From SIF to SRF: Understanding Canada’s New $5 Billion Strategic Response Fund

Contrary to popular belief, Canada’s next big economic boost doesn’t have to come from the United States: it can come from our own idyllic backyard.  

Canada’s economic landscape is indeed shifting. The Strategic Innovation Fund, known as SIF to many, has long supported industrial innovation across sectors such as aerospace, clean technology, and automotive. Now, the federal government is introducing and revamping SIF into a new $5 billion fund, the Strategic Response Fund (SRF).  

SRF builds on SIF’s legacy, but it’s designed for speed, targeting tariff-hit industries, supply chain challenges, and global trade disruptions. It’s part of a broader plan to internally innovate, protect jobs, and reinforce domestic resilience.  

This blog thus unpacks how SIF paved the way, what the new SRF means for Canadian businesses, and how your company can tap into its funding potential for innovation, tariff support, and targeted business funding across the country.  

 

From SIF to SRF: Why the Transition?  

The Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) has been a cornerstone of Canada’s innovation strategy for nearly a decade. Since 2017, the SIF funding program has been supporting large-scale, transformative projects across clean technology, biomanufacturing, critical minerals, and more vital sectors across Canada. The SIF has invested in major projects propelling business growth by offering repayable (loan) and sometimes non-repayable (grant) contributions to eligible projects. These projects have significantly driven job growth, research and development (R&D), and innovation.  

Read our success story blogs “Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF): $20M for Woodbridge Foam Corporation” and “$13M in Innovation Funding for the Canadian Aerospace Industry” to learn about the types of projects supported through SIF funding. 

Despite SIF’s ongoing success in driving job growth and innovation, the past year has run into indisputable trade disruptions, especially U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum, lumber, and vehicles. These disruptions have prompted a shift in focus for the SIF program.  

“We cannot control what other nations do. We can control what we give ourselves – what we build for ourselves. Canada is building the strongest economy in the G7, one that is less reliant on foreign powers and more resilient in the face of global shocks. In the face of uncertainty around the world, we are ensuring that our workers and businesses will prosper by building Canada’s strength at home.” 
– Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada 

Prime Minister Carney introduced the Strategic Response Fund (SRF) to replace the SIF program to implement a swift, responsive funding program that supports industries under immediate pressure. It adds to what SIF has already been accomplishing since 2017 and tops it up with new complementary measures aimed at giving Canadian industries the agility to respond to ongoing shocks and diversify beyond reliance on the U.S. market. 

Funding Snapshot: Strategic Response Fund (SRF) 

The Government of Canada has launched the new SRF to help Canada respond to a rapidly changing global economy marked by trade disruptions, supply chain volatility, and intensifying international competition.  

The SRF will concentrate on strategic sectors disproportionately exposed to U.S. tariffs and global trade risks, such as automotive, steel, and aluminum.  

The SRF aims to preserve Canada’s industrial capacity by offsetting market access costs, supporting retooling efforts, and enabling Canada-based firms to expand or secure new markets. It also offers flexible funding for early-stage activities, including pre-development work and engineering design studies. 

Program Priorities:  

• Trade-exposed sectors or companies facing revenue loss, reduced profitability, or job cuts. 
• Large-scale projects with front-end design and capital costs to pivot or boost competitiveness. 
• Projects vital to maintaining Canada’s industrial or skills capacity.  
• Initiatives that expand domestic market readiness and accelerate exports. 

Funding Amount: 

• $5 billion total fund: a dedicated fund rolled out in response to U.S. tariffs and global trade volatility. 
• Requesting at least $10 million for a project with costs of at least $20 million. 

Eligible Applicants 

The eligibility for SRF will likely mirror SIF:  

• For-profit businesses 
• Not-for-profits 
• Academia or research networks 

Please note that our team will confirm eligibility details once Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) releases the official SRF program guide. 

Eligible Projects 

Strategic sectors like: 

• Steel 
• Automotive 
• Aluminum 
• Lumber 
• Sectors where external tariffs or shocks threaten domestic capacity 
• Other high-value sectors where timing is critical. 

Timeline: 

• Announced on September 5, 2025. 

Connect with Ryan’s Canada Government Funding team to assess your eligibility and prepare a strong application. 

Tariff Funding as Strategy: Innovation with Purpose 

SRF takes the best of SIF’s innovation-first approach and integrates it into a rapid-response structure. Rather than long-term, transformative projects, SRF pivots toward preserving, enhancing, and building resilience in key Canadian sectors at risk.  

The SRF funding program supports tariff-affected industries with targeted government funding, even encouraging government procurement to “buy Canadian” and stimulate domestic production. 

Tariffs have squeezed margins and sapped investment momentum in sectors like steel, lumber, and automotive. SRF responds with two connected strategies: 

1. Direct government funding support to help businesses weather revenue shocks and continue operating or expanding. 

2. Directly innovating Canada’s resourcing: Carney emphasized using public-sector procurement to “build more with Canadian steel, Canadian lumber, Canadian technology”.  

This tariff government funding support is reframed as strategic industrial policy, keeping industries standing, while also repositioning them for longer-term transformation. 

“We need to use government procurement using Canadian taxpayer dollars to spur Canadian businesses for longer term prosperity.” 
– Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada 

Seizing the Moment with the SRF Funding Program 

The Strategic Response Fund (SRF) marks a new chapter in federal government funding, one built for urgency as much as innovation. Designed to replace and add to the long-standing Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), SRF targets industries under threat while advancing economic diversification and supply-chain resilience.  

For Canadian businesses navigating trade turbulence, it offers a clear opportunity to adapt now and transform later. If you’re ready to explore SRF funding, or combine it with programs such as the newly announced Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI), our Ryan Canada government funding team is here to help.  

Our team of funding experts can help assess your project’s eligibility, align it with the SRF’s program focus on innovation and tariff support, and guide your company through every step, from consultation to application. Reach out today to start your funding journey.