If you are applying for the Regional Tariff Response Initiative, every regional development agency asks for the same four things: proof that tariffs have hit your business, two years of financial statements, your most recent interim statement, and a cash flow forecast that supports your request for RTRI funding. The seven agencies deliver RTRI differently. The paperwork mostly does not change.

That matters because most of the time a manufacturer loses on an RTRI file, it is not eligibility. It is a thin evidence file, statements that do not match the numbers on the form, or a forecast that reads like a pitch instead of a cash flow model. RTRI itself is sized to matter: up to $2M in non-repayable liquidity assistance, up to $1M in non-repayable funding for an RTRI pivot project, and up to $20M in total support once repayable funding is included, from a $3.45B national envelope. None of that helps if the file underneath it is not complete.

This RTRI application guide covers the four things every region wants to see, what counts as proof and what does not, and where the seven agencies differ enough to change how you prepare.

What RTRI Actually Asks You To Prove

Every RTRI application, in every region, centres on the same question: can you show, with records rather than description, that tariffs have hurt your business, and that you know exactly how you would use the money? The eligibility test is national, and two things come first. Your business needs at least $1M in revenue in one of its last two fiscal years, and it needs to have been viable, meaning solvent and operating normally, before the tariffs hit. It also has to be incorporated and for-profit, and able to point to a direct or indirect tariff impact: operating in a sector hit by Section 232 or 338 tariffs (including as a supply chain partner to an affected exporter), having 25% or more of revenue in goods that ultimately reach the US, or showing significant cost increases, supply disruption, or lost revenue tied to tariffs. Most manufacturers can show that impact in more than one way, and we work through which ones fit on the first call.

Meeting that test makes you eligible to be assessed. It does not get you funded. What gets you funded is the file.

Proof of the Tariff Impact & What Counts as Proof

A paragraph describing pressure is weak on its own. A record is much stronger. The records that carry the most weight are ones you can pull from your own files:

  • A sales report for your key US customers, comparing the year before tariffs with the year after
  • An email or letter from a supplier announcing a price increase because of tariffs, and the invoices that show it
  • Your customs broker’s invoices or statements showing the duties you were actually charged (duties are not an eligible liquidity cost, but they are strong proof of impact)
  • Emails from US customers cutting or cancelling orders, or moving to another supplier
  • Payroll records showing layoffs, reduced hours, hiring freezes, or EI Work-Sharing uptake tied to the slowdown
  • Documentation that you are a supply chain partner to a business that was hit directly, if your own exposure is indirect

Tip: Start with what you already have (e.g., a supplier’s price increase email, your broker’s duty invoices, a sales report for your top US customers), then build the story around them. A supplier’s price increase notice carries more weight than a paragraph explaining that costs went up. Where the paper trail is thin, a specific account from the owner (which customer, which product, when, and how much) still counts.

Financial Statements and the Interim Statement

Warehouse worker consulting an RTRI application guide document beside a forklift

Every region asks for the same core set: annual financial statements for your last two fiscal years, plus your most recent interim statement. The annual statements must be externally prepared, with an audit or review engagement preferred, and must include a balance sheet, an income statement, a cash flow statement, and notes.

The interim statement is the one exception: it can be internally prepared if it is the most recent one. Keep the revenue figures on your application identical to what is on the statements you attach. Agencies cross-check the two, and a mismatch stalls the file before anyone looks at your project.

You will also need your incorporation documents (articles of incorporation and any amendments, or your constating documents and by-laws), and basic information about ownership and management.

Cash Flow Forecasts and Project Budgets

Every agency asks for a cash flow forecast with a liquidity request. Some want it with the application (FedDev Ontario and PacifiCan both list it as mandatory), and others ask for it during the review. We recommend building a 2-3 year cash flow forecast either way, as one forecast for the whole business with any pivot project’s costs on their own lines. Agencies sometimes send their own template before or after you submit, so expect to move your numbers into their format. Beyond the forecast, what you prepare depends on which stream you are applying to.

For liquidity assistance, the amount starts from what you already spend, not from a sales forecast. Agencies take your average monthly eligible payroll over the last 12 completed months and fund up to 50% of it for up to 12 months, to a maximum of $2M. Contractors, owner draws, dividends, and bonuses do not count as payroll. If payroll alone doesn’t cover the need, you can add rent, utilities, insurance, and property taxes from the last 12 months on an exceptional basis. Your cash flow forecast shows the shortfall over the next 12 months, and the amount cannot exceed that shortfall. For example, a business with $100K in average monthly payroll would have a payroll-based ceiling of $600K (50% over 12 months) before the agency assesses its actual need. Payroll records and Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) remittances back up the numbers.

For an RTRI pivot project, the numbers that matter are the investment and how you will pay your share. Build a project budget of the net new costs, such as equipment, facility upgrades, or new market work, and keep it separate from your normal operating costs, which the budget cannot include. The application also asks for a few estimated results, measured up to a year after the project ends: increased domestic revenue, export revenue outside the US, export revenue to the US, Canadian content and materials used, and jobs created or maintained. These are estimates, not a sales forecast, so base them on numbers you can actually report on later, not numbers that look good on the form.

