CanExport SMEs$10,000 to $50,000 (2026-27 intake)

About CanExport SMEs

CanExport SMEs is administered by Global Affairs Canada through the Trade Commissioner Service (TCS), in partnership with NRC IRAP, which manages funding agreements and claims. The program provides direct financial assistance to Canadian small and medium businesses seeking to develop new export markets, particularly markets where the business has not previously sold. CanExport is part of a broader CanExport program family that also includes CanExport Innovation, CanExport Community Investments, and CanExport Associations. For 2026-27, roughly $31 million in total funding is available.

The program is accessible relative to most federal funding: structured eligibility criteria and a defined cost basket. It is also genuinely competitive. In 2025-26 the program received close to 4,000 applications and approved roughly 40% of eligible applicants, funding over 1,500 businesses. It remains one of the most approachable first programs for a Canadian SME, and a natural companion to stacked manufacturing and technology strategies.

Who qualifies for CanExport SMEs

• Incorporated in Canada (corporation, LLP, or cooperative), for-profit
• Annual revenue between $300,000 and $100 million in the most recent fiscal year (raised for 2026-27)
• 3 to 500 full-time employees (raised for 2026-27)
• Have an active Canada Revenue Agency Business Number
• Pursuing entry into a new international market: one where your sales were under $100,000 in your last full tax year, or under 10% of your total sales if higher

The "new market" test is enforced strictly, and a project may name up to 5 target markets, but never the US plus another market: US projects are a separate stream, and the $3.1 million 2026-27 US envelope is fully allocated. Everyone else pursues genuinely new geography (EU, UK, Mexico, Asia-Pacific, Africa, South America, etc.). For tariff-affected manufacturers shifting away from US dependence, CanExport SMEs is purpose-built.

Sector changes for 2026-27

Agriculture, agri-food, alcoholic beverages, and fish and seafood are no longer funded through CanExport SMEs: those sectors now apply through the AgriMarketing Program's market diversification stream for SMEs. Agricultural technology, post-harvest food technology, agricultural machinery, and life sciences remain eligible. In the other direction, the program is placing new emphasis on defence and dual-use technologies in line with the Defence Industrial Strategy; defence-market applicants are asked to flag "Defence" in the project title.

Eligible activities and costs

CanExport funds eight cost categories, each tied to an approved target market:

• International travel: flights, ground transport, and a $600 daily per diem, for up to 2 travelers per trip and 90 per diem days per project
• Trade events: booth and registration fees, shipping, on-site costs (in-person only; virtual events are no longer eligible)
• Marketing tool adaptation: website translation, localized brochures, trade show materials
• Interpretation services for in-person meetings with target-market contacts
• Contractual agreements: drafting or translating distributor, sales, and nondisclosure agreements, plus supplier diversity certification
• Expert advice: business, tax, legal, and regulatory consultants for the target market
• Market research: export market studies, feasibility studies, lead generation, B2B matchmaking
• IP protection: patent, trademark, and industrial design filings in target markets

Costs NOT covered include: domestic activities (Canadian trade shows, travel within Canada), employee salaries, capital equipment, advertising and SEO, product certification and registration fees, and entertainment expenses.

The CanExport application process

1. Build a target-market business case. Identify up to 5 target markets, document why your product fits, project ROI from market entry.
2. Itemize the budget with quotes for trade events, travel estimates, research costs, consultant fees. Requests run $10,000 to $50,000 against a total project value of $20,000 to $100,000.
3. Submit through the CanExport portal. The 2026-27 intake is a single window, February 4 to August 31, 2026, with applications assessed on a rolling competitive basis.
4. Wait for evaluation: up to 60 business days for non-US markets. Successful applications receive a grant or contribution agreement; the program decides which.
5. Execute the project within 12 months, aligned to the federal fiscal year (April 1 to March 31).
6. Submit claims for reimbursement if funded by contribution. Grant recipients are paid up front and report on results instead.

How to maximize CanExport approval probability

• Pick markets you can credibly enter. The cap is 5 markets per project; don't claim all 5 without the infrastructure to pursue them.
• Quantify the market opportunity: addressable market size, projected sales, expected ROI from the funded activities.
• Build in concrete deliverables: signed distributor agreement, registered IP, a completed market study, 10 qualified leads.
• Include letters of intent from prospective in-market partners when possible.
• Avoid common-trip / common-cost claims: each trip and cost should serve a specific market-entry purpose.

Stacking CanExport with other programs

CanExport is one of the cleanest stacking partners in the Canadian funding landscape. Common combinations:

• CanExport + RTRI: RTRI funds tariff-response capital and operational changes; CanExport funds the resulting market diversification. Used heavily by Grant Metal Products and other tariff-affected manufacturers.
• CanExport + IRAP: IRAP funds product adaptation for new markets (technical work); CanExport funds the market entry itself.
• CanExport + Alberta Export Expansion Package (AEEP): AEEP adds another ~$15K of provincial subsidy on top of CanExport for Alberta businesses. The combination can subsidize up to 75% of total project costs, which is the federal stacking limit on combined government assistance.

The VantEdge Logistics case study stacked CanExport + AEEP for international expansion as part of a 9-program portfolio.

How Impact Applications helps with CanExport

CanExport is accessible enough that some businesses succeed solo, particularly for first-time, single-market applications. For multi-market applications, businesses pursuing more than $30K in CanExport funding, or businesses pairing CanExport with other programs, professional support typically pays for itself. See our Full-Service Grant Management for full-stack support.