Apply for Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada funding through the HICC Funding Portal: how the portal lists separate program streams, how to register an account, the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund direct delivery steps, and which streams are closed or run through provinces and territories.
Applies in: CA
Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada, called HICC, funds infrastructure through separate programs and streams. There is no single HICC application form that covers all of them. The starting point most applicants meet is the HICC Funding Portal, which lists programs and sends each applicant to the portal for that program. Welcome to the HICC Applicant Portal states: select a program from the page and you will be directed to the respective portal, then proceed to sign in or register. That sentence matters more than any other on the portal page, because the steps, the applicant guide, the intake dates, and the form differ by program.
State plainly what this guide does not do. It walks the published application and portal process only, program by program, as HICC publishes it. It makes no promise that any applicant or project qualifies for funding, it scores no project, and it does not recommend one fund over another. Where a stream is closed, this guide says so and does not dress up a closed intake as an open one. Where HICC publishes no current intake date, amount, or contribution rate on a page opened for this guide, the figure is left out and the cut is stated at the end of the guide. Check the program page on the day you act: intakes open and close, and a page read in November 2026 may already be out of date by the time you use it.
Work in this order: confirm the stream is open, read that stream's applicant guide, register the portal account, then complete the form for that stream. Do not start with the form. The guides carry the applicant and project rules the form then asks you to attest to.
Several HICC intakes were closed on the pages opened for this guide on 3 November 2026. Checking status first saves the wasted work of preparing an application for a closed intake.
One page carries two wordings that do not sit together, and you should know about it before relying on either. The Build Communities Strong Fund Direct Delivery page carries a banner stating eligible organizations can apply from 14 October to 11 December, with no year stated, while the body of the same page states the online portal is now closed for project applications. This guide does not treat the banner as a live deadline. Read the current page, and contact HICC through the contact route on that page, before treating any date on it as open.
HICC funding reaches applicants by two routes, and only the first uses the HICC Funding Portal application form in the way most people expect.
Direct delivery means HICC itself receives the application and decides. The Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund direct delivery stream, the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, the Active Transportation Fund, Green and Inclusive Community Buildings, and the Canada Public Transit Fund Baseline Funding stream are presented this way on their pages. Each has its own applicant guide and its own form inside the portal.
Delivery by agreement means the federal funding flows under an agreement with a province, territory, or municipal association, and that partner administers the money. Two examples are published in full:
If your project falls under an agreement stream, find the agreement page for your province or territory and follow the administrator named there. A direct HICC portal application is the wrong route for that money, and this guide does not invent a portal step for it.
Registration is a portal account of its own. No opened HICC page states that GCKey or a Sign-in Partner credential opens the HICC Funding Portal, so do not plan around either one. The account described on the CHIF account instructions page uses an email address and a password you create for the portal. Follow the steps for the program you are applying to, because the portal guidance is repeated inside each program's applicant guide with small differences.
For the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund, Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund - Instructions on creating a secure account gives these steps:
The Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund guide describes the same shape of account with a username as well as a password, and adds a timing warning worth heeding for any portal application: create the portal account at least one week before the deadline, because it may take a few days for the account to be fully functional, according to Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund: Applicant guide. That warning was written for the January 2025 call, but the account set-up delay it describes is a property of the portal, not of that call.
Get the organization roles right at registration, because the first person to register sets them. The CHIF account instructions state the first person in an organization to register automatically becomes the primary contact and is assigned the role of account administrator. The account administrator reviews, approves, or declines requests from other members to access the portal and the application form, decides whether approved members have read-only or update capabilities, decides whether they can attest to or submit applications, and decides whether they can be a delegate with the same privileges as the primary contact. Other members must create their own portal accounts, link themselves to the administrator's organization by selecting it from the Existing Organization List, and wait for the administrator to grant permission through the Profile page under Manage Permissions. The administrator receives an email with the subject line Your action required when a member asks for access. Until permission is granted, a team member cannot work on the organization's application.
This is the fullest published application walkthrough HICC currently offers for a direct delivery stream, and it is the worked example for this guide. It covers drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, and solid waste infrastructure that enables new housing. The steps below follow Direct Delivery stream. The detail on who can apply, what projects count, and what share the federal government may contribute comes from the Fall 2024 applicant guide, version 1.3 dated February 2025, and must be rechecked against the current guide before you rely on it.
