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Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards (CIRTA)

Award Overview

Purpose

On December 9, the Government of Canada announced the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative, which aims to support universities to attract new research chairs, hundreds of early-career researchers, doctoral students, and postdocs from abroad. Part of this broader initiative is the Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards.

These awards are a one-time initiative designed to recruit international or returning Canadian doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers to Canada in eight priority research areas, helping build capacity, strengthen the research ecosystem, and enhance Canada’s global competitiveness.

The priority research areas for this initiative are the following:

  1. Advanced digital technologies (AI, quantum, cybersecurity)
  2. Health, including biotechnology
  3. Clean technology and resource value chains
  4. Environment, climate resilience, and the Arctic
  5. Food and water security
  6. Democratic and community resilience
  7. Manufacturing and advanced materials
  8. Defence and dual-use technologies

Nationally, 600 doctoral awards and 400 postdoctoral awards have been distributed across Canadian institutions based on each institution’s share of Tri-agency funding. The University of Toronto, in turn, has allocated its share of these awards to its academic divisions and affiliated hospitals to administer.

Eligibility

The federal government has established baseline eligibility criteria for this program. The following requirements reflect the criteria for nominations submitted through the University of Toronto’s allocation.

Nominators (all Faculty members/Principal investigators) must:

  1. Be the primary grant holder* (Nominated Principal Applicant/Investigator or Principal Investigator) on an eligible active** Tri-agency grant (see list of eligible grants***) and receiving a payment or have a planned payment between April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2027); and
  2. Have expertise in one of the eight priority research areas (the active grant does not have to be for research in the priority research areas).

*A co-applicant, co-investigator or collaborator is not eligible

**A grant in its automatic extension year is not eligible

*** All Canada Research Chairs are eligible

 

Additional Requirements for Nominators

Nominators recruiting doctoral students must:

  • Hold Full Graduate Faculty Membership with the School of Graduate Studies allowing doctoral supervision;
  • Commit to supervising the nominee to completion of their degree and fulfilling the normal funding commitment for doctoral students in their program (including beyond Year 3); and
  • Have received endorsement from the Graduate Chair of the Graduate Unit where the doctoral student nominee will be registered.

Nominators recruiting postdoctoral researchers must:

  • Commit to supervising the nominee to completion of their postdoctoral engagement; and
  • Have received endorsement from the Budgetary Chair in the unit/department where the postdoctoral fellow nominee will be engaged (for U of T based postdocs) .

 

Nominees (Doctoral Students and Postdoctoral Researchers):

  1. Must not be affiliated with a Canadian institution at the time of nomination;
  2. Must be currently studying or working abroad; and
  3. Proposed research is in one of the eight priority research areas.

Additional Requirements for Nominees

Doctoral Nominees must:

  • Have applied for admission to a funded doctoral program within the School of Graduate Studies (PhD or SJD) to start in September 2026 or January 2027

Postdoctoral Researcher Nominees must:

  • Be eligible to commence a postdoctoral (trainee) engagement prior to March 31, 2027

Nomination Process

This award program operates through a faculty nomination process. U of T academic divisions and affiliated hospitals with allocations, will develop local processes to identify eligible faculty members to receive an institutional nomination. Interested faculty members and principal investigators are encouraged to contact their Divisional or Hospital Research Office for information on their local nomination processes.

  • Faculty members who have been identified to receive a nomination (nominators) are granted the opportunity to recruit a new doctoral student or postdoctoral researcher (nominee)
  • One nomination allows the nominator to recruit one individual
  • The award will support the student’s or postdoctoral fellow’s funding throughout the period of the award

Interested students and postdoctoral researchers who meet the eligibility criteria are encouraged to contact their proposed doctoral supervisor or faculty member to express their interest in being nominated.

Award Holder Information

Postdoctoral award Instructions are posted below the doctoral awards

If you intend to decline your award, please CC graduate.awards@utoronto.ca when you send your response to the appropriate tri-agency.

Accepting and Activating Payment – CIRTA Doctoral Awards

Verify that you meet the terms and conditions to hold your federal award and understand the responsibilities of award holders as described in the Tri-Agency Research Training Award Holder’s Guide. Follow the acceptance and payment activation procedures as outlined below under the respective granting agency.

Start date: Students should start the award upon first registration in their doctoral program (i.e., September 1st or January 1st).

Please contact the respective granting agency directly by email to request and receive approval for any change to your start date.

Review the SGS Payment Policy

Review the SGS Payment Policy posted on the SGS website for detailed information on how award payments are made, when the payments are made, and the method of the payments.

Federal awards are paid in equal instalments at the beginning of each academic session. If you choose to “Register Without Payment” in September, your winter and summer instalments will go to pay down your ACORN account fees balance first. Be sure to review and understand the Register Without Payment terms and conditions posted on the SGS website before you choose this option. Be sure to set up direct deposit and a current mailing address on ACORN so that payments arrive as timely as possible.