One rule for pivot projects: your share of the project has to be in place. A non-repayable pivot project covers up to 50% of eligible costs, so you fund at least half. Your share must come from cash on hand, a committed loan, or other confirmed financing, not revenue you expect to earn, and PrairiesCan asks for it to be confirmed when you apply.

Where the Seven Regions Differ

The core document list above is national. How you submit it, and a few specific requirements, vary by agency.

  • FedDev Ontario (southern Ontario): a fillable PDF application. Its application asks liquidity applicants to attach their last month of payroll records, though the request itself is calculated on the last 12 completed months of payroll.
  • FedNor (northern Ontario): submitted through an online client portal, reviewed in two phases.
  • PacifiCan (British Columbia): an online application portal. PacifiCan asks for more up front with a liquidity request: a 12-month cash flow forecast and 12 months of payroll records.
  • PrairiesCan (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba): a two-step process. You submit an expression of interest first, and only invited businesses complete the full application through PrairiesCan’s portal. Its applicant guide normally limits a business to one successful application.
  • CED Quebec: no self-serve portal. CED assigns an advisor who replies within one business day of your request.
  • ACOA (Atlantic Canada): applications go through the MyACOA portal.
  • CanNor (the territories): no portal. You email the completed PDF form directly to the program.

Note: Agency pages change without notice, and we have seen regions disagree on details as basic as how far back liquidity support can apply retroactively. Confirm your region’s current document list and channel before you start building the file, even if you checked it last month.

Liquidity vs. RTRI Pivot Projects: Different Paperwork

Liquidity assistance and RTRI pivot projects are proving two different things, and the file reflects that. A liquidity request has to prove the money is needed to keep payroll and essential operating costs running: 12 months of payroll history, essential operating costs where needed, and a cash flow forecast carry the weight. A pivot project must prove the money funds a defined piece of work: a budget of net new investment, confirmed financing for your share, a milestone schedule, and management biographies carry the weight there instead.

If you are applying for both at the same time, which the program allows, keep the labour costs separate. The same wages cannot be counted in both the liquidity request and the pivot project budget.

Where Applications Usually Stall

Port foreman reviewing RTRI application guide paperwork at a container terminal

In our experience building these files across regions, the same handful of issues come up again and again, long before a project’s merits are even considered.

  • Describing the impact instead of documenting it. A paragraph about pressure reads worse than a single supplier notice or a sales record.
  • Numbers that do not match. Revenue figures on the form need to be identical to the figures in the attached statements, down to the dollar.
  • A forecast built like a pitch, not a cash flow model. Liquidity assessors are looking for a shortfall they can verify, not a growth story.
  • No confirmed source for your share. A pivot project needs your share of the cost lined up in cash or a committed loan. Agencies ask where it is coming from, and an open answer weakens the application.
  • Underestimating the timeline. PrairiesCan’s expression of interest step and CED Quebec’s advisor model both add time before a full application even goes in. Starting the week you need the money is usually too late.
  • An internally prepared annual statement. Only the interim statement can be internal. The two annual statements need to be externally prepared.

We’ve Built These Files Before

RTRI touches the most sensitive numbers in a company: two years of financial statements, payroll, a forecast of where the business is headed. That isn’t something most owners hand to a junior person, and it isn’t a file that gets built well by someone doing it twice a year on the side.

Fundspoke’s senior team includes PhDs, CPAs, and former founders, and the advisor on your first call is the one who builds the file, not someone who hands it off. Our founder, Morgan Wyatt, has been on the owner’s side of a funding application: he raised more than $5MM in government funding to reshore Greenlid’s manufacturing from China, so the evidence-file, statement-matching, forecast-building work in this guide isn’t theoretical for the team doing it. One senior advisor carries your file from the first call through the agency’s questions, and stays on through the contribution agreement, claims, and reporting once it’s approved.

Get a Second Set of Eyes Before You Submit

Before you submit anything, confirm the current liquidity and pivot project terms and speak with a senior advisor for a free 30-minute call, no cost and no obligation to hire, to find out whether your file is actually ready.

FAQs About Applying for RTRI

What documents do I need for an RTRI application?

Two years of externally prepared financial statements, your most recent interim statement, records that show the tariff impact, your incorporation documents, and a cash flow forecast. Liquidity requests also need payroll records, and an RTRI pivot project needs a project budget, a project schedule, and confirmed financing for your share.

What counts as proof of tariff impact for RTRI?

Records first. A supplier’s price increase email, your customs broker’s duty invoices, emails from US customers cutting orders, a before-and-after sales comparison for your key US customers, or layoffs and EI Work-Sharing uptake tied to the slowdown all count. A paragraph explaining that tariffs hurt is weak on its own, though a specific account from the owner helps where records are thin.

Can my financial statements be internally prepared?

Only the interim statement can be. Your last two annual financial statements need to be externally prepared, with an audit or review engagement preferred.

Does the RTRI document checklist differ by region?

The core list is the same across all seven regional development agencies: financial statements, an interim statement, proof of impact, and a cash flow forecast. What differs is the submission channel (PDF, online portal, assigned advisor, or email) and a few specific requirements, such as PacifiCan asking for 12 months of payroll records and a 12-month cash flow forecast up front with a liquidity request.