2. Eligibility
Check if you meet the criteria to apply.
Eligibility checklist
You must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible.
You need to meet all the eligibility criteria to qualify for the program.
The term 'poultry and/or egg producers' includes Canadian:
- chicken producers
- turkey producers
- turkey breeders
- egg producers
- broiler hatching egg producers
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) works with the national and provincial organizations who represent the poultry and egg sectors to establish and confirm eligible producers.
If you intend to sell or transfer your quota (or are considering doing so) and have not yet accessed your full PEFIP funding allocation, please contact the program as soon as possible, as any changes could affect your eligibility.
Ineligible applicants
Poultry and egg producers not identified above, and educational or academic institutions holding quota are ineligible.
Maximum eligible funding amount
Funding is allocated by sector (chicken, turkey, eggs, and hatching eggs) and by province according to the provincial shares of the national quota/production. Your maximum funding amount under the program (also known as your funding allocation) is determined based on your share of provincial quota/production holdings on January 1, 2021, as identified by your respective provincial marketing board.
You must register with the program to verify your license and confirm your maximum funding amount.
You can submit more than 1 project application at the same time or over the life of the program, so long as your maximum funding amount is not exceeded.
Note:
- A funding allocation is not transferrable when the quota/share of production has been sold after January 1, 2021, with the exception of intergenerational transfers of quota/share of production.
Transfer a funding allocation
To transfer a funding allocation, the producer to which the allocation would be transferred must be a "child" consistent with the definition used by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for intergenerational farm transfers.
CRA defines "child" to be:
- a child, grandchild, or great-grandchild of an individual or of that individual's spouse or common law partner, or a person who has been fully dependent on the individual before the person attained the age of 19 years.
The current/new owners are responsible for requesting the reallocation of funds and providing the necessary information to the program so that the transfer of quota/share of production can be confirmed with the relevant provincial organization. For more information about intergenerational farm transfers, please contact the program.
- A funding allocation cannot be split or divided except in cases of quota splitting, where the original owners of the initial license remain owners under a new split structure. Also, the new split structure should result in the same share of quota/production that was used to determine the original funding allocations (quota/share of production from January 1, 2021). Funding allocation sales to other parties are not eligible.
Split a funding allocation
If a partnership or group of owners are seeking to split their funding allocation(s), they must:
- notify their provincial marketing board to request the split of the quota/share of production.
- notify the program to request the split of the funding allocation(s).
- identify the proportions to be assigned to each party
- provide the reason for the request and supporting documentation as requested (such as, relevant/new license numbers, articles of incorporation, etc.).
We'll confirm the ownership split request with the provincial board and once confirmed, we'll update the funding allocation(s) in the program's online system.
Eligible project period
You can apply for projects that will be completed before or on March 31, 2031 and costs that will be incurrednote 2 before or on March 31, 2031.
You can also apply for projects that have already started, or have been completed, subject to certain conditions. You can apply for eligible activities that started on or after March 19, 2019 and costs that were incurred on or after March 19, 2019. However, you assume the risk of not being reimbursed if:
- the project is not approved
- the costs are deemed ineligible
Any costs incurred prior to the establishment of a contribution agreement are incurred solely at your risk without obligation of reimbursement by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Eligible activities
All activities must relate to one or more of the program objectives.
Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:
- hiring of external expertise to assess how the poultry and/or egg farm enterprise can improve efficiencies and productivity
- construction of new infrastructure or expansion of infrastructure
- building retrofits
- purchase of equipment and/or fit-ups of current facilities related to the installation and operation of equipment
- conversion of poultry housing system
- shipping, transportation and installation of eligible assets/materials (for example: construction materials, equipment, commercial off-the-shelf software and IT infrastructure)
- training related to other eligible project activities
Note: A project may be any combination of eligible activities that contributes to achieving at least one of the program's objectives.
Examples of equipment and improvements by category
Note: These examples are intended for guidance only and does not guarantee that a project or piece of equipment will be approved.
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Biosecurity, cleaning and disinfection |
|
| Buildings |
|
| Dead stock management |
|
| Drinking systems |
|
| Egg handling |
|
| Emergency management |
|
| Enriched housing systems |
|
| Feeding equipment |
|
| Heating and cooling systems |
|
| Lighting |
|
| Litter, bedding |
|
| Monitoring production metrics |
|
| Manure management |
|
| Pest control |
|
| Renewable and alternate energy sources |
|
| Surveillance systems |
|
| Ventilation systems |
|
Eligible costs
Eligible costs are the costs directly related to the project and must respect all conditions and limitations set out in these program guidelines, and the contribution agreement, if the project is approved.