CIHR CIRTA Doctoral Awards (at U of T)

Successful CIHR CIRTA nominees who indicated U of T as their “institution paid” will activate their award through their graduate department and the Graduate Awards Office. The following steps must be completed to activate payment:

  1. Download your “Response to an Offer of Award” form from ResearchNet. CIHR created ResearchNet accounts (and CIHR PINs) for each nominee who didn’t already have one using the email address they provided in the nomination form. You should have received an email on April 1st or 2nd, but may need to check your spam folder. Feel welcome to email CIHR if you’re experiencing issues accessing your documents.
    The “Institution Signature at Primary Location of Research” should be provided by your department’s Graduate Coordinator or Graduate Administrator. A “Dean or Research Director Signature” is not required for this award.
  2. Email the Response form to CIHR (cirta-bfric@cihr-irsc.gc.ca, not the support email on the form) and CC graduate.awards@utoronto.ca. This step should be completed as soon as possible regardless of your proposed start date, as CIHR requires that you submit the form to them within 15 business days of it becoming available to you online.
  3. Two months before your proposed award start date, a “Confirmation of Commencement” form will appear on ResearchNet. Complete the form with all required signatures, then email the form to CIHR and CC graduate.awards@utoronto.ca.
  4. Complete the self-ID questionnaire on ResearchNet if you haven’t already.
  5. After all required forms have been submitted to CIHR, an Authorization for Funding (AFF) document will be issued to you and the University, confirming that funding is being released.
  6. If you have requested and received approval from CIHR for a change in start date, please also forward a copy of CIHR’s approval to graduate.awards@utoronto.ca.

The method of payment and schedule for payments are described on the SGS How to Activate & Maintain Your Award webpage.

 

NSERC/SSHRC CIRTA Doctoral Awards

To accept the award, email NSERC (cirta-bfric@nserc-crsng.gc.ca) or SSHRC (cirta-bfric@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca) of your decision within 21 calendar days of your award notification.

Payment of an NSERC/SSHRC doctoral can only be requested starting as early as six weeks in advance of the start of the award (see table below).

To arrange for payment of an NSERC/SSHRC doctoral award:

  1. Download the Request for First Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid by Canadian Institution form.
  2. Enter the information required based on the information you received in your award offer letter (list UofT as institution).
  3. Obtain all required signatures: Part 4 from “an awards administration officer at the host institution” should be signed by the Graduate Coordinator/ Director/ Administrator from your U of T graduate unit/department.
  4. Upload the completed Request for First Instalment Form to NSERC’s form and supporting documentation submission site or SSHRC’s form and supporting documentation submission site AND the SGS Graduate Awards NSERC/SSHRC doc submission site (available in late April), starting no earlier than six weeks in advance of the start of the award (see table below). This will ensure your award funds are issued to U of T for payment.
  5. If you have requested and received approval from NSERC/SSHRC for a change in start date, please also include it with your Request for First Instalment Form.
Award start date Request for First Instalment Form earliest submission date
September 1st Mid-July
January 1st Mid-November

Funds can only be issued once NSERC/SSHRC has processed the form and transferred funds to the University which usually takes six weeks.

The method of payment and schedule for payments are described on the SGS How to Activate & Maintain Your Award webpage.

 

Accepting and Activating Payment – Impact+ Postdoctoral Awards at the University of Toronto

Note: CIHR postdoctoral awardees located at affiliated hospitals must follow their respective hospital payment activation instructions.

CIHR CIRTA Postdoctoral awards:

Successful CIHR CIRTA nominees who indicated U of T as their “institution paid” will activate their award through the Graduate Awards Office at the School of Graduate Studies (SGS). The following steps must be completed to activate payment:

  1. Download your “Response to an Offer of Award” form from ResearchNet. CIHR created ResearchNet accounts (and CIHR PINs) for each nominee who didn’t already have one using the email address they provided in the nomination form. You should have received an email from ResearchNet on April 1st or 2nd, but may need to check your spam folder. Feel welcome to email CIHR if you’re experiencing issues accessing your documents. Complete and sign and email the form as a PDF attachment to sgs.postdoc.awards@utoronto.ca. SGS will provide the “Institution Signature at Primary Location of Research”. A “Dean or Research Director Signature” is not required for this award. The Graduate Awards Office will submit the form to CIHR (cirta-bfric@cihr-irsc.gc.ca) on your behalf copying you and your departmental Business Officer/Manager. This step should be completed as soon as possible regardless of your proposed start date, as CIHR requires that you submit the form to them within 15 business days of it becoming available to you online.
  2. Two months before your proposed award start date, a “Confirmation of Commencement” (CoC) form will appear on ResearchNet. For awardees activating in April, May, or June, their CoC will be available as soon as CIHR has processed their response to offer of award.
  3. Complete the form with all required signatures, then submit the form to CIHR by email and CC sgs.postdoc.awards@utoronto.ca.
  4. All postdoctoral awardees must provide proof that they completed the requirements of their doctoral degree or equivalent before starting their award. Complete the Degree completion form (parts 1, 3, and 4). You can omit Part 2, as CIHR will complete that section on your behalf. If you are unable to complete the form (e.g. your doctoral institution is unable to sign the form), CIHR can accept a copy of the diploma/degree in its place.
  5. Complete the self-ID questionnaire on ResearchNet if you haven’t already.
  6. After all required forms have been submitted to CIHR, an Authorization for Funding (AFF) document will be issued to you and the University, confirming that funding is being released.
  7. If you have requested and received approval from CIHR for a change in start date, please also forward a copy of CIHR’s approval to sgs.postdoc.awards@utoronto.ca.

