ElevateIP Program

What is the Elevate IP program?

If you are the owner of a small or medium-sized Canadian business and need assistance with Intellectual Property strategy development and implementation, you may be eligible for financial support in the form of non-dilutive funding from the Government of Canada. Through the ElevateIP program, developed in accordance with the National Intellectual Property Strategy introduced in 2018, the Canadian government continues to encourage entrepreneurs, start-ups, and businesses that rely heavily on technology. The ElevateIP program itself was introduced in Budget 2021 and commenced in 2022–2023.

Why is it important for Canadian startups and SMEs?

According to a 2020 World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) report, Canada ranked 14th in the number of global Intellectual Property (IP) rights filed in 2019. Moreover, a Stats Canada report revealed that just 17.5% of all businesses in Canada possessed any form of Intellectual Property rights, and a mere 5% hold IP rights beyond Canada’s borders. In the realm of patent filings, only 1.1% of Canadian businesses pursued patent applications between 2017 and 2019. Thus, one of the objectives of the ElevateIP program is to help Canadian SMEs overcome this IP deficit.

ElevateIP helps startups and SMEs strengthen the development, understanding and protection of intellectual property assets. This includes the opportunity to obtain funding to develop an IP strategy and implement the strategy through patent, trademark, or copyright filings and registrations. ElevateIP assists Business Accelerators and Incubators (BAIs) in supporting Canadian businesses with the resources and assistance they require to comprehend, effectively manage, and utilize their intellectual property assets.

The ElevateIP program will:

Promote IP rights awareness and protection in Canada.
Expand Canada’s IP capabilities through IP education and awareness among innovative startups and SMEs.
Offer targeted services that are tailored to individual needs in order to facilitate the securing and maintenance of IP rights.

ElevateIP – National Delivery Partners

The following BAIs from across Canada have been selected to provide IP support to Canadian startups and SMEs:

Springboard Atlantic Inc. – Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island
Mouvement des accélérateurs d’innovation du Québec (MAIN) – Québec
Communitech Corporation – Ontario, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan
Innovate Calgary, Lethbridge Economic Development and University of Calgary – Alberta
New Ventures BC Society – British Columbia, Yukon, Nunavut, and the Northwest Territories

How ElevateIP works – Stages of ElevateIP program

Through ElevateIP, the Canadian government is providing Canadian SMEs with IP programming in three important areas: IP education and awareness, the development of IP strategies, and the implementation of IP strategies.

IP Awareness: Increasing IP awareness and educational opportunities for SMEs through events like workshops, programs, and conferences, as well as peer-to-peer learning opportunities, etc., to ensure they have the fundamental IP understanding necessary to succeed. To provide these services, recipients are urged to make use of existing educational resources.
Developing IP Strategies: Providing SMEs with the resources and assistance they need to develop, protect, commercialize, and maximize their IP assets. A strong IP strategy is the first step in strategically developing and leveraging IP assets and lays the groundwork for long-term success.
Implementing IP Strategies: Assisting SMEs in achieving the goals of their IP strategies by providing the support required to execute the strategy, such as IP landscape analysis and partially funding costs related to formal protection of IP assets.

Eligibility Criteria

While the eligibility criteria vary for each participating BAI, the general criteria are:

The business should be headquartered in Canada.
Should be Canadian Controlled Private Corporation CCPC.
Less than 500 employees.
The IP to be acquired must be owned by the company and not by an individual.
The business should be young (~10 years or younger)
Should have potential to scale

How can we help?

We have a team of seasoned IP analysts and attorneys, who have experience working with startups and SMEs since the conception of the program. We have worked with multiple Canadian startups on their IP strategy development through other government programs like IRAP’s IP Assist. We help in developing comprehensive IP strategies aligned with business strategies and tailored to specific criteria such as industry/sector, current and future markets, and types of IP assets owned. Our relationships with our clients have transformed into full-scale IP consulting services and we are proud to be trusted partners in their journeys.

If you are interested in learning more about the ElevateIP program, please feel free to connect with us at projects@riahi-ip.com. We’ll be happy to help you develop and implement an IP strategy tailored to your specific needs and future plans for your business.

Canada Government’s other Intellectual Property Assistance Programs