By Chady Zahri, Chief Executive Officer · Updated October 8, 2026

Voxen insight

Read the tariff test before the amount. A business hurt through a customer or a supplier, earning under $1M, or selling to the U.S. through someone else fails most of these tests, however real the damage. Knowing that early saves weeks of paperwork and points you to the options that do fit.

The three tariff programs side by side

The programs answer different needs. RTRI helps carry costs and fund a change of market without adding much debt. Pivot to Grow is cheap borrowed money for a business that exports a real share of its sales to the U.S. FORCE is for larger Quebec manufacturers and primary producers facing steep tariffs. Every figure below comes from the official page linked in the last row.

Checked on 2026-10-08.

How the Regional Tariff Response Initiative works

RTRI is a $3.45B, four-year federal fund delivered by all seven regional development agencies; in Quebec, that is Canada Economic Development (CED). The federal package of August 25, 2026 added $1.5B to it. It is open to incorporated for-profit businesses with real U.S. tariff exposure.

Because it pays at most half, your business still funds the other half of every eligible cost.

• The liquidity stream pays up to 50% of costs such as wages, rent, utilities, insurance and property taxes, to a maximum of $2M.
• Pivot projects get up to $1M non-repayable at 50%; above $1M, the contribution is repayable.
• A business can receive at most $3M non-repayable and $20M in total.

BDC Pivot to Grow: borrowed money, priced low for a year

Pivot to Grow is a loan, not a grant: you repay all of it. What makes it attractive is the price at the start, 0% for the first 12 months, on $250K to $5M per stream. The test is narrower than RTRI's: at least $1M in revenue and at least 15% of sales exported to the U.S. A business that sells into the U.S. through a Canadian distributor may fail that test even if tariffs hurt it. If you pass it, a 0% first year is cheaper than any private working capital Voxen can arrange, and you should take it first.

Investissement Québec FORCE: for larger Quebec producers

FORCE lends up to $50M to manufacturers and primary-sector businesses hit by U.S. tariffs of 25% or more, with a $2M revenue minimum, until March 31, 2028. It is built for plants and producers with large exposure, not for a small distributor or a service firm. A Quebec manufacturer that qualifies for both FORCE and RTRI should ask each program how the two combine before planning on both.

If your business does not pass any of the three tests

Most small businesses feel tariffs through their suppliers and customers, not through exports of their own, and many earn less than $1M a year. None of the three programs covers them. What remains:

• Exporters can look at EDC's Trade Impact Program, enhanced September 1, 2026, which EDC says is not a grant.
• The government's Business Benefits Finder matches a business against more than 1,500 programs.
• Working capital: a line of credit absorbs cost swings, invoice factoring helps when customers stretch their terms, and inventory financing funds stock bought ahead of a price change.

Where Voxen fits next to the tariff programs

Voxen does not apply to these programs for you and does not advance money against an RTRI contribution or a BDC decision. What Voxen arranges is working capital assessed on your own revenue and bank statements: the half of a pivot project RTRI does not pay, the months before a program pays, or the costs no program covers. If Pivot to Grow or your bank can fund it, that is cheaper, and we will tell you so. The tariffs page of the grants hub keeps the program details in one place.

What to do next

Check each program's revenue and tariff test against your last two fiscal years. If one fits, apply there first, starting from the tariff programs page. For the gap until a program pays, or for the costs it does not cover, talk to Voxen.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Regional Tariff Response Initiative a grant or a loan?

Mostly a grant-like contribution. The liquidity stream and pivot projects up to $1M are non-repayable, at up to 50% of eligible costs. Pivot-project contributions above $1M are repayable. A business can receive at most $3M non-repayable and $20M in total.

My business earns less than $1M a year. Is there tariff help for me?

Not from these three programs: RTRI and Pivot to Grow need $1M in revenue and FORCE needs $2M. The government's Business Benefits Finder can match you against other programs, and working capital such as a line of credit or invoice factoring can carry cost increases while you adjust.

Do I have to export to the U.S. myself to qualify?

For Pivot to Grow, yes: 15% or more of your sales must be exported to the U.S. RTRI is broader. It also accepts businesses in a Section 232 sector, businesses with 25% or more of revenue from goods ultimately exported to the U.S., and businesses facing significant tariff-driven cost increases.

Can I use RTRI and Pivot to Grow together?

The program pages do not settle that for every case. Ask CED, or your region's development agency, and BDC how they treat each other before you plan around both.

Can Voxen finance my half of an RTRI pivot project?

Voxen can arrange financing for the share your business pays, assessed on your own revenue and bank statements. It is not an advance on the RTRI contribution, and the contribution is not used as collateral.

Related

• Chady Zahri — Chief Executive Officer
• Tariff programs in the grants hub
• Regional Tariff Response Initiative
• BDC Pivot to Grow
• Investissement Québec FORCE
• Financing for manufacturers
• Business line of credit
• How to Fund Your Share of a Government Grant While You Wait for the Payout
• Open Now: Business Funding Programs in Canada and Quebec (October 2026)
• Manufacturing Financing: Capital Solutions for Canadian Producers
• Inventory Financing for Retailers, Importers and E-Commerce Brands in Canada

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