Tri-agency Research Training Award Holder’s Guide

Table of contents

• Definitions
• Research training programs covered
• Contact information
• General regulations
• Value and duration of award
• Acceptance or decline of award
• Confirmation of doctoral degree completion (postdoctoral only)
• Start date
• Change of start date
• Deferment of start date
• Payment of award
• Awards paid by Canadian institutions
• Awards paid directly to award holders
• Payment schedule for awards paid directly to award holders
• Payment method
• Part-time support
• Interruption of award
• Unpaid interruptions
• Paid interruption
• Reinstatement of award
• Changes to the award
• Changes to personal contact information
• Change to institution/place of tenure
• Changes to department or faculty
• Change of supervisor(s)
• Changes to the program of study, research project or degree
• Other sources of income (employment and other awards)
• Reporting
• Reporting requirements specific to each funding opportunity
• Termination of award
• Taxation and immigration
• Post-award forms
• Direct deposit form

Unless otherwise indicated, the policies and requirements in this guide apply to all three agencies. In the event of a discrepancy between this guide and the literature specific to an individual funding opportunity, the literature concerning the individual funding opportunity takes precedence.

Definitions

Agency: any of the three federal granting agencies — CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC.
Award holder: individual who has an active award from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC.
Award recipient: individual who has been offered an award from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC, but has not yet activated payment for that award.
Award: funding offered or directly held (in the award holder’s name) from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC at the master’s, doctoral or postdoctoral level or equivalent.
CGS: Canada Graduate Scholarships.
CGS D: Canada Graduate Scholarships–Doctoral.
CGS M: Canada Graduate Scholarships–Master’s.
CIHR: Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Decision documents: the document package (including attachments) received by the applicants, informing them of their success in the funding opportunity competition. For CIHR, this may include the Authorization for Funding document, which is sent after the first instalment is requested.
Deferment: a delay in the start date of the award beyond the available start dates outlined in the available start dates table.
Degree completion: the point at which all the requirements of your degree have been met, including successful defence and submission of the corrected copy of your thesis (in accordance with your institution's regulations); it is not the conferred or convocation date.
Full-time: established according to institutional regulations; full-time hours vary by province and country.
Interruption: a period of leave during the tenure of award.
Medical leave: a leave for reasons of illness, disability and/or injury.
NSERC: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
Parent linked award: for CIHR Priority Announcements, the parent linked award is the primary competition (also referred to as the “open” competition) to which a candidate applied for funding; for example, at the doctoral level, CIHR applicants apply to the open doctoral competition and may also choose to apply to an additional Priority Announcement within the open competition. 
Parental leave: a leave of absence offered to parents who are caring for a newborn or newly adopted child; this leave may begin no later than six months after the birth or adoption of a child.
Part-time: constitutes any amount of time less than full-time hours established according to institutional regulations; this amount is based on the accommodation needs of the award holder.
PDF: Postdoctoral Fellowships.
PGS D: Postgraduate Scholarships-Doctoral.
Primary caregiver: the person primarily responsible for the care and upbringing of a child.
Relevant work experience: in the context of an interruption of an award, work that is relevant to the area of study and that provides an opportunity to develop professional and technical skills that will complement the award holder’s qualifications, beyond what can be acquired in the current program of study.
SSHRC: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Tri-agency: relating to the three federal granting agencies.

Research training programs covered

*These opportunities are covered by this guide and should follow the rules for their parent award (as applicable).

**The CGS M Program is administered by Canadian institutions on behalf of the agencies; all inquiries regarding this program should be directed to the Faculty of Graduate Studies (or its equivalent) at the host institution.

For supplements and prizes, refer to the website of the relevant agency.

Contact information

Consult the appropriate section of this guide to determine whether to use a program, awards administration or direct deposit contact.

General regulations

Award holders must:

• abide by the terms and conditions of the award as set out in this guide, the funding opportunity and the decision documents sent by the agency;
• have met all the eligibility requirements as outlined in the funding opportunity at the time of application;
• be engaged full-time in research or be registered full-time in the program of study for which they were funded (unless they hold their award part-time for parental or medical reasons, and/or because of family-related responsibilities);
• be engaged in eligible research under the mandate of the agency to which the application was submitted;
• be progressing satisfactorily in the research or studies for which they were funded;
• immediately inform the agency of any discontinuation of studies or research, temporary or permanent, during the tenure of the award.

