As a Canadian, it’s important to know that the government supports entrepreneurship. What does this mean for you thinking of starting a small business? It means that there is a lot out there on how to get financial help to start a small business!

If you already have a small business started or if you are thinking of starting up, keep in mind that startup assistance is available via the Canadian government.

How To Get Financial Help To Start a Small Business

Before you can get any type of financial help or funding assistance from the government of Canada to start a small business, there are a few things that you must do to get ready for the search:

1. Have a well developed business plan
2. Know what you need funding for
3. Know how much funding you need
4. Be a Canadian citizen
5. Apply to the right financial help programs on time and meet the criteria

It’s important to note that financial help is available to everyone living in Canada thinking of starting a small business, however each program is different and each funding agency providing the financial help through these programs requires different qualifications that must be met before you apply and get the financial assistance.

In other words, financial help via the Canadian government is available to everyone – but you do have to qualify and be eligible. A way to think about it is like a tax credit (everyone can take advantage but only those who qualify actually get it).

That being said, a huge number of startups across Canada get funded each month by the various funding programs. There are nearly a thousand different programs across Canada!

When you start your search for financial help to start a small business, your business plan is one of the most important documents you should have ready. A well developed business plan will prepare you for your business startup but it will also provide to you knowledge of your financial needs.

How much funding do you need? What do you need funding for? At what stage of business do you need the funds by?

These are just a few questions your business plan, when completed will tell you.

When starting a small business and before you can get any financial help – a business plan will be needed.

It’s recommended to use our Business Plan Builder Tool, as it’s been rated #1 user friendly business plan builder out there – and not only that, but it comes with expert help too. So if you haven’t ever done a business plan before, now’s the chance to develop one easily and have a business plan professional review it and provide you with feedback to improve.

Once you’ve developed your business plan it’s time to start your search for financial help from the government.

Since there are hundreds of funding programs available, searching and applying to the correct ones will be important. The last thing you want to do is search for a program and apply (after spending all that time), and the program application gets denied because the program wasn’t for you or you didn’t meet the requirements.

When you are searching for financial assistance programs keep in mind that each funding program has a different set of qualifications and criteria that one must meet before being eligible. Read them, be sure that you have what’s required and only then apply.

Other things to keep in mind when applying to the government for financial help to start a small business is that there are programs available that only fund certain industries, or provide up to a certain amount for a certain funding need such as hiring or training, purchase of tools and equipment, to conduct R&D, to improve cash flow..etc Keep in mind the specific so you are only applying to those that are right for you and your small business.

If you need further help on how to get financial help to start a small business, no better resource out there then Canada Startups!