Program directory · Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
Support for Small Business
- Program code
- BNP02 (ISC)
- Core responsibility
- Companies, Investment and Growth
- In Departmental Plans
- 2018-19 – 2026-27 · New since an earlier plan
What it does
The Support for Small Business Program provides support and financing to small and medium sized enterprises to help ensure Canadian companies are globally competitive and achieve high growth; provides Canadian small and medium sized enterprises access to financing that would not otherwise be available or would be available only under less favourable terms; and aims to strengthen Canada's network of business accelerators and incubators across the country. This program also provides oversight and challenge function for the Business Development Bank of Canada, and promotes understanding of the challenges small businesses face in adopting business practices that help them to grow and innovate. Additionally, the program provides loan guarantees to small and medium sized enterprises through the statutory program: Canada Small Business Financing Program. It also includes the Venture Capitalist Catalyst Initiative, which supports access to capital for innovative Canadian companies by investing in Canadian venture capital funds and funds-of-funds. This program supports the departmental result "Canadian businesses and industries are innovative and growing” under the Companies, Investment and Growth core responsibility.
Source: the department's Program Inventory, via GC InfoBase.
History and lineage
First appears in GC InfoBase's actual spending by program in 2018-19. The data does not record when a program was created; it may be older than its first appearance here, which is limited by the sources (program spending starts in 2010-11, Departmental Plans in 2018-19).
| Program | Relation | Years with data | Actual spending over those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support for Small Business | This program | 2018-19 – 2028-29 | $551M |
No earlier or later program in the same department has a similar name.
Significant changes in scope and budget
Detected from the data: renames between plans, programs it appears to replace, merge with or split into (matched by name), year-over-year changes in spending of at least 25% and $5M, or in employees of at least 20% and 25 FTEs, linked budget measures, and results indicators added or dropped.
| Year | What changed | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2020-21 | Spending $96.9M, against $63.3M in 2019-20 (+53%). | Actual spending (GC InfoBase) |
| 2021-22 | Renamed from “Support and Financing for Small Business” to “Support for Small Business”. | GC InfoBase program names by year |
| 2022-23 | Spending $68.5M, against $93.6M in 2021-22 (−27%). | Actual spending (GC InfoBase) |
| 2023-24 | Indicators added: Total capital invested in late-stage or growth businesses | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2023-24 | Indicators dropped: Percentage of incremental Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) loans | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2023-24 | Spending $97.9M, against $68.5M in 2022-23 (+43%). | Actual spending (GC InfoBase) |
| 2025-26 | Planned spending $128M, against $77.9M in 2024-25 (+64%). | Latest Departmental Plan |
| 2026-27 | Planned employees (FTEs) 18, against 57 in 2025-26 (−68%). | FTEs (GC InfoBase) |
Success criteria
The program's indicators from its department's Departmental Results Framework: the target set in each year's plan, and the result reported the following year. Source: GC InfoBase.
Historical: targets against results
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ 5,300 | 2019 | 6,071 | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 5,300 | 2020 | 5,651 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 5,300 | 2021 | 3,655 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2020-21, 3,655 loans were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 36% decrease in the number of loans made from the previous fiscal year and a gap of 1,645 loans from our target. This variance can be attributed to the economi… | Not met |
| 2021-22 | ≥ 4,000 | 2022 | 5,004 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2021-22, 5,004 loans were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 34% increase in the number of loans made from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately 1,004 loans over the target. This variance can be attrib… | Met |
| 2022-23 | ≥ 4,000 | 2023 | 5,533 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2022-23, 5,533 loans were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 11% increase in the number of loans made from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately 1,533 loans over the target. . This variance can be attr… | Met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 6,000 | 2024 | 6,238 12 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2023-24, 6,238 loans were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 13% increase in the number of loans made from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately 238 loans over the target. | Met |
| 2024-25 | ≥ 6,000 | 2025 | 6,409 | Met |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | ≥ $1.1B | 2024 | $822M Data as of December 31, 2023 will be available in Spring 2025. | Not met |
