Prepare to apply

What is your organization's legal name? The legal name is usually:

• the name on your registration with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) or provincial/territorial equivalent, or
• the name used on funding cheques, bank accounts, etc.

What is the operating (or common) name of your organization (if it differs from the legal name)?

State the year your organization was established.

Choose one of the following:

• Not-for-profit
• Private Sector
• Public Sector

Select the most appropriate category from the following based on what you chose in Question 4.

• Not-for-profit sector
• Local community, charitable, or voluntary
• Indigenous organizations
• Private (businesses with up to 99 full time equivalent employees)
  • Private sector (businesses, etc.)
  • Businesses (incorporated or unincorporated)
• Public
  • Municipal governments
  • Territorial governments 

There is a limit to the number of applications organizations may submit under this CFP. For each unique 9-digit CRA business or registration number, organizations may only submit one application.

For the process where multiple applications with the same 9-digit CRA business or registration number are submitted, The Department will only review the first application received.

If you are not already a registered Grants and Contributions Online Services (GCOS) user, you will be required to provide a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) document showing your valid business number that is no more than 2 years old.

State the primary address of your organization. The primary address is usually the head or main office.

State "yes" or "no" to the question of whether your mailing address is the same as the primary address. If no, state the mailing address of your organization.

Describe the main activities of your organization.

Ensure that you select the target group(s) that best aligns with your organization’s mandate or purpose (you can select more than one).

• Select all groups
• Seniors
• Individuals experiencing homelessness
• Youth
• Black people
• Women
• Newcomers
• Racialized People
• 2SLGBTQI2
• Persons with disabilities
• Low income
• Remote/rural
• Official language minority communities
• Indigenous peoples:
  • First Nations
  • Inuit
  • Metis
  • urban/non-affiliated
• Other: specify
• Not applicable

Who is the main contact person for the proposed project? Provide the contact information for the person who will be ESDC’s primary contact person in respect to your application for funding.

This person must be available for questions during the review process.

Note that this email address will be used for all correspondence.

If the Department cannot reach the main contact, who else can the Department contact? Provide the person’s full name, telephone number where the Department can reach them during business hours and their email address.

This person must be available for questions during the review process.

Note that this email address will be used for all correspondence.

If "Yes", complete the fields for each amount owing. The Department will not reject your application for this reason. However, you must provide detail as to the type of debt and the arrangements you have for repayment.

Answering Yes will not make your application ineligible. Though, you must provide details about the type of debt owed.

If you have a payment plan in place to repay the debt, check ‘Yes’ under question 19, otherwise check ‘No’. You may be asked to provide the current arrangements for repayment during the screening of your application.

Give a short title that describes your project.

State the planned start and end dates of your project. The maximum duration is 24 months and your project should be ready to start in the winter of 2025.

The Department will notify you in writing of the outcome of the review of your application. You cannot begin any of the proposed activities or incur any expenses until the approval of your project. As well, both you and the Department must sign a funding agreement. Do not assume any commitment until the signing of the funding agreement. If you purchase anything for the project after the approval but before the signing of the Agreement, you do so at your own risk.

Please enter the amount you are requesting from ESDC for your proposed project from the information provided on the Total Estimated Costs summary sheet from the EAF small projects calculator.

This amount must match the amount indicated in the EAF small projects calculator and cannot exceed $125,000, which is the maximum funding amount for this call for proposals.

In 500 words or less, you must describe how your project will improve accessibility, remove barriers, and enable persons with disabilities to participate in and contribute to their community and/or the labour market. Please include the following points in your project summary:

• How will your project increase the overall accessibility of the facility and access for persons with disabilities to community spaces and / or workplaces?
• Are there other accessible features in the space and have you considered a barrier-free path of travel throughout the facility? Consult this flowchart for information on barrier-free paths of travel.
• How will your project benefit persons with disabilities and improve their inclusion in your community or workplace?

In 500 words or less, describe the need for your project and why you are applying for funding through the Enabling Accessibility Fund. You must explain:

• gaps in services, programs or employment opportunities for persons with disabilities in your community; and
• the current barriers to accessibility and safety that your project will address for persons with disabilities in your community.

Describe, in full detail, the proposed project activities (flat rate, non-flat rate or a combination of the two). These must be broken into clear steps. Explain the timeframes involved in completing each step.