Step 1: Read the Applicant guide. Applicants are strongly encouraged to consult the Applicant guide before applying. It carries applicant and project eligibility requirements, merit criteria, federal requirements, and other conditions of funding. Indigenous communities or organizations should refer to the Indigenous Applicant guide, because some eligibility requirements differ for Indigenous applicants.
Step 2: Register to create an account. Register for a secure account on the HICC Funding Portal before applying, as described in section 3. The portal provides a My Dashboard feature to create, save, edit, and submit applications and to see other project applications the organization has submitted. Applications will only be accepted electronically through the portal; applicants unable to apply through the portal are asked to reach out to the CHIF team at chif-fcil@infc.gc.ca.
Step 3: Apply for CHIF funding. Once the secure account exists, the option to apply becomes available:
The application can be saved before submission as many times as necessary and need not be completed in one session. The direct delivery page highly recommends the Step-by-Step Application Instructions available through the Funding Portal to complete the application correctly.
Step 4: Answer additional questions. If a project is considered eligible, HICC may reach out for more information. Applicants may be asked to complete the Environmental Assessment and Indigenous Consultation Questionnaire to determine whether the project must meet any federal environmental or Indigenous program requirements.
Step 5: Approvals and requirements. When the intake closes, HICC needs time to review and assess all applications. Once projects are selected, all applicants will be notified of the results. If a project is selected, HICC will reach out with next steps, and successful applicants must fulfil the requirements set out in the Federal requirements and reporting section of the Applicant guide.
Before you start the form, run the eligibility checklist from the applicant guide against your project, because a project that misses any minimum requirement is deemed ineligible. Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund: Before you apply - Applicant guide for the direct delivery stream (Fall 2024 intake) lists these minimum requirements: the applicant is an eligible recipient; the applicant owns or will own the asset, or has or will have secured all necessary rights and interest in it; the project is for planning, new construction, rehabilitation, or expansion of drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste infrastructure primarily for public use or benefit; the project will increase system capacity or efficiency to enable increased housing supply or address a housing need; the project meets the housing conditions if applicable; total eligible cost is at least $1 million and not greater than $100 million; all requested costs accord with program guidance and are direct and necessary; and the project will be substantially completed no later than 30 September 2031. Projects above $100 million in total eligible costs are considered case by case, and the guide directs applicants to contact the CHIF team before submitting one.
Eligible applicants under the direct delivery stream, from the same guide, are: a municipal or regional government established by or under provincial or territorial statute; a municipal public-sector body established by or under statute or regulation or wholly owned by a province, territory, or municipal or regional government; an incorporated not-for-profit organization; a private sector for-profit body working in collaboration with an eligible public-sector entity or an eligible Indigenous applicant; and an Indigenous applicant as defined in the guide. Provincial and territorial governments, stand-alone private for-profit bodies, individuals and private citizens, and federal entities including federal Crown corporations are listed as ineligible under this stream. Where several eligible applicants work together, one lead applicant must be identified; the lead applicant enters into the funding agreement with HICC and is responsible for implementing the project.
Two project types are eligible: capital projects, meaning new construction, rehabilitation, or expansion that results in tangible infrastructure for drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste systems; and planning projects, meaning studies, plans, or design work that support a future capital project eligible under CHIF. A planning project must support a future eligible capital project and align with CHIF objectives.
Two housing conditions can decide eligibility for municipalities in the provinces, and both are stated on the direct delivery page. Municipalities and regional governments in the provinces must adopt zoning for four units as-of-right per lot in all low-density residential areas with municipal servicing in communities with populations greater than 30,000, and must implement a three-year freeze on increasing development charges above the rates in effect as of 2 April 2024 in municipalities or regional governments with populations greater than 300,000. The conditions do not apply to municipalities in the territories or to Indigenous applicants. Check the Applicant guide, including its Annex B list of municipalities subject to the development charge freeze, for how these conditions apply to a specific municipality; the guide version opened for this guide also describes conditional approval where a municipality commits to the zoning change, with no funding until the requirement is fully implemented.
Assessment is merit-based. The direct delivery page states selection is based on eligibility criteria and achievement of a minimum merit score, as well as availability of funding. The applicant guide scores eligible projects on project rationale, housing needs addressed (including housing need, number of housing units enabled, support for known housing development, densification, and housing affordability), infrastructure needs addressed, benefits to environment and community, and priority and readiness. This guide does not try to predict a score; it states the criteria so an applicant can see what the form is asking for.
