ESSOR 1C.

ESSOR 1C key parameters

Objectives you can fund

• Confirm the technical and financial feasibility of an investment project before committing to it.
• Have an outside firm carry out an Industry 4.0 diagnostic or a digital diagnostic.
• Build a costed productivity plan, with its automation scenarios.
• Document a plant set-up, expansion or relocation project.
• Prepare a credible file for a larger funding application — ESSOR 1A or 2.

Program overview

ESSOR is Investissement Québec's investment support program. It is divided into several sub-components: 1A funds investment projects, 1B funds digital diagnostics and plans, 2 funds the purchase of equipment. 1C does not fund the project — it funds the study that comes before it.

In practice: you engage an outside firm for a feasibility study, a diagnostic or an action plan. Investissement Québec reimburses up to 50% of the fees, to a maximum of $50,000 for the duration of the program. The assistance is a non-repayable contribution.

• Non-repayable
• Continuous intake
• Before the work starts
• Outside firm required

Eligibility criteria

ESSOR 1C is aimed at for-profit businesses established in Quebec and operating in a sector recognized by Investissement Québec. The criteria below are those of the program framework; the final assessment rests with the advisor handling the file.

Eligible territory

• The business must operate at least one establishment in Quebec.
• The study must relate to activities carried out or planned in Quebec.
• Some resource regions benefit from enhanced rates under other ESSOR sub-components; 1C stays at 50% everywhere.

Application steps

Three weeks generally separate the first call from the submission. The schedule below is the one we keep; it is constrained by one thing only, the prior-commitment rule: nothing may be invoiced before the file is submitted.

1. 01. Scoping and prior-commitment check

   We confirm the business's eligibility, the nature of the study and above all that no commitment has yet been made to the firm. This is the step where a file is saved or lost.

   AUDIT · 5 DAYS

2. 02. Building the file

   Drafting the description of the mandate, the schedule and the detailed budget, together with the outside firm's service offer and the financial statements for the last two fiscal years.

   PREPARATION · 10 DAYS

3. 03. Submission and follow-up

   Submission to Investissement Québec's regional office, then follow-up on the advisor's questions through to the offer letter. We answer requests for clarification on your behalf.

   SUBMISSION · ONGOING FOLLOW-UP

Activities funded by the program

Sub-component 1C covers study mandates given to a third party.

• Technical, financial or commercial feasibility study of an investment project.
• Industry 4.0 diagnostic and automation roadmap.
• Digital diagnostic and information systems transformation plan.
• Productivity improvement plan and analysis of production flows.
• Plant set-up, expansion or relocation study.
• Market analysis ahead of an expansion project.

Documents to provide

• Investissement Québec application form, duly completed.
• Detailed service offer from the outside firm, dated and unsigned.
• Description of the mandate, its deliverables and its schedule.
• Financial statements for the last two fiscal years, prepared by a professional.
• Financial projections if the business has fewer than two complete fiscal years.
• Board resolution authorizing the application.
• List of government assistance already obtained or applied for in respect of the same project.

Expenses covered by the program

• Professional fees of the outside firm engaged for the study.
• The firm's travel expenses, where they are billed to the mandate.
• Cost of the tests, measurements and surveys required for the study.
• Translation of the deliverables, where the project requires it.

Excluded costs

• Salaries and hours of the business's internal staff.
• Expenses incurred or invoiced before the date the application is submitted.
• Purchase of equipment, software or licences — these costs fall under ESSOR 2.
• Construction, fit-out or code-compliance costs.
• Recoverable sales taxes (GST and QST).
• Financing costs, interest and routine legal fees.

Points to check before filing

• The $50,000 cap is cumulative for the duration of the program, not per project.
• The program ends on March 31, 2027. Applications must be submitted before that date.
• The assistance is paid once the deliverable and the supporting documents have been received, not when the file is approved.
• ESSOR 1C can be combined with the SR&ED tax credit when the study covers experimental development work, but the same expenses cannot be claimed twice.
• A refusal is not final: a reworked file can be resubmitted, as long as the prior-commitment rule is still respected.