Project activities are the steps you will take to meet your goals. They should be specific, measurable, realistic and relevant.

For example:

State where your project activities will be taking place. Will they be at the organization’s main address and/or at a different location? If ‘yes’ to a different location, include the address for every other location.

The Department commits to enhance the vitality of the English and French linguistic minorities in Canada. The Department supports and assists their development and foster the full recognition and use of both English and French in Canadian society. Official language minority communities are English-speaking communities established within the province of Québec and French-speaking communities established outside the province of Québec.

Answering "No" to this question will not invalidate your application.

If your proposed project involves official language minority communities, you should answer "Yes" to this question. Complete the question following the instructions in the application.

Indicate the vulnerable groups your project is targeting, if applicable, please select all that apply.

When prompted in GCOS, click the link to access the online EAF small projects calculator and follow the instructions. Please note the following:

• the questions with an asterisk (*) are mandatory
• do not use your browser's forward and back buttons to navigate. Instead use:
  • the ‘Continue' button at the bottom left of the screen to move from one screen to the next, or
  • the ‘Back' button at the bottom right of the screen to return to a previous screen.
• the progress bar at the top of each page indicates the progression of your input into this EAF small projects calculator
• please be aware that this questionnaire will prompt you if there is no activity after 60 minutes. If you respond to the prompt, the session will continue. Otherwise, the session will end, and all data will be lost.
• if you would like to save the session and continue later, you can select ‘Save and Continue Later' in the top right corner of the screen. You will then be prompted to enter your email address and password. Please note that your session will only be saved for a maximum of 14 calendar days from the time that you select ‘Save and Continue Later'.

Select the appropriate project category that best describes your project. Tell us if you want funding for:

• ramps
• accessible washrooms
• accessible doors
• elevators
• accessible lifts
• pool lifts
• multi-sensory rooms and stations
• accessible playgrounds
• accessible parking
• accessible drop-off areas
• accessible electric vehicle charging stations
• other activities

These 11 activities are considered flat rate. This means that the EAF small projects calculator will generate amounts based on your selections. For all measurements, please round to the nearest foot.

You can select one or more project activities as applicable. More options will appear based on your selections and the estimated project cost will appear for flat rate activities. Please provide any information that could impact the project's cost in the additional information section. It is important to select all relevant components in order to see all options related to your project activities.

For non-flat rate activities, you must also enter the amount provided in the quote (before taxes), that you received from a certified professional into the EAF small projects calculator under "other activities".

Once all information is entered in the EAF small projects calculator, the estimated eligible costs of your project will be populated. The amount of leveraging required for your project will also be calculated.

For more information on flat rate, please refer to the EAF flat rate information sheet.

A flow chart is available to help you choose the accessibility project that is right for your organization. Guidance on safety and security items is also available. Safety and security items are considered non-flat rate activities and will require a quote from a certified professional.

ESDC will validate all of the information you provide and revise it as necessary. Please only select options that apply to your project. Errors provided in this calculator may affect the amount of funding you could be eligible to receive.

If you are requesting funding for other activities, you must provide one quote for each project activity.

For all project activities, The Department recommends that you consult a certified contractor to scope your project. This can help reduce unexpected costs. The Department also recommends that you have your own contingency budget of around 20% of your total project costs to offset unexpected costs. Contingency is not an eligible project cost for EAF funding.

Examples of eligible costs include:

• professional fees such as architects, engineers, construction consultants, and contractors
• costs of the construction or the renovation of a building, including materials, supplies and labour (not applicant employee wages)
• costs of the purchase or rental of tools, equipment or machinery necessary to complete the project
• costs related to information technology devices that have accessibility features integrated, such as tablets, cellphones, laptops and computers, as long as they contribute to building accessibility
• costs related to the purchase of universal accessible or ergonomic accessories and furniture
• modifying a website to make it accessible for persons with disabilities (excludes accessibility widgets or overlays and plug-ins)
• other costs approved as part of the funding agreement with ESDC

Examples of ineligible costs (not limited to):