On money, use the February 2025 guide figures only as the published position at that date, and recheck the current guide. The guide states the maximum federal cost share as: up to 40% of total eligible expenditures for municipal or regional governments, public-sector bodies, and not-for-profit organizations in the provinces, rising to up to 50% for municipal or regional governments with a population of 30,000 and under; up to 75% for the same entity types in the territories; up to 100% for Indigenous recipients; and up to 25% for private sector for-profit bodies. Total funding from all orders of government cannot exceed 100% of total project costs, and total federal funding cannot exceed 100% of total eligible project costs. Eligible costs must be direct and necessary, incurred after project approval and before 30 September 2031, with the environmental assessment and Indigenous consultation exceptions and the retroactive eligibility window stated in the guide. Supporting documents may be required, including a Keyhole Markup Language (KML) file showing the location of proposed project activities with every application, and letters of support in some circumstances, such as confirming an eligible partner's role.
Each stream below uses the same portal account shape but its own guide and form. None of them was open on the pages opened for this guide, so this section states the published route and the closed status, rather than presenting an application you can submit today.
Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund. Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund: Applications process states applicants must meet minimum eligibility requirements, including that the organization is an eligible recipient, owns or will own the asset or has secured all necessary rights and interest in it, the submission is for expanding, improving, or building new public infrastructure that prevents, mitigates, or protects against climate change impacts on Canadian communities, excluding emergency services infrastructure and man-made disasters, total eligible cost is at least $1 million, the project is not solely for land acquisition, and the project will be substantially completed no later than 31 December 2032. Eligible applicants are invited to apply by creating an Applicant Account on the Infrastructure Canada Applicant Portal, and applicants unable to apply through the portal are asked to contact the DMAF team at infc.dmaf-faac.infc@canada.ca. The portal page states the call for proposals is now closed, so do not start a DMAF application until a new call is published.
Active Transportation Fund. The fund offers planning projects and capital projects. Planning projects involve developing or enhancing formal active transportation strategic planning documents or stakeholder engagement; capital projects involve new construction, enhancement of existing infrastructure, or improvements to design and safety features that encourage active transportation, according to Active Transportation Fund. The same page states capital projects are funded through contributions up to $50 million per project, with a maximum contribution rate between 60% and 100% depending on recipient and project location, and that individuals and for-profit organizations are not eligible. Those figures describe the fund as published; they are not an open offer while the intake is closed, and the contribution rate for any future intake must be rechecked in its applicant guide.
Green and Inclusive Community Buildings. The program page gives the program history and the contact for questions that the Applicant Guide cannot answer, gicbp-pbcvi@infc.gc.ca, on Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program. It states the Government of Canada announced up to $1.5 billion over five years in 2020 and Budget 2024 provided a $500 million top-up and extended the program until March 2029. No application step is published while the program is closed; a future intake would publish its own cost ranges and contribution rules, and the 2024 intake windows shown on the portal page must not be reused as current dates.
Canada Public Transit Fund, Baseline Funding. When open, this stream supports communities with existing transit systems through a Capital Plan setting out planned use of the allocation over several years, covering public transit and active transportation infrastructure, according to Baseline Funding stream. Applications could be submitted by transit agencies and transit asset owners meeting minimum criteria, including at least 3 years of historical ridership, population served, and capital investment data, fixed route service, a minimum average historical capital investment of $100,000 annually, and minimum annual ridership of 30,000. The same page states final funding allocations have been calculated and communicated, and lists federal cost shares of up to 40% of eligible costs for capital projects in provinces, up to 75% in territories, and up to 80% for non-capital projects. Those shares describe the closed intake; a future intake may set different terms.
Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund. The published call used a two-step process: certify the application meets the minimum requirements, then submit a complete application form covering a three-year project, evidence of short-term rental activity and housing need, the existing regulatory regime, objectives, activities, budget and staffing, timeline, and a plan to measure progress, according to Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund: Applicant guide. Only municipalities and Indigenous governing bodies could apply, each had to have a strict short-term rental regulatory regime and an enforcement and compliance program in place, and the guide states applicants not meeting all eligibility criteria would not be considered. The form was available from 16 December 2024 at 9:00 am Eastern Time through 24 January 2025 at 4:00 pm Eastern Time, and could be saved and retrieved as many times as necessary before the deadline. Quebec applicants needed a Ministerial Order under the Act respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif, and Alberta applicants were warned provincial approval may be required under the Provincial Priorities Act, 2024. Do not reuse this call's dates, amounts, or form; wait for a new call if one is published.