 

 

NSERC/SSHRC CIRTA Postdoctoral awards:

  1. Note: NSERC/SSHRC postdoctoral awards allocated to affiliated hospitals must have fellowships paid through U of T.
  2. Review the Tri-agency research training award holder’s guide for policies and requirements for holding the award, such as acceptance, start date, deferment, paid parental leave, early termination, etc.
  3. To accept the award: NSERC/SSHRC CIRTA postdoc recipients must email NSERC or  SSHRC of their decision within 21 calendar days of their award offer letter.
  4. To arrange for payment: Starting six weeks before the start of the award (and no earlier), the Request for First Instalment and Reinstatement of Award Paid by Canadian Institution form must be completed by the award holder.
    • Part 4: Confirmation of Status, of the form, must be completed and signed by the awardee’s Departmental Chair or Business Officer/Manager to confirm they are engaged in full-time research (the form does not need to be signed by SGS and cannot be signed by the Supervisor)
    • The signed form should then be uploaded to the appropriate NSERC/SSHRC secure submission site. Please also email a copy to the SGS Postdoctoral Awards Office at sgs.postdoc.awards@utoronto.ca.
  5. Change in start date: Awardees must request and receive approval from NSERC/SSHRC for a change in start date. If approval is received, please also forward NSERC/SSHRC’s email approval to SGS, if SGS wasn’t already copied.

The department/unit at which you are taking up the award will need to “hire” you and provide you with a letter of engagement and set up your profile on payroll.  If you do not know who your departmental/unit Manager/Business Officer is, please ask your supervisor with which you’re taking up the award. Your supervisor or departmental/unit Manager/Business Officer will inform you what personal information/biographical details are needed from you and required documents (for e.g. passport/photo Id) for the letter of offer (employment contract).

 

For all postdoctoral fellows at U of T:

Closer to your start date, you are to register with the SGS Postdoc Office. For those arriving from outside Toronto, registration is usually after having arrived in the city. Please reach out to the SGS Postdoctoral Office to register, issue your UTORid, give instructions for setting up your UofT email address, picking up your TCard, instructions for enrolling in the GSC plan as well as other information about being a postdoc with UofT.

U of T does not deduct income taxes from tri-agency CIRTA payments so please be sure to set aside funds to pay income taxes directly to Canada Revenue Agency.

Note that SGS enters and manages the CIRTA funding only. Any other external awards and top-ups payments are managed by your departmental/unit Manager/Business Officer.

CIRTA Payment Instructions for Business Officers/Dept Managers

 

 

Progress Reports (to initiate the subsequent year(s) of funding)​ – for doctoral students only

According to the reporting requirements as outlined in the Tri-Agency Research Training Award Holder’s Guide, NSERC and SSHRC doctoral award holders with multi-year awards must renew their award annually by completing the Annual Progress Report for NSERC/SSHRC Award Holders form on the online SGS Forms Tool system. The granting agencies may cancel any award if the award holder fails to demonstrate satisfactory progress. The completed form is due to your graduate administrator at least one month before the annual start date of your award (see table below).

A copy of the report should be kept by the graduate unit in the student’s academic file.

Start Session of Award Progress Report Due Date* Payment Disbursed
September August 1 Early September
January December 1 Early January

*Late progress reports will be accepted; however, payment is not guaranteed by the above dates for late submissions.

Requests for Interruptions

Students who are planning to take a leave of absence from their studies are required to request an interruption of their federal award. Submit a completed Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award form along with the SGS Leave of Absence form, signed by you and your supervisor, to your graduate dept/unit administrator for approval and institutional signature. The completed Tri-Agency Interruption form must then be submitted to the appropriate SGS Graduate Awards Officer (see contacts below) for processing and notifying the granting agencies.

Paid Parental Leaves

Federal award holders may interrupt their award for a period of up to 12 months for paid parental leave. The period of paid leave is in addition to the duration of the award and must coincide with the student’s registration on ACORN. For additional information, review the Tri-Agency Research Training Award Holder’s Guide.

Early completions

For awards terminated due to degree completion, the end date of the award will become the end date of the academic term in which the degree requirements are completed. If the degree requirements are completed in the same academic term as the end date of the award, then the end date of the award will not change.

Award holders remain eligible up to the completion of degree requirements whether or not they are registered for the academic term in which the degree requirements are completed. However, those who withdraw part away through a session may be required to repay funds already received depending on the sessional registration.

Contacts & Resources

Faculty/PI Nominators:

Interested faculty members and principal investigators are encouraged to contact their Divisional or Hospital Research Office for information on their local nomination processes.

Student and Postdoctoral Researcher Nominees:

Interested doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers who meet the eligibility criteria are encouraged to contact their proposed doctoral supervisor or faculty member to express their interest in being nominated.

Program Information: Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards Q&A