any for-profit company that has notable and/or consistent revenue increases year-over-year. Typically, this means an increase of at least 20% year-over-year.

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Eligibility

The BSP program is open to incorporated high-growth businesses that have been operating in British Columbia for a minimum of 2 years. Preference may be given to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with less than 500 full-time employees (FTEs).

Businesses must meet the following mandatory criteria:

Note that preference may be given to proposals with a demonstrated focus on:

Eligible costs

Up to 50% of eligible project costs may be requested from PacifiCan:

Incremental costs essential to the project. For example:

Ineligible costs

Costs deemed unreasonable, non-incremental and/or not directly related to project activities, for example:

Donations, dues and membership fees are ineligible.

Expected results

PacifiCan is looking to support projects that have a viable plan to produce strong economic outcomes.

Applicants must quantify, substantiate and later report on the following expected results:

PacifiCan is working to improve the economic participation of Indigenous people, women and youth.

Applicants are encouraged to report on efforts to support inclusiveness. Refer to the Government of Canada’s Inclusive Innovation Agenda

When to submit an expression of interest

The Business Scale-up and Productivity program will be accepting Expressions of Interest from July 14, 2023 at 12:00 pm PST until September 22, 2023, at 12:00 pm PST.

Note: Expressions of Interest (EOI) should have a project start date of April 1, 2024. However in exceptional circumstances, Pacifican may consider a start date as early as the date the EOI is received.

After the close of the intake, PacifiCan will invite selected companies to submit a full application for funding consideration. During this process you may wish to check for updates on the status of your EOI in the application portal.

PacifiCan will accept only 1 EOI per business for each intake. In addition, businesses will be limited to 1 successful application per year. A maximum of $5 million can be provided per project and a maximum of $10 million to any 1 organization across multiple projects. Companies that have not been invited to submit an application will not be automatically considered in subsequent intakes. Submission of a new EOI in a future intake will be required.

How to submit an expression of interest

  1. Thoroughly review the BSP EOI Help Guide before submitting. We strongly recommend that you download or bookmark the guide now for reference while completing the EOI form.
  2. Prepare the following mandatory documents to submit along with your EOI:
    • financial statements for the past 2 years, as well as interim financial statements for at least the last 6-month period
    • business plan and other documents describing the proposed project, your company and its management team, and how it meets the high-growth definition 
    • confirmation of other funding sources ( such as bank statements, unused portion of lines of credit, official letters of intent, funding agreements, signed term sheets):
      • funding provided by applicant:
        • current bank statements detailing existing cash balances or the unused portion of lines of credit
      • funding provided by third-party sources:
        • official letters of confirmed/conditional funding
        • funding agreements
        • signed term sheets

Note that we will not accept the following as confirmed funding:

Note that an export plan is required for projects that involve export orientation. An export plan is not required for the EOI, but is required for the full application. For more information about how to develop export plans consult the following:

After submitting an expression of interest

Invitation to apply

EOIs with the strongest merit and alignment with program objectives, priority areas and significant economic benefit, will be invited to complete a full application and undergo detailed assessment.

Funding decisions

Funding decisions will be communicated within approximately 90 business days of receiving a complete funding application and any additional information required by the department to complete its due diligence.

Guides and help

Assessment process

Applications will be evaluated on their ability to achieve the BSP objectives and on their relative strengths in the following areas:

Although PacifiCan may engage companies directly on outstanding questions or issues, applicants are advised to submit a complete and thorough application.

Not all applications undergoing a detailed assessment will receive an offer of funding.

A technical assessment may be conducted by National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) for projects using novel technology.

Sustainable Development Technologies Canada and Clean Growth Hub may be consulted on projects related to clean technology and clean resources.

Elements of a strong project

Funding disbursement

PacifiCan provides funding based on submitted claims.

PacifiCan will reimburse based on approved portion (in other words 50%) of eligible project costs that have been incurred and paid. Claims may be submitted up to 4 times per year.

Other funding considerations

Repayment terms

Contacts

For additional BSP information, contact us directly at 1-888-338-9378 or at info@pacifican.gc.ca.

BSP is part of the national Regional Economic Growth through Innovation program.

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