The Build Communities Strong Fund Direct Delivery stream is the one stream on the pages opened for this guide where a route remains described while project applications are closed. Build Communities Strong Fund Direct Delivery stream states the Direct Delivery stream is providing more than $6 billion over 10 years, starting in 2026-27, to support regionally significant projects, climate adaptation, and community infrastructure, and that projects are identified through various channels including those named in Budget 2025, an online portal, pipelines within existing programs, consultations, and public calls for expressions of interest.
Eligible proponents, from the same page, must be responsible for implementation and own, or be about to own, the asset. They are: a provincial or territorial government; a provincial or territorial public-sector body; a municipal or regional government; a municipal or regional public-sector body; a public-sector body including other forms of local governance; a public or not-for-profit institution authorised to deliver post-secondary courses or programs leading to recognised and transferable credentials; an incorporated not-for-profit organization; a private sector for-profit body working in collaboration with an eligible public-sector entity or eligible Indigenous applicant, with additional partner information and a letter of support required; and an Indigenous applicant as defined on the page. Private for-profit bodies not partnering as described, individuals and private citizens, and federal entities including federal Crown corporations are ineligible.
For a project that is not yet shovel-ready, the page describes an expression of interest: a process that lets proponents identify and describe potential projects at an early stage for future consideration, submitted through an email link headed Email us to Get started on the page, with HICC contacting only applicants shortlisted for next steps. This guide does not reproduce an email address or a list of required expression-of-interest contents, because neither was stated in the text of the page opened for this guide; use the link on the current page. Applicants seeking $1 million or less are encouraged to apply to the Local Impact Stream, for projects that build or improve community infrastructure accessible to the public, including community buildings, recreation facilities, and cultural facilities. The page directs applicants to the website of the Regional Development Agency serving their region, and marks several of those agencies Application closed on the page itself. Check the agency page for your region before acting.
For agreement streams, the application route is the agreement, not the HICC portal form. The CHIF provincial and territorial agreement stream is delivered by provinces and territories under bilateral agreements; the applicant guide states HICC will provide support to provinces and territories for which agreements have been finalised, and that a project may better align with that stream for the reasons in section 2. The Build Communities Strong Fund Community stream, formerly the Canada Community-Building Fund, provides upfront, predictable, long-term funding under renewed 10-year agreements starting in 2024-25, according to Community stream in Ontario. In Ontario the money is allocated per capita through the province, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and the City of Toronto, as set out in section 2. Other provinces and territories have their own agreement pages and administrators; find the page for yours and follow it. Do not treat a community stream allocation as a competitive HICC application, and do not send HICC a portal application for it.
Submitting a direct delivery application is not the end of the process. For CHIF, Direct Delivery stream states all applicants will be notified of results once projects are selected, and selected projects will be contacted about next steps. HICC may ask for additional information, including the Environmental Assessment and Indigenous Consultation Questionnaire. The applicant guide adds that no construction can start and no funding can flow until environmental assessment requirements and Indigenous consultation requirements are met, and that successful recipients must report on commitments throughout the life of the project, with reporting terms set out in the funding agreement, including progress reports and a final report. For the Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund, successful applicants were required to submit annual progress reports, and HICC could withhold funds or end the agreement in cases of noncompliance. Keep the portal account, the organization administrator role, and the contact details current after submission: HICC communicates results and follow-up requests through the contacts on file, and the Build Communities Strong Fund page states only successful applicants will be contacted.
No single application form covers every program. [Welcome to the HICC Applicant Portal](https://infrastructure-applicant.canada.ca/en/) states that you select a program from the page and are directed to the respective portal, then sign in or register. The portal page lists the Build Communities Strong Fund, the Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund, the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund, the Canada Public Transit Fund, the Public Transit Program, Reaching Home, the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, Green and Inclusive Community Buildings, the Veteran Homelessness Program, and the Research and Knowledge Initiative as separate entries. Work from the page for the single program and stream you are applying to, not from a general funding form.
