Project Grant Program

The Project Grant Program is CIHR's core investigator-initiated competition under the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canada's federal health research agency. It supports work across biomedical, clinical, health systems and services, and population health research, and it stays open to applicants at any career stage. In practice, it is the main route for broad health research that can run from discovery through commercialization, with applications moving through ResearchNet and a host institution. CIHR uses this program for open competition rather than a narrow topical call. Priority announcements change from year to year, but the program also reaches global health, Indigenous health under TCPS2 Chapter 9, randomized controlled trials, commercialization, and interdisciplinary projects. The current cycle keeps a registration step before the full application, with Spring 2026 registration due 2026-02-04, the full application due 2026-03-04, notice of decision expected on 2026-07-22, and funding starting 2026-10-01. The strongest fit is a team with a clear question, a credible host institution, and a proposal that can stand up to external review on methods and significance. Applicants do not need to force their work into a narrow theme, but they do need to show why it matters to Canadian health research and how the named institution will carry it. The Foundation Grant Program was consolidated into this route, so the Project Grant now anchors CIHR's investigator-initiated portfolio.

Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.