• costs incurred before the signing of the agreement
• contingency funds for the project
• costs for the purchase of furniture or equipment that does not include features to increase accessibility for persons with disabilities. For example:
  • lockers
  • Interac terminals
  • defibrillators
• costs linked to constructing, renovating, or retrofitting:
  • Government of Canada or Provincial properties
  • publicly funded hospitals or health care facilities
  • publicly funded schools (or on school grounds) with the exception of licensed Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) centres located in public schools as long as the activities are for the sole purpose of the ELCC, or
  • private homes or dwellings
• purchase or retrofit of motor vehicles
• training costs associated with the project
• routine repairs and maintenance costs, or general costs (overhead, administrative, operating costs and amenities)
• any expenditure for which the recipient or a contracted recipient is eligible for a rebate (i.e., tax rebates)
• expenditures of land or any interest therein, and related expenditures
• financing charges and interest expenditures
• legal fees
• cost of consultation and preparation of the project proposal
• cost associated with feasibility, planning (including sustainability plans) and marketing studies, including environmental assessments
• costs related to the research and the development of a technology
• costs related to the commercialization, the marketing and the promotion of a product or a service
• employee salaries and benefits
• operational costs of an organization (i.e., rent, utilities)
• landscaping for esthetic purposes

ESDC has developed an online fillable EAF small projects calculator to determine the amount of funding that you may be eligible to receive. The EAF small projects calculator provides ESDC with the necessary information to assess the budget for your project. It is mandatory for all organizations to complete it.

The maximum amount of funding requested for your project from ESDC is $125,000. If your total project costs are above $125,000, your organization is responsible for assuming all costs in excess of $125,000. If applicable, you must provide the funding source(s) in Question 31. ESDC will request verification of the additional sources of funding at the signing of the agreement.

Flat rate costing is available for ramps, accessible washrooms, accessible doors, elevators, accessible lifts, pool lifts, accessible playgrounds, multi-sensory rooms and stations, accessible parking, accessible drop-off areas, accessible electric vehicle charging stations. You do not require external quotes for these project activities.

For project activities that do not qualify for flat rate costing, you must provide an external quote from a certified or professional contractor. If you cannot obtain an external quote, you will need to provide an explanation of your estimated project costs. You can list these project activities in the "other activities" section of the EAF small projects calculator. Please ensure to separate the total into the pre-tax amount and the amount of tax, as specified in the calculator.

If you are aware of exceptional circumstances that result in your project costs varying from the flat rates in the EAF small projects calculator, please provide a justification and a quote to support your costs. Please outline these details in Question 32.

For information on the flat rate costs, accessibility requirements and specifications, please consult the flat rate information sheet.

Complete the question following the instructions in the application.

If you are getting a cash contribution from another source, tell us how much.

It will be in this section in GCOS that there will be a link to access the online EAF small projects calculator. Please read the section below before accessing the EAF small projects calculator and follow the instructions to determine the cost of your project.

The leveraging requirement is dependent on the organization type and is either 0% for exempt organizations or 25% of the funding request for all other applicants. All leveraging is in the form of cash only.

Exempt - No leveraging required (0%):

• Organizations located in the territories (Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut)
• Indigenous organizations: for the purpose of this CFP, includes organizations who specifically represent and specifically serve those who self-identify as a First Nations, Inuit, Métis Nation citizens, or non-affiliated Indigenous persons
• Rural and remote organizations: based on the organization's project location (defined as Region 4 or 5 as per the searchable EAF Region tool)
• Shelters providing services for persons who are experiencing homelessness and/or violence
• Food banks and emergency meal service organizations
• Charities that offer second hand clothing (e.g., clothing banks, the snowsuit fund)

Minimum 25% leveraging required for:

• all other eligible organizations not listed above.

Other sources of funding must relate to eligible project costs and must come from sources other than federal government but can include funding from the applicant's own organization.

All other sources of funding must be in-cash only and will be required to be confirmed and in hand at the time of the signing of the agreement.

The combined contributions from all levels of government and/or other sources must not exceed 100% of eligible costs.

If you cannot provide a cost estimate, use this question to provide a rationale to explain why one cannot be provided and how you estimated your project costs.

If you are aware of exceptional circumstances that result in your project costs varying from the flat rates in the EAF small projects calculator, please provide a justification and a quote to support your costs.

Please check the appropriate box in the form.

Please check the appropriate box in the form.

Please check the appropriate box in the form.

Please check the appropriate box in the form.