The pages opened for this guide name neither credential. [Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund - Instructions on creating a secure account](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/housing-logement/chif-fcil/account-instructions-compte-eng.html) describes an email address and a password created for the HICC Funding Portal, and the Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund applicant guide describes registering with a valid email address and creating a username and password. Do not expect a GCKey or Sign-in Partner sign-in to open the HICC Funding Portal, because no opened HICC page states that either credential is used for it. If a program page you open states a different credential, follow that page.
Not as a general rule, and the answer depends on the stream. The Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund direct delivery stream lists municipal or regional governments, municipal public-sector bodies, incorporated not-for-profit organizations, private for-profit bodies working with an eligible public-sector entity or eligible Indigenous applicant, and Indigenous applicants as eligible, and lists individuals, private citizens, and stand-alone private for-profit bodies as ineligible, in [Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund: Before you apply - Applicant guide for the direct delivery stream (Fall 2024 intake)](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/housing-logement/chif-fcil/chif-applicant-guide-demandeur-fcil-eng.html). The Active Transportation Fund page states the same bar in shorter form: individuals and for-profit organizations are not eligible to apply. This guide makes no promise that any particular applicant qualifies; check the applicant guide for the stream you intend to use.
Who you apply to differs. [Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund: Before you apply - Applicant guide for the direct delivery stream (Fall 2024 intake)](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/housing-logement/chif-fcil/chif-applicant-guide-demandeur-fcil-eng.html) states the direct delivery stream is delivered by HICC directly to municipalities and other eligible recipients, while the provincial and territorial agreement stream is delivered by the provinces and territories. The same guide states a project may better align with the agreement stream if it is in early planning, relates to longer-term needs, the applicant is still adopting the housing conditions, or the applicant is from a rural or northern community and the project preserves existing capacity or improves reliability and access. A project cannot receive funding under both streams for the same project.
Several were closed. [Active Transportation Fund](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/trans/index-eng.html) states the application period is now closed and future intakes may be announced at a later date. [Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/gicb-bcvi/index-eng.html?wbdisable=true) states the application period is now closed. [Baseline Funding stream](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/cptf-ftcc/bf-fb/index-eng.html) states the intake period for an expression of interest is now closed, with future windows possible on a periodic basis. [Build Communities Strong Fund Direct Delivery stream](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/bcsf-fbcf/direct-delivery-prestation-directe/index-eng.html) states the online portal is now closed for project applications, with expressions of interest still described for projects that are not yet shovel-ready. The HICC Funding Portal page states the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund call for proposals is now closed and the Research and Knowledge Initiative call is now closed. Always recheck the program page on the day you act, because a closed intake can reopen and an open intake can close.
Through the province, territory, or administrator named for that agreement, not through the HICC Funding Portal application form. For the Build Communities Strong Fund Community stream in Ontario, [Community stream in Ontario](https://housing-infrastructure.canada.ca/ccbf-fdcc/pt/on-eng.html) states the allocation is made to the Government of Ontario, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and the City of Toronto, and is further allocated to ultimate recipients on a per-capita basis, with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario redistributing funds to municipalities. Find the equivalent agreement page for your province or territory and follow its administrator and process. Do not send a direct HICC application for a stream that is delivered by agreement.
No figure in this guide was carried from a secondary source. The following were cut because they could not be verified on an official page opened at draft time: whether the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund direct delivery intake is open on 3 November 2026 and any current opening or closing date for it, since the direct delivery page states the steps but no current intake date; the year and live status of the Build Communities Strong Fund banner dates of 14 October to 11 December, since the banner states no year and the body of the same page states the project portal is closed; any current contribution rate, cost range, or intake date for the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, Green and Inclusive Community Buildings, the Canada Public Transit Fund Targeted Funding and Metro-Region Agreement streams, or a new Short-Term Rental Enforcement Fund call, since no opened current page states them; any per-municipality allocation amount under the Community stream, since only the Ontario per-capita allocation mechanism was opened; any GCKey, Sign-in Partner, or two-step verification requirement for the HICC Funding Portal, since no opened page states one; the email address and required contents for a Build Communities Strong Fund expression of interest, since neither was stated in the text of the page opened; and any 2026 or later update to the February 2025 CHIF applicant guide figures, since only version 1.3 of that guide was opened. Check the program page linked above, or the current applicant guide for the stream, before relying on any of those points.