Collaborative Science, Technology and Innovation Program

The Collaborative Science, Technology and Innovation Program is the National Research Council Canada’s main transfer-payment platform for collaborative research with external partners. It sits under the NRC’s federal mandate and is administered by the National Program Office, which uses the program to fund work carried out jointly with NRC researchers across the agency’s research centres. CSTIP supports non-repayable grants and contributions and typically covers up to 75% of eligible project costs, with indirect costs generally capped at 10%. It is open to Canadian SMEs with fewer than 500 employees, academic institutions, not-for-profits, provincial, territorial and municipal governments, and Indigenous organisations. The program feeds three downstream routes: Challenge programs, Cluster Support programs, and the Ideation Fund. The program is built for projects that need an NRC collaborator, shared technical delivery, and a clear transfer-payment structure rather than a standalone grant competition. Its strongest fit is mission-oriented R&D with matched project partners, national public-value goals, and a path to agreements that define IP ownership, project governance, and eligible spending from the start.

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