The agencies reserve the right to interpret these regulations and any conditions applied to individual awards.

The agencies reserve the right to cancel an award if any of these regulations are not followed or if the award holder does not maintain their eligibility. Payments made for a period during which the award holder is no longer eligible to receive funds must be reimbursed to the agency.

Value and duration of award

The value and duration of the award, detailed in the decision documentssent by the agency, will be adjusted to take into account a change in status (for example, termination of graduate studies or discontinuation of full-time studies or research).

Acceptance or decline of award

The agency must be notified of the acceptance or decline of the award by the date indicated in the decision documents sent by the agency. An offer must be accepted even if the award recipient intends to defer the start date of the award.

CGS M
Offers must be accepted or declined through the  ResearchNet.

All CIHR awards, Vanier CGS and Banting PDF
Offers must be accepted or declined by completing the Response to Offer task in and other required steps, if applicable.

All NSERC and SSHRC awards
Award recipients must accept or decline by sending an email to the appropriate program contact, stating whether they accept or decline, and confirming the start date.

For awards held outside of Canada and for all PDF awards:

• Canadian citizens must provide a copy of an official document indicating their citizenship (for example, birth certificate, citizenship card or passport).
• Permanent residents of Canada must provide a copy of an official document indicating their landing date in Canada (for example, IMM 1442, IMM 5292, IMM 1000 or permanent resident card); if the landing date was after the application deadline, NSERC or SSHRC will cancel the offer of award.

Confirmation of doctoral degree completion (postdoctoral only)

All postdoctoral award recipients who had not completed their degree at the time of application must provide proof of degree completion before commencing their award. They should complete the Degree Completion form and send it to the appropriate program contact by the deadline indicated in the funding opportunity.

Start date

The information in the table below shows the available starting months for the research training programs covered by this guide. If award recipients cannot fulfil the conditions for holding an award before the latest available start date and are not eligible for a deferment, they must decline the award.

*CIHR Priority Announcements have the same allowable start dates as their parent linked awards.
**Available start dates must coincide with the institution’s academic calendar.

Change of start date

Before commencing the award, the award recipient may request to change the start date to any other start date available to award recipients for that funding opportunity. To request an available start date other than the one selected at the time of application, send an email to the appropriate program contact.

CGS M
To request a change in start date, award recipients must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they will hold the award; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

Deferment of start date

Before activating the payment of award, the start date may be deferred beyond the available start dates. The award value and duration will not be affected by the deferment, and an award recipient may apply for more than one type of deferment consecutively. The award recipient must select the new start date from the available start dates table.

A deferment of start date may be requested for the following reasons:

• Parental or medical leave, and/or family-related responsibilities
  • The award start date may be deferred for up to three years.
  • The leave may be taken in increments that add up to, but must not exceed, three years.
  • Relevant supporting documents are required (for example, birth or adoption certificate, medical note).
  • A deferment greater than one year must be confirmed by submitting a new Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award form on an annual basis; however, no new supporting documents will be necessary.
• Relevant work experience
  • The award start date may be deferred for up to one year.
  • The deferment may be taken in increments that add up to, but must not exceed, one year.
• Relocation, visa application or academic calendar differences
• The award start date may be deferred for up to two months, and an exception to the available start dates can be requested.

A Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award form must be completed and sent to the appropriate program contact for approval.

CGS M
Award recipients must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they will hold the award to request to defer the start date; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

Banting PDF
The award recipient can select a new start date from any month (not limited to the months proposed in the start dates table).

Payment of award

To activate the award, all conditions for funding must be met.

Awards paid by Canadian institutions

For awards held at eligible Canadian institutions (except for NSERC or SSHRC PDFs), award holders will be paid by the institution based on its own payment schedule.

Once the award payments have been activated, requests are not required for subsequent instalments.

CGS M
Award recipients must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they will hold the award to request payment; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

All CIHR awards*, Vanier CGS and Banting PDF
To request the first instalment, award recipients must complete the Confirmation of Commencement form on  ResearchNet and submit a signed copy to the program contact.

