First Nations, Inuit and Métis child and family services capacity-building funding
Funding to prepare to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services through the framework of An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families.
On this page
About the call for proposals
In 2020, the Government of Canada has committed over $542 million over 5 years, to support the implementation of An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families (the Act). In 2025, the commitment was extended for an additional 2 years.
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) recognizes that not all Indigenous groups, communities or peoples have the same readiness or resources to exercise their inherent jurisdiction in relation to child and family services under the Act. As part of our commitment to supporting the implementation of the Act, funding is available to support Indigenous groups, communities or peoples that hold rights recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 or their Indigenous governing bodies wishing to:
- explore readiness to exercise jurisdiction
- develop Indigenous child and family service legislation, service delivery models and programs prior to entering into coordination agreement discussions
All funding proposals or work plans submitted will be assessed based on the selection criteria and other information provided in this call for proposals. Prospective applicants are encouraged to submit their proposals.
We are committed to evolving this process based on lessons learned and feedback from Indigenous communities, Indigenous governing bodies and national Indigenous organizations.
Proposals for capacity-building funding will not be interpreted as a notice of intent to exercise jurisdiction under subsection 20(1) of the Act or as a request to enter into a coordination agreement under subsection 20(2) of the Act. An Indigenous governing body acting on behalf of an Indigenous group, community or people can submit their notice of intent to exercise jurisdiction and their request to enter into coordination agreement discussions by email to partenariats.partnerships@sac-isc.gc.ca.
Who can apply
- Indigenous groups, communities or peoples that hold rights recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982
- Indigenous governing bodies, as defined under the Act
- national Indigenous organizations, in order to advance culturally appropriate reform of child and family services
Deadlines
Funding submissions for the 2025-2026 fiscal year will be accepted continually until October 15, 2025.
The submission deadline has been introduced as a result of feedback from internal assessments and funding recipients. This change will:
- streamline the assessment and approvals process
- ensure funding decisions are made earlier in the fiscal year
- better support the timely implementation of funded activities
- provide recipients with more predictability and clarity for their internal planning
How to apply
Send an email to partenariats.partnerships@sac-isc.gc.ca with:
- your proposal (also known as a work plan)
- a detailed budget outlining expenditures linked to workplan activities
- records supporting the authorization of the Indigenous governing body
Only proposals submitted electronically will be considered. Please do not send links to files in the Cloud or on Internet servers, as ISC cannot access them.
- ISC will confirm receipt of your proposal via email.
- ISC may contact you for additional information, as required. ISC may communicate with the Indigenous governing body, or with the Indigenous group, community or people that hold the rights recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.
- You will be notified whether or not your proposal is approved.
Please note that submitting a proposal does not guarantee funding. Proposals are reviewed and assessed before funding decisions are made.
Application Tools
ISC has prepared 2 tools that may help you with the application process:
- the funding request form, also known as the work plan
- Enter 1271719 in the Filter items box on the Proposals, applications, work plans webpage under fiscal year 2025 to 2026.
- the budget tool
- Note: Formulas are embedded in the budget tool to facilitate adding subtotals and totals throughout. Adding or deleting rows may mean some of these formulas need an update. If you have any questions or need help submitting a proposal, email partenariats.partnerships@sac-isc.gc.ca or contact your regional ISC or Northern Affairs office.
These tools provide important guidelines, instructions and examples for submitting your proposals. We encourage you to refer to these tools as you develop your capacity-building funding request proposal and budget.
What to include in your application
Ensure your proposal clearly describes how each Indigenous group, community or people represented in the proposal meets the selection criteria. Provide contact information for the proposal applicant as well as each group, community or people represented in the proposal.
Workplans and budgets can be submitted in the format of your choice, but must include the level of detail found in the Capacity Building Funding Request Tool, such as:
- identify the capacity-building proposal type (single year or multi-year)
- describe each objective of the proposal or work plan:
- identify the community needs, and
- describe how capacity-building funding would address meeting each objective and link the objectives to your broader self-governance plans/priorities where applicable
- describe the activities required for each objective and outline the steps that will be taken to meet them
- activities should be specific, measurable, realistic and relevant to the proposal's objectives
- outline the various steps or milestones that reliably show your expected progress and plans to complete the activities on time and within budget
- describe the expected tangible results of each activity
- where applicable, describe the evaluation method and outcomes of the activities
Budgets should include:
- detailed descriptions and breakdowns of the expenses
- expenses linked to the activities in your work plan
If your proposal is multi-year, make sure that your detailed budget includes clear costing for each year.
If you have any questions or would like help submitting a proposal, contact us or your regional office.
Terms and conditions
ISC will be co-developing terms and conditions for this program with Indigenous communities, groups and people. In the meantime, in order to provide funding to applicants as soon as possible, ISC will use:
- Contributions to Support Service Transfer and Transformation for First Nations applicants
- Contributions for the Purpose of Consultation and Policy Development for Inuit applicants
- Federal Interlocutor's Contribution Program for Métis applicants
Consult the guidelines for more information on:
- supporting records
- the selection process
- eligible activities
- funding maximums
- reporting requirements
- definitions
Contact us
By email: partenariats.partnerships@sac-isc.gc.ca.
By phone or by mail, contact your regional office.