Eligible types of costs include:
Costs of capital assets including:
- planning, design and construction of new infrastructure
- architectural and engineering plans of new infrastructure and retrofits
- construction permits/licenses
- the acquisition of commercial off-the-shelf software that pertains to poultry and/or egg production
- equipment and accessories pertaining to poultry and/or egg production
- utility provider fees related to set-up of new infrastructure
- labour, tool rental, machinery rental and material pertaining to:
- new infrastructure and retrofits
- transportation and installation of eligible assets/materials
- transportation and installation costs of eligible assets/materials
Note
- The program does not have a predetermined list of eligible equipment
- Used equipment purchased through private sale is ineligible
- However, the program will accept used or refurbished equipment purchased from commercial retailers and/or authorized resellers
- Equipment purchased must be an improvement and you must provide a rationale for it in relation to what was there before
- "Equivalent" equipment purchases are not eligible
Contracted services, for example:
- consulting fees related to eligible activities
- required training to properly operate the eligible equipment, accessories and commercial off-the-shelf software
Note
- The term "contracted services" is intended to include costs such as hiring a consultant to advise on how to make an operation more efficient, or hiring an environmental specialist to help identify ways to improve environmental sustainability
- Costs related to a capital asset (including labour and materials for installation, construction or retrofit) should be considered a Capital Asset cost, even if incurred through a contractor
- Consultant fees are only eligible if the application also includes the implementation of some or all of the consultant's report/recommendations
Salaries and benefits that pertain to:
- transportation and installation of eligible assets/materials
- new infrastructure and retrofits
Calculate salaries and benefits costs
Eligible costs for salaries and benefits are limited to incremental costs (costs above regular ongoing or recurring costs) only, for salaries and benefits of:
- an employee on your payroll
- temporary personnel hired to work on the project
- temporary personnel to replace employees on the your payroll
The work undertaken must be for:
- transportation and installation of eligible assets/materials
- training
- construction of new infrastructure or expansion of infrastructure
- building retrofits
Benefits are defined as employment costs paid by the employer and may include the following:
- Employer's portion of CPP/QPP
- Employer's portion of Employment Insurance (EI)
- Employer's portion of group insurance
- Employer's Pension contributions
The form and the instructions to download and save the form are available on this page.
You may submit a completed Calculation Worksheet - Planned / Actual Salaries and Benefits Cost form (PDF) instead of a quote (for a planned cost) or an invoice (for an actual cost) for a Salaries and Benefits cost. In addition, you aren't required to submit proof of payment for actual costs of salaries and benefits. However, you must keep the records relating to salaries and benefits (for example, pay stubs, timesheets, and benefit statements used to arrive at the calculations, proof of payment) on file for 7 years in case of an audit. You may also be asked to provide the records as part of the project application or claim assessment.
If you have trouble downloading, saving and opening a PDF form
- Use your computer: the form may not open on mobile devices (iPads, tablets, mobile phones).
- Make sure you have Adobe Reader 11 (or higher) already installed on your computer.
- If not, download Adobe Acrobat Reader 11 or higher for free.
- For help, visit Adobe for solving common issues.
If you can't open the form with Adobe Acrobat Reader 11 or higher, contact the program.
To download, save and open a PDF form
- Right-click the link you want to save
- Click Save link as (or Save target as, Download linked file, etc.)
- Choose the location on your computer where you would like to save the form
- Click Save
- Open Adobe Acrobat Reader 11 or higher
- Click File
- Click Open
- Go to the location where you saved the form
- Click the PDF form
- Click Open
Other non-recurring costs that modernize operations, increase efficiency, biosecurity, environmental sustainability, and/or meet changing consumer demands.
Ineligible costs
Ineligible project costs are, but not limited to, the following:
- activities starting or any costs incurred before March 19, 2019, or incurred after March 31, 2031
- the purchase of quota
- animal purchases (replacing or increasing flock)
- general farm use costs (such as pick-up trucks)
- share of investment not related to poultry and egg production
- used equipment purchased through private sale (used or refurbished equipment purchased through commercial retailers or authorized resellers is eligible)
- spare parts
- cost to replace equipment on a like-for-like basis (cost to upgrade equipment is eligible)
- equipment for geese, ducks or other non-supply managed uses
- compliance with the Impact Assessment Act (IAA), if applicable
- Goods and Services Tax (GST), Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) and value-added taxes
- supplier rebates, refunds, discounts
- share of costs being reimbursed under an existing federal, provincial, territorial or municipal program
- acquisition of land or existing buildings
- capital assets not specifically required for the project
- any costs which cannot be directly tied to the project and which are part of ongoing operations including normal salaries and benefits
- business goodwill
- legal fees
- hospitality (for example: meals, entertainment and gifts)
- clothing
- ongoing support costs for items such as: software licenses, troubleshooting and upgrades, and machinery maintenance or repair
- post-production costs
- planning costs to apply for funding, administration costs to process invoices, and other internal costs
- marketing costs
- any portion of any cost that, in AAFC's opinion, exceeds the fair market value for that cost item
- project activities pertaining to supporting industry efforts to lobby or influence governments
- surcharges or penalties incurred as a result of late payment of an invoice
- banking/credit card fees and interest charges
- bartering
- any other costs incurred by eligible applicants and not otherwise listed as eligible, may be ineligible for reimbursement
Ineligible expenses may be identified during the project assessment and/or processing of a claim for expense reimbursement. Applicants may be asked to indicate what percentage of a cost relates to poultry and egg production versus other uses.