*Unused research allowance funds can be carried forward from one year to another for the duration of the award.

NSERC and SSHRC doctoral awards
To request the first instalment, a Request for First Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid by Canadian Institution form must be completed and submitted to the appropriate program contact. The agencies can receive the form up to six weeks in advance of the start date of the award. Failure to submit the necessary documentation in a timely fashion will delay the payment of the award. A copy of this form must also be provided to the authorized institutional office responsible for administering the instalment.

Awards paid directly to award holders

Awards held outside eligible Canadian institutions (that is, at foreign institutions) and all NSERC and SSHRC PDFs are paid directly by the agency.

All CIHR awards and Banting PDFs
To request the first instalment, award recipients must complete the Confirmation of Commencement form on  ResearchNet and submit to the appropriate program contact.

NSERC and SSHRC PDFs and doctoral awards
Award recipients and holders must complete and submit the Request for Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid Directly to Award Holder form to the appropriate program contact to request the first instalment and subsequent instalments that fall on the anniversary of the award start date. Some programs also require the submission of an annual report; consult the Reporting section for more information.

Requests for subsequent instalments that do not coincide with the anniversary of the award start date must be submitted to the appropriate awards administration contact.

All postdoctoral award recipients who had not completed their degree at the time of application must provide confirmation of doctoral degree completion at the same time as their request for first instalment.

The agencies can receive the forms up to six weeks in advance of the instalment date of the award. Failure to submit the necessary documentation in a timely fashion will delay the payment of the award.

Award holders will have their instalments converted to the currency of the bank account indicated on the Payee and Direct Deposit Enrolment Form.

Payment schedule for awards paid directly to award holders

Payment method

Direct deposit

Direct deposit is available to award holders hosted at foreign institutions and to NSERC and SSHRC PDFs.

To set up direct deposit, complete the Payee and Direct Deposit Enrolment Form and submit it to the appropriate direct deposit contact. For direct deposit to a bank account that is in a foreign country, or for any amount over $5,000, the Receiver General for Canada requires the agency to perform a due diligence process.

• The agency will send a test payment in the amount of $5 to the bank account. Award recipients will receive an email advising them that there will be a deposit to their bank account within 72 hours.
• Once the agency receives confirmation that the test payment was received, the agency will set up the transfer of the remainder of the current instalment and future instalments for payment via direct deposit.
• Any change in banking information will result in a new due diligence process. 

For payments to other countries, send a request to the appropriate awards administration contact.

Part-time support

Award holders may hold their awards part-time for parental or medical reasons or because of family-related responsibilities. Award holders can work with their institutions to design the part-time arrangement that best accommodates their individual needs. These arrangements must be first approved by the institution and then submitted to the appropriate program contact for approval.

The awarded amount will not be affected by the part-time support arrangement; however, the duration and value of the award will be prorated accordingly.

CGS M
Award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they will hold the award to request part-time support; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

Interruption of award

An award may be interrupted after it has been activated, provided that the following conditions are met:

• All interruptions must be approved by the institution before being submitted to the agency.
• A Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award form must be completed and the required supporting documentation must be sent to the appropriate awards administration contact for approval at least one month before the start of the interruption.
• CGS M awards, award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they hold the award to request an interruption of award; no documentation should be sent to the agencies.
• The end date of the award will be extended by the duration of the leave.

Interruption requests will be considered only for the reasons outlined below.

Unpaid interruptions

Relevant work experience

An interruption can be requested to gain relevant work experience through employment or an internship for a maximum period of one year.

• If the relevant work experience is a mandatory part of the program of study, no interruption is needed and payment of the award can continue.
• Interruptions may be taken as one large interruption or in smaller increments.
• Extensions to the original interruption period can be requested providing the allowed maximum duration has not been exceeded.
• Interruptions for this purpose do not affect the period of time allowed for other interruptions.

Parental, medical or family-related responsibilities

An award may be interrupted for a period of up to three years for parental or medical reasons or because of family-related responsibilities.

• Interruptions may be taken as one large interruption or in smaller increments.
• Interruptions for this purpose do not affect the period of time allowed for other interruptions.
• Permission for an interruption will require appropriate supporting documentation (for example, birth or adoption certificate or medical note).

