Government grants, loans and funding for municipalities and local governments

Ranked programs

Top 36 of 61 open, ongoing or intake-based programs, best score first.

1. Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF)

   Ministry of Infrastructure

   Formula-based funding for small, rural and northern municipalities for core infrastructure; $400 million to 423 communities in 2026.

   OngoingOntarioGrantsUp to $10M
   50

   Top pick

2. Save on Energy Retrofit Program

   IESO (Save on Energy)

   Incentives for Ontario businesses, institutions, multi-residential and agricultural facilities that cut electricity use. Prescriptive (fixed per measure) and Custom...

   OngoingOntarioOther incentives
   46

   Strong

3. Electric Vehicle Affordability Program (EVAP)

   Transport Canada

   Point-of-sale incentives for Canadians, organizations and businesses buying or leasing an eligible new electric vehicle. It replaces the closed iZEV program.

   OngoingFederalOther incentivesUp to $5K
   45

   Strong

4. Northern Ontario Resource Development Support (NORDS) Fund

   Ministry of Northern Economic Development and Growth

   Provides each of Northern Ontario's 144 municipalities an annual capital allocation to offset the impacts of resource development (forestry, mining, aggregates...

   OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $400K
   43

   Strong

5. Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund (CSRIF)

   Ministry of Sport

   $500 million cost-shared program to repair/upgrade existing sport and recreation facilities (Stream 1) and build new or signature facilities (Stream 2).

   OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $10M
   41

   Strong

6. First Nations Community Building Retrofit Program

   IESO (Save on Energy)

   Energy-efficiency retrofits for community buildings in on-reserve First Nations.

   OngoingOntarioOther incentivesUp to $330K
   41

   Strong

7. Mitacs Accelerate

   Mitacs

   Matches partner contributions to fund research internships connecting businesses and organizations with university researchers and trainees.

   OngoingFederalGrants
   41

   Strong

8. FedNor - Northern Ontario Development Program (NODP)

   FedNor

   FedNor's NODP funds community economic development, SME business growth and a municipal/First Nation economic-development-officer initiative (CIINO) in Northern Ontario...

   OngoingFederalGrantsUp to $170K
   40

   Strong

9. Mitacs AI Advantage (ADOPT and AI+X)

   Mitacs

   Non-competitive Mitacs offerings supporting organizations to adopt and innovate with AI through trainee-led projects: ADOPT (AI readiness to implementation) and AI+X...

   OpenFederalGrantsUp to $25K
   39

   Strong

10. NOHFC Enhance Your Community Program

    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)

    Funds community infrastructure projects in Northern Ontario.

    OngoingOntarioGrantsUp to $2M
    39

    Strong

11. NOHFC Rural Enhancement Program

    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)

    Funds quality-of-life projects in rural Northern Ontario communities.

    OngoingOntarioGrantsUp to $500K
    39

    Strong

12. Great Lakes Local Action Fund

    Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks

    Project funding for community-based action that increases climate resilience and protects or improves water quality in the Great Lakes, including wetland, shoreline and...

    OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $100K
    38

    Strong

13. Municipal Energy Plan Program

    Ministry of Energy and Mines

    Funds Ontario municipalities to develop a new community energy plan (Stream 1) or update an existing energy plan (Stream 2). It does not fund implementing existing plans.

    OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $90K
    38

    Strong

14. Mitacs Business Strategy Internship (BSI)

    Mitacs

    Matches partner funds to place students, postdocs and recent graduates in business-strategy and innovation projects at Canadian organizations.

    OngoingFederalGrantsUp to $15K
    37

    Worth a look

15. Celebrate Canada Funding Program

    Canadian Heritage

    Funds community activities held on National Indigenous Peoples Day, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, Canadian Multiculturalism Day and Canada Day.

    OpenFederalGrants
    36

    Worth a look

16. Commemorative Partnership Program (Community Engagement and Community War Memorials)

    Veterans Affairs Canada

    Funds remembrance initiatives and the construction, restoration or expansion of community war memorials. Several streams with year-round and fixed-deadline intakes.

    OpenFederalGrantsUp to $25K
    35

    Worth a look

17. Enabling Accessibility Fund - Express Workplace Accessibility Grant (EWAG)

    Employment and Social Development Canada (Service Canada)

    Funds immediate workplace accessibility updates that support hiring, retention or continued employment of persons with disabilities. Projects can remove barriers through...

    OpenFederalGrantsUp to $50K
    34

    Worth a look

18. Ontario Trillium Foundation: Grow Grant

    Ontario Trillium Foundation

    Multi-year funding for established non-profits to scale proven community programs.

    OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $200K
    34

    Worth a look

19. Site Readiness Program

    Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade

    Funding assistance to prepare eligible industrial properties for investment and business expansion opportunities.

    OpenOntarioOther incentivesUp to $25K
    34

    Worth a look

20. Building Faster Fund

    Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing

    Rewards municipalities that meet at least 80% of their provincially assigned housing targets with funding for housing-enabling infrastructure.

    OngoingOntarioGrants
    32

    Worth a look

21. Investment Ready: Certified Site Designation

    Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade

    A designation for industrial properties that complete program requirements proving they are primed for development, with partial reimbursement of eligible expenses.

    OpenOntarioOther incentivesUp to $50K
    32

    Worth a look

22. NOHFC Community Events Program

    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)

    Funds events that promote economic development in Northern Ontario.

