The term “indirect costs” refers to the central and departmental administrative costs that institutions incur to support research but are not attributable to specific research projects.
Overall, grants for indirect costs must add to, and not displace, any research support funds that postsecondary institutions have received from the provincial government, private sector or other federal sources.
Indirect Costs funds may be used to cover new expenditures as well as to maintain the current level of services to and support of an institution's research environment, and to generate improvements, innovations and efficiencies in its management.
Five expenditure categories
Eligible institutions have flexibility in deciding how to use their indirect research cost grants, provided that the funds are used for the payment of current expenditures attributed to federally-sponsored research that fall within the following five categories:
- Research facilities;
- Research resources;
- Management and administration of an institution's
research enterprise;
- Regulatory requirements and accreditation; and
- Intellectual property.
The following list of eligible and ineligible expenditures is not exhaustive.
If you have specific questions regarding your institution's eligible costs, contact:
Tamara Marshall
Program Officer
tamara.marshall@indirectcosts.gc.ca
613-995-3205
RESEARCH FACILITIES – Eligible expenditures
Renovation and maintenance of research facilities
Research facilities include libraries, laboratories, research networking spaces, offices of research and finance administration, and offices of social science and humanities researchers.
The purchase and/or refurbishing of furniture for research facilities is eligible.
Do not include expenditures to meet regulatory requirements in this category.
Upgrades and maintenance of research equipment and other devices
An "upgrade" is defined as replacing a part to make a piece of equipment more usable.
"Maintenance" (and/or "maintenance contracts") is defined as the upkeep or repair of equipment to improve or preserve efficiency.
Investments in air and water quality, or power upgrades (e.g., air conditioners, water purifiers, ventilation systems) are considered as upgrades/maintenance if these pieces of equipment support the research infrastructure's overall operation.
Do not include the purchase of computer hardware and software, or software licences, in this category. (See the Research resources and/or Management and administration of an institution's research enterprise categories.)
Operating costs
Operating costs include custodial, security, maintenance, utilities, and leasing costs; and costs for capital planning associated with research spaces and research equipment, and insurance on research spaces.
The purchase of materials used in operating research equipment such as cryogens for nuclear magnetic resonance imagers (NMR), liquid nitrogen, argon, oxygen, filters for flow chambers, O-rings, HP and HT greases and lubricants, batteries, and distilled water is eligible.
Technical support for laboratories, offices and other facilities
Operating costs include custodial, security, maintenance, utilities, and leasing costs; and costs for capital planning associated with research spaces and research equipment, and insurance on research spaces.
Include technical support for the creation, development and/or maintenance of an institutional website.
Do not include technical support for animal care in this category. (Such technical support should be included under Regulatory requirements and accreditation.)
RESEARCH FACILITIES – Ineligible expenditures
Purchase or construction of a building
Purchase of laboratory equipment, or any other equipment eligible for funding under other federal programs
The purchase of basic laboratory equipment is not eligible (e.g., test tubes, microscopes, Bunsen burners, sample containers, gloves, masks, coats).
Collateral on mortgage financing and payment of interest charges
Rental costs for space that is owned by the institution
Purchase or lease of land
Purchase of furniture for the offices of researchers
RESEARCH RESOURCES – Eligible expenditures
Acquisition of library holdings
Library holdings include journals, books, collections, periodicals and site licences (e.g., through the Canadian Research Knowledge Network).
Improved information resources
Include databases, telecommunications, information technology and research tools.
The purchase of computer hardware and software and software licences for libraries is eligible.
Do not include technology to track grant applications and to provide financial services in this category. (This must be reported under Management and administration of an institution's research enterprise).
Library operating costs and administration
Operating costs include custodial, security, maintenance, utilities, leasing and capital planning costs, and staff salaries.
The purchase of research computers, filing cabinets, photocopiers, scanners and supplies for the exclusive use of libraries is eligible.
Insurance on research equipment and vehicles
RESEARCH RESOURCES – Ineligible expenditures
Start-up grants or pilot studies
Purchase of hardware or software to be used in a specific research project and/or teaching exercise
MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF AN INSTITUTION'S RESEARCH ENTERPRISE – Eligible expenditures
Institutional support for the completion of grant applications / research proposals
Salaries and benefits for staff who work on grant applications and research proposals (e.g., grant facilitators, secretarial and administrative assistants), and the costs associated with grant-writing workshops are eligible.
Acquisition, maintenance and/or upgrade of information systems to track grant applications, certifications and awards
The purchase of computer hardware, software and software licences for the office of research is eligible.
Training of faculty and research personnel
Costs associated with professional development training, such as the use of software (e.g., accounting and human resources software) are eligible.
Costs associated with attending research administration-related conferences for professional development (e.g., CAURA, CAUBO) are eligible.
Do not include training necessary to meet regulatory requirements in this category.
Human resources and payroll
Salaries and benefits for employees who support the research enterprise (research, financial, human resources and purchasing offices) are eligible.
Salaries for students who provide administrative services are eligible. These employees must not already be funded through a direct research grant.
Financial and audit costs
Research planning and promotion, and public relations
Costs associated with corporate publications that highlight research (e.g., annual reports, newsletters, magazines, press releases) are eligible.
Travel costs associated with research promotion and international collaborations (for the institution’s research enterprise as a whole) are eligible.
MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF AN INSTITUTION'S RESEARCH ENTERPRISE – Ineligible expenditures
Indirect costs related to Canada Research Chairs
Recruitment of new faculty
Support for fellowships, scholarships and stipends
Research time stipends / teaching release
Costs associated with collective agreements
Costs for scholarly conferences, or expenses associated with presenting papers and findings at national or international conferences
Costs of publication for scientific journals
REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS AND ACCREDITATION – Eligible expenditures
Creation and support of regulatory bodies
Costs associated with research ethics boards (REB) may include paying for a portion of a board member?s salary and mileage costs associated with travelling to board meetings.
Training of faculty and other research personnel in health and safety, animal care, ethics review, handling radiation and biohazards, and environmental assessments
International accreditation costs related to research capacity
Upgrades and maintenance of research facilities and equipment to meet regulatory requirements
Technical support for animal care and for handling of dangerous substances and biohazards
The purchase of animals exclusively used for training purposes (not research)
REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS AND ACCREDITATION – Ineligible expenditures
Purchase of animals for research purposes
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY – Eligible expenditures
Creation, expansion or sustenance of a technology transfer office or similar function
Administration of invention patent applications
Support for technology licensing
Legal fees for technology licensing are eligible.
Administration of agreements and partnerships with industry
Development of incubators
Support for the creation of spin-off companies
Outreach activities undertaken to transfer knowledge through venues not eligible for funding under other federal programs
Costs associated with research conferences, symposiums or lectures are eligible if the general public is the target audience.
Marketing of teaching materials, scientific photo libraries, survey instruments, statistical packages, data sets and databases, software, computer models and other tools