Interruptions greater than one year must be confirmed by submitting a new Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award form on an annual basis; however, no new supporting documents will be necessary.

Relocation, visa application and/or academic calendar differences

The award may be interrupted for a period of up to two months for relocation, visa application and/or academic calendar differences.

• Interruptions for this purpose do not affect the period of time allowed for other interruptions.
• Justification statement/supporting documentation may be required.

Administrative reasons (CGS M only)

A CGS M award may be interrupted for a period of up to eight months between the completion of a master’s degree and the beginning of a doctoral program at the same institution because of academic calendar constraints, provided the doctoral program is begun at the earliest possible date as determined by the institution.

Paid interruption

Parental leave

An award may be interrupted for a period of up to 12* months for paid parental leave.

• Interruptions for this purpose must be taken within six months following the birth or adoption of the child.
• Award holders may request a parental leave for every occasion of birth or adoption that occurs during the tenure of their award.
• Multiple births upon the same occasion (for example, twins) do not increase the duration or the value of the leave.
• Interruptions require supporting documentation such as proof of birth or adoption before reinstatement of the award.
• Award holders must be the primary caregivers for the entire duration of the interruption.
• The supplement is equivalent to the value of the monthly stipend for up to 12* months.
• If both parents hold a federal granting agency award and choose to request paid parental leave from their agencies, they must share the paid leave for a cumulative maximum of 12* months.
• Interruptions for this purpose do not affect the period of time allowed for other interruptions.
• Approval of paid parental leave is subject to the availability of agency funds.
• If you encounter special circumstances during your Paid Parental Leave that might require accommodation, submit an email to the appropriate program contact.

*Increased from six months for those on parental leave on April 1, 2019, or later, including those who began their leave prior to this date. Note: those who were on unpaid parental leave of six months or less as of April 1, 2019, immediately following a paid parental leave (with no interruption in between), are also eligible to convert up to 6 months of the unpaid leave to paid leave.

Reinstatement of award

CGS M
Award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they hold the award to request a change to the award; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

NSERC and SSHRC doctoral awards paid by Canadian institutions
Institutions will confirm that the award holders returned to their research or studies and will inform the agency.

All CIHR, Vanier CGS and Banting PDF awards paid by Canadian institutions
To reinstate an award, the appropriate awards administration contact must receive a Request for First Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid by Canadian Institution form. Requests for reinstatement of award should be submitted up to six weeks in advance of the award holder returning to research or studies. Failure to submit the necessary documentation in a timely manner will delay the payment of the award. A copy of this form must also be provided to the authorized institutional office responsible for administering the instalment.

All awards paid directly to award holders
To reinstate an award, the appropriate awards administration contact must receive a Request for Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid Directly to Award Holder form. Requests for reinstatement of award should be submitted up to six weeks in advance of the award holder returning to research or studies. Failure to submit the necessary documentation in a timely manner will delay the payment of the award.

Changes to the award

Award holders may request changes to the award. The following outlines allowable changes and requirements for requesting them.

CGS M
Award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they hold the award to request a change to the award; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

Changes to personal contact information

Changes to personal contact information must be submitted by email to the appropriate program contact.

Change to institution or place of tenure

Changes of institution must be approved by the agency. In all cases, the eligibility rules laid out by the funding opportunity continue to apply.

NSERC and SSHRC doctoral awards

• To change the institution before activation of payment, award recipients must complete and submit the appropriate Request for Instalment or Reinstatement of Award form to the appropriate program contact, indicating the new institution.
• To change the institution after activation of payment, awards holders must complete and submit a Request for Changes to Award form to the appropriate program contact.

All CIHR awards and NSERC/SSHRC PDF
To request a change in the place of tenure, either before or after activation of payment, award recipients and award holders must submit a Request for Changes to Award form to the appropriate program contact along with the following information:

• A one-page letter justifying the change of place of tenure.
• CIHR only: if the research environment is not currently available in Canada, a one-page description of the unique aspects of the proposed research environment.
• SSHRC only: a letter of support from the proposed institution demonstrating how it will support effective research training and career development based on SSHRC’s  Guidelines for Effective Research Training.

The submitted document(s) will be reviewed according to the evaluation criteria of the funding opportunity, and a decision will be rendered. Such an evaluation may require sharing the document(s) with members of the relevant selection committee/panel.