    OngoingOntarioGrantsUp to $15K
    32

    Worth a look

23. Clean Electricity Investment Tax Credit

    Canada Revenue Agency / Natural Resources Canada

    Refundable credit of up to 15% of capital cost of eligible clean electricity property (generation, storage, transmission), open to taxable corporations and also to...

    OngoingFederalOther incentives
    31

    Worth a look

24. FedNor - Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII)

    FedNor

    Helps Northern Ontario SMEs, not-for-profits, Indigenous organizations and municipalities commercialize and adopt AI. For-profits normally receive repayable...

    OngoingFederalLoansLoans up to $700M
    30

    Worth a look

25. Fire Protection Services Reimbursement: Unincorporated Ontario

    Ministry of the Solicitor General

    Reimburses municipalities for providing emergency response services (collisions, hazmat, structure fires, rescue and more) in unincorporated areas of Ontario between...

    OpenOntarioGrants
    30

    Worth a look

26. NOHFC Workforce Development Program (internships)

    Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)

    Funds internship salaries for Northern Ontario employers.

    OngoingOntarioOther incentivesUp to $35K
    30

    Worth a look

27. Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program - Events component

    Canadian Heritage

    Funds community events that promote intercultural or interfaith understanding, discuss multiculturalism and racism, or celebrate a community's history and culture such...

    OpenFederalGrants
    29

    Worth a look

28. Save on Energy XLerate

    IESO (Save on Energy)

    Large-scale energy-efficiency incentive for industrial, municipal, institutional and healthcare projects, replacing the Industrial Energy Efficiency Program.

    OngoingOntarioOther incentivesUp to $15M
    29

    Worth a look

29. Connecting Links Program

    Ministry of Transportation

    Dedicated provincial funding for capital road and bridge projects on designated connecting link highways that carry provincial traffic through municipalities.

    Intake-basedOntarioGrantsUp to $7M
    28

    Worth a look

30. FedNor - Build Communities Strong Fund, Local Impact Stream (Northern Ontario)

    FedNor

    Non-repayable funding for shovel-ready community projects in Northern Ontario that deliver public benefits.

    Intake-basedFederalGrantsUp to $1M
    28

    Worth a look

31. Indigenous Transportation Initiatives Fund for Indigenous Communities and Organizations

    Ministry of Transportation

    The Indigenous Transportation Initiatives Fund (ITIF) is an application-based funding program for Indigenous communities and organizations pursuing...

    OpenOntarioGrants
    28

    Worth a look

32. Investments in Training Equipment (Canada Apprenticeship Strategy)

    Employment and Social Development Canada

    Funds the purchase of new, up-to-date training equipment and materials for Red Seal trades apprenticeship training. Applications accepted on an ongoing basis.

    OpenFederalGrantsUp to $5M
    28

    Worth a look

33. Ontario Transit Investment Fund (OTIF)

    Ministry of Transportation

    Time-limited, application-based funding for up to 5 years to support the start-up and growth of transit services, especially in smaller and rural communities.

    OpenOntarioGrants
    28

    Worth a look

34. Reaching Home: Canada's Homelessness Strategy

    Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada

    A community-based program funding projects that prevent and reduce homelessness in urban, Indigenous, territorial and rural and remote communities, with decisions made...

    OngoingFederalGrants
    28

    Worth a look

35. Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SWODF)

    Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade

    Provincial funding for business expansion and community economic development projects in southwestern Ontario.

    Intake-basedOntarioGrantsUp to $5M
    28

    Worth a look

36. Rural Ontario Development (ROD) Program

    Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness (OMAFA)

    Cost-share for rural economic development: plans, diversification, workforce, events, community infrastructure and rural small business.

    Intake-basedOntarioGrantsUp to $250K
    26

    Worth a look

There are 25 more. Create a free account to filter the full list by your own profile.

Questions

How many programs for municipalities and local governments are open right now?

Of the 144 programs for municipalities and local governments in our database, 47 are open or ongoing and 14 take applications only in intake windows. The rest are closed, paused or of unknown status, so they are not ranked on this page. Counts reflect our last check on Nov 4, 2026; programs can change without notice.

What is the largest published amount among these programs?

FedNor - Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII) publishes the largest figure on this page, shown as "Loans up to $700M". Published figures are program maximums, caps or limits, not what an applicant should expect to receive; many programs pay a share of eligible costs and amounts depend on your project and eligibility.

Which programs for municipalities and local governments rank highest?

Right now the top three by our score are Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (50, Top pick), Save on Energy Retrofit Program (46, Strong), Electric Vehicle Affordability Program (45, Strong). The score combines the size of the published amount, how much work an application takes, how likely an eligible applicant is to succeed and how many people qualify.

Do I have to pay this money back?

It depends on the program. Grants and incentives are generally not repaid, loans always are, and some contribution agreements are partly or fully repayable, so read the terms of each program. Among the 47 open or ongoing programs here, 34 are in our Grants category, 4 are loans and 9 are other incentives such as tax credits and rebates.

Are these federal or Ontario programs?

22 of the 47 open or ongoing programs here come from the federal government and 25 from the Ontario government. Both levels can usually be combined, but many programs have stacking rules that cap total government funding for the same costs, so check them before you apply.

Is this an official government website?

No. Grants & Loans Finder is an independent research tool. Each program page links to the official source, and applications are always made with the government agency or lender that runs the program.