| 2024-25 | ≥ $1.1B | 2025 | $984M VC funds supported by VCCI 2017 continue to invest in companies at all stages; however, as VCCI 2017 invested $371M out of the $450M allocated, it may impede progress towards this target. | Not met |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ $900M | 2019 | $1.32B | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ $1B | 2020 | $1.3B Le Programme de financement des petites entreprises du Canada (PFPEC) est axé sur le marché, et les variations de son utilisation reflètent les niveaux de l'offre des prêteurs et de la demande des petites entreprises. | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ $1B | 2021 | $864M The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2020-21, loans worth almost $864 million were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 34% decrease in lending value from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately $136M from our target. This variance can be att… | Not met |
| 2021-22 | ≥ $800M | 2022 | $1.23B The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2021-22, loans worth $1.23 billion were registered with the CSBFP. This represents a 43% increase in lending value from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately $370M over the target. This variance can be attribute… | Met |
| 2022-23 | ≥ $800M | 2023 | $1.5B The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2022-23, loans worth almost $1.5 billion were registered with the CSBFP. | Met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ $1.3B | 2024 | $1.77B 10 The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its use reflect levels of supply by lenders and demand from small businesses. In 2023-24, loans worth almost $1.8 billion were registered with the CSBFP. This represents an 18% increase in the value of loans made from the previous fiscal year and a variance of approximately $276 million over the target. ` | Met |
| 2024-25 | ≥ $1.5B | 2025 | $1.88B | Met |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ 65% | 2019 | 81% For 2018–19, results included a range of 81-99%, based on the findings of two different studies. | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 65% | 2020 | 81% The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its percentage of incrementality reflect the changing risk tolerance of lenders given market conditions. An incrementality rate greater than the target is positive in that it represents an even higher percentage of small businesses gaining access to financing that would have otherwise been unavailable in the a… | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 65% | 2021 | 81% The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its percentage of incrementality reflect the changing risk tolerance of lenders given market conditions. An incrementality rate greater than the target is positive in that it represents an even higher percentage of small businesses gaining access to financing that would have otherwise been unavailable in the a… | Met |
| 2021-22 | ≥ 65% | 2022 | 81% The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its percentage of incrementality reflect the changing risk tolerance of lenders given market conditions. An incrementality rate greater than the target is positive in that it represents an even higher percentage of small businesses gaining access to financing that would have otherwise been unavailable in the a… | Met |
| 2022-23 | ≥ 65% | 2023 | 81% The Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) is market-driven, and variations in its percentage of incrementality reflect the changing risk tolerance of lenders given market conditions. An incrementality rate greater than the target is positive in that it represents an even higher percentage of small businesses gaining access to financing that would have otherwise been unavailable in the a… | Met |
Current: the 2026-27 plan's targets
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 6,300 | 2027 | — | Planned |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ $1.1B | 2027 | — | Planned |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ $1.8B | 2027 | — | Planned |
Future goals: targets due after 2026-27
No targets with a later due date.
Spending and employees: planned against actual
Spending
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | $71M | $53.3M |
| 2019-20 | $68.2M | $63.3M |
| 2020-21 | $76M | $96.9M |
| 2021-22 | $163M | $93.6M |
| 2022-23 | $141M | $68.5M |
| 2023-24 | $85M | $97.9M |
| 2024-25 | $108M | $77.9M |
| 2025-26 | $128M | — |
| 2026-27 | $103M | — |
| 2027-28 | $106M* | — |
| 2028-29 | $107M* | — |
Employees (FTEs)
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 71 | 47 |
| 2019-20 | 47 | 45 |
| 2020-21 | 46 | 39 |
| 2021-22 | 46 | 48 |
| 2022-23 | 54 | 52 |
| 2023-24 | 49 | 55 |
| 2024-25 | 67 | 57 |
| 2025-26 | 57 | — |
| 2026-27 | 18 | — |
| 2027-28 | 18* | — |
| 2028-29 | 0* | — |
Planned spending, plan by plan
Each row is one year's Departmental Plan and its forecast for the next three fiscal years; read a column down to see how the forecast for one year changed. The last row is what was actually spent. Click an amount for its source. Biggest changes in federal spending plans
| Plan | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | 2028-29 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 plan | $70,978,228 | $73,712,472 | $73,417,584 | ||||||||
| 2019-20 plan | $68,238,959 | $73,060,588 | $75,716,785 | ||||||||
| 2020-21 plan | $76,009,582 | $77,543,287 | $82,651,334 | ||||||||
| 2021-22 plan | $163,030,078 | $135,440,337 | $117,028,138 | ||||||||
| 2022-23 plan | $140,913,371 | $119,228,974 | $92,195,951 | ||||||||
| 2023-24 plan | $84,963,018 | $88,705,607 | $95,867,785 | ||||||||
| 2024-25 plan | $107,673,706 | $104,872,477 | $104,925,391 | ||||||||
| 2025-26 plan | $127,582,340 | $125,525,759 | $115,634,339 | ||||||||
| 2026-27 plan | $103,111,280 | $105,643,905 | $107,231,044 | ||||||||
| Actual | $53,320,832 | $63,253,699 | $96,860,471 | $93,563,395 | $68,485,347 | $97,862,546 | $77,929,015 |
Actual spending is from Departmental Results Reports and the Public Accounts, as published in GC InfoBase. FTEs are full-time equivalents.
