Visit the federal government's settlement funding page and you will find a sentence that surprises a lot of community groups: there are no open funding processes at this time. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the largest single funder of newcomer services in the country, last ran a national call for proposals that closed on January 31, 2024, and the agreements it produced run from April 2025 to March 2028. In 2026 the department went further and began renegotiating existing agreements downward to meet savings targets. For any organization looking for settlement grants right now, the message is clear: the federal door is mostly closed until the next cycle, so you need to know where else the money is.
This guide covers the full landscape of settlement grants and newcomer funding in Canada, from the big federal program to provincial streams, multiculturalism grants, and local sources, with a focus on what smaller organizations can realistically win.
How Settlement Funding Works in Canada
IRCC's Settlement Program funds a defined set of services: needs assessment and referrals, information and orientation, language training and skills development, employment-related services, and community connections. Eligible recipients include nonprofit organizations, educational institutions including school boards, and provincial, territorial, and municipal governments. Most funding is awarded through national calls for proposals that set multi-year agreements, which is why the field feels frozen between cycles.
Two practical steps keep you ready. First, sign up for IRCC's updates on new funding processes so you hear about the next call the day it opens. Second, build relationships now with organizations that already hold IRCC agreements. Many funded agencies subcontract or partner with smaller, community-rooted groups that reach newcomers they cannot.
If you are not a settlement agency, do not try to become one on paper. Funders want organizations that complement the settlement system, reaching people and needs that agencies cannot reach alone.
Provincial Settlement Grants: Alberta as an Example
Several provinces run their own newcomer programs alongside the federal system. Alberta's are a useful model of how they work.
Supports for Newcomer Integration grants
These Alberta grants fund ongoing settlement and language services through three streams: settlement and community support services, English as an additional language drop-in services, and language assessment and referral services. Current grants expire March 31, 2027, and the next service period is expected to run from April 2027 to March 2029, with the province indicating the application intake would take place in summer or fall 2026. Organizations that missed it should watch for the following cycle and use the gap to build their track record.
Settlement, Integration and Language Projects grants
This Alberta program funds time-limited projects of up to 24 months that strengthen the settlement, language, and integration system. Stream 1, Building Community Capacity, is open to nonprofits, municipalities, and economic development organizations with at least two years of relevant experience. Stream 2, Supporting Labour Market Attachment, funds training with a language component for unemployed or underemployed newcomers. The 2026-27 intake ran from August 10 to September 14, 2026, so future applicants should plan for a late-summer window.
Other provinces have their own equivalents, and they change frequently. Always confirm current guidelines on the funder's website before applying.
Other Funding for Organizations Serving Newcomers
Settlement funding is only part of the picture. Many of the most winnable grants for newcomer-serving groups sit in multiculturalism, sport, seniors, and employment programs.
| Program | Best fit | Key details |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Heritage Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program, Events component | Public events that bring cultural communities together | Up to $100,000 per event per fiscal year; windows January 13 to February 24, 2027 and May 12 to June 22, 2027 |
| Community Sport for All Initiative | Sport programs for newcomers and other underrepresented groups | Distributed through national sport organizations' open calls |
| New Horizons for Seniors Program | Projects led by or for seniors, including newcomer seniors | Federal community-based grants; intake timing varies by year |
| Canada Summer Jobs | Hiring youth for summer programs | Wage subsidies for nonprofits; applications typically open in winter |
| Community foundations and United Ways | Local programs, pilots and operating needs | Varies by community |
Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program
Canadian Heritage's Events component funds public events that foster intercultural or interfaith understanding, involve more than one cultural community, and are open to the general public. Nonprofits, unincorporated groups, municipalities under 10,000 people, and Indigenous organizations can apply, and the maximum is $100,000 per event per fiscal year. For 2026-27, the remaining windows run January 13 to February 24, 2027 for events from August to November 2027, and May 12 to June 22, 2027 for events from December 2027 to March 2028. A newcomer welcome festival designed with long-established local groups is a natural fit. Our Canadian Heritage funding guide covers the department's other programs.
Sport as a settlement tool
Sport is one of the fastest ways newcomer families build friendships and confidence, and funders know it. Sport Canada's Community Sport for All Initiative lists newcomers among its priority groups, and Canadian Heritage has funded multiculturalism-in-sport projects. Read our guide to multiculturalism in sport grants for how to frame these programs.
Seniors and youth
Newcomer seniors are often the most isolated members of their families. The New Horizons for Seniors Program funds community projects led by or involving seniors, and our New Horizons application guide walks through it. At the other end of the age range, Canada Summer Jobs can pay much of the wage cost of youth staff for summer programs, including bilingual or multilingual program leaders.
Positioning Your Organization
Whether you are an ethnocultural association, a faith community, a sport club, or a neighbourhood centre, funders will ask the same questions. Prepare answers to each:
- Who exactly do you serve? Describe the communities, languages, immigration categories, and life stages you reach, with numbers where you have them.
- What gap do you fill? Explain what existing settlement services do not provide and why newcomers come to you.
- Who do you work with? Show referral relationships with funded settlement agencies, schools, and health services. Formal referral agreements carry more weight than informal ones.
- How do you know it works? Track outcomes such as language confidence, employment connections, or social networks, and report them consistently.
- Are you governance-ready? Registered status, board oversight, financial statements, and policies such as a diversity and inclusion policy are often required, especially for provincial programs.
A Simple Plan for the Next 12 Months
- Subscribe to IRCC funding updates and your province's newcomer grant notices.
- List every intake window that fits your work on a single calendar, including Canadian Heritage, provincial streams, and local foundations.
- Pick one smaller, winnable grant to build a funded track record, especially if provincial programs require two years of experience.
- Formalize at least two partnerships with established settlement agencies.
- Start collecting outcome data now so your next application has evidence, not just intentions.
A worked example
Consider a hypothetical Calgary ethnocultural association that runs weekend conversation circles and a youth soccer program for newly arrived families. It is too small to compete for large settlement agreements, but it can apply to a community foundation for its conversation circles, pursue a Community Sport for All call through the national soccer body, and partner with a long-established cultural society on a Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program event. Meanwhile, a referral agreement with a funded settlement agency strengthens every application and positions the association for a provincial project grant once it has two years of results.
If you would rather spend your time with newcomer families than with application portals, our process handles the research, writing, and reporting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is IRCC accepting settlement funding applications right now?
IRCC's funding page has stated that there are no open funding processes. Its last national call for proposals closed on January 31, 2024, and the resulting agreements run from April 2025 to March 2028. Organizations can sign up for IRCC updates to be notified when new funding processes open.
Can small community groups get funding to serve newcomers?
Yes. Smaller groups often succeed with Canadian Heritage's Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program, community sport funding, New Horizons for Seniors, community foundations, and provincial project grants, especially when they partner with established settlement agencies.
What newcomer grants does Alberta offer?
Alberta offers Supports for Newcomer Integration grants for ongoing settlement and language services, and Settlement, Integration and Language Projects grants for time-limited projects of up to 24 months. Both run on scheduled intakes, so check the province's website for the next window.
How much can the Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program Events component provide?
The Events component can provide up to $100,000 per event per fiscal year, with the possibility of up to $200,000 over two fiscal years for recurring events. Events must be open to the public and involve more than one cultural community.
Serving newcomers and unsure which funding cycle to chase first? We can build your 12-month plan. Book a 10-minute discovery call.