NSERC and SSHRC only: Award recipients/holders may transfer to a foreign institution only if they completed their doctorate at a Canadian institution.

CGS M, Vanier CGS and Banting PDF
No changes to institution are permitted for these programs.

Changes to department or faculty

Changes to department or faculty within the same institution are approved by the institution. If the change to the department results in a change in research, refer to the section Changes to the program of study, research project or degree for the appropriate steps.

Banting PDF
The official signatory will be asked to confirm (in the Request for Changes to Award form) that the institutional support will continue.

Change of supervisor(s)

All CIHR awards, NSERC and SSHRC PDFs, Banting PDFs and Vanier CGS
Changes in supervisor(s) must first be approved by the institution and then submitted to the agency for final approval. Award holders must complete the Request for Changes to Award form and send it to the appropriate program contact. In addition:

• CIHR awards only: the proposed new supervisor must provide a copy of the Canadian Common CV (validated for CIHR).
• Banting PDF only: the official signatory will be asked to confirm (in the Request for Changes to Award form) that the institutional support and the synergy between the application and the strategic priorities of the host institution will continue.
• NSERC PDF only: postdoctoral fellows may not hold their award with their PhD supervisor, even if the supervisor has changed research institution.

NSERC/SSHRC doctoral awards and CGS M
Changes in supervisor(s) are approved by the institution.

Changes to the program of study, research project or degree

Award holders may request to make changes to their research projects. The research must remain eligible for funding under the mandate of the agency to which it was submitted; the individual agencies may cancel any award if the research subject matter no longer falls within their mandate. For more information on subject matter eligibility, see  Selecting the Appropriate Federal Granting Agency.

Changes to research must first be approved by the institution. Some awards programs also require the proposed changes to be submitted to the agency for final approval. For new research that clearly remains within the mandate of the agency to which the application was submitted, the approval processes are outlined below.

All SSHRC awards and Vanier CGS
Changes to the program of study, research project or degree are approved by the institution.

CGS M
Award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they hold the award to request a change to the program of study, research project or degree; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

CGS M award holders may continue to hold the award if they transfer from a master’s program to an eligible doctoral program at the same institution, whether or not they have completed the master’s degree, provided there is no gap in registration and/or enrolment.

When there is a gap in registration, an award holder may be able to take an unpaid interruption for administrative reasons.

All CIHR and NSERC awards
Approval must be obtained from the agency, by submitting a Request for Changes to Award form along with a one-page summary of the proposed research (including project title) to the appropriate program contact. This summary should provide an outline of the research question, context, objectives, methodology, contribution to the advancement of knowledge and a short justification of why the proposed research remains eligible for funding at the agency. 

Banting PDF
All changes to the research project of a Banting PDF award must be approved by the agency. The official signatory will be asked to confirm (in the Request for Changes to Award form, submitted to the program contact) that the institutional support and the synergy between the application and the strategic priorities of the host institution will continue.

Other sources of income (employment and other awards)

The agencies do not place restrictions on outside sources of funding or employment that award holders may have while holding the award or taking an approved leave of absence, providing the following regulations are adhered to:

• When considering other sources of income, any institutional regulations must be followed.
• Award holders, except for those holding their award part-time or those who have been granted approved leave, must devote full-time hours to the research or studies for which they were funded.
  • Full-time hours may vary depending on the institution at which award holders are completing their award.

Reporting

Annual progress reports and final reports are required by most funding opportunities, as outlined in the table below. The agencies may cancel any award if the award holder fails to demonstrate satisfactory progress.

Annual progress reports, if required by the agency (refer to the table below), should be submitted to the appropriate program contact along with the Request for Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid Directly to Award Holder form on the anniversary of the start date of the award.

In addition, award holders will be invited to contribute to the review and evaluation of the funding opportunity, associated policies and processes by participating in evaluation studies, surveys, workshops and audits, and to provide data or reports as requested for the purpose of collecting information to assess progress and results.

Reporting requirements specific to each funding opportunity

Note: For the majority of CIHR and tri-agency programs, there are currently no annual or final progress report requirements. However, recipients and their institution are required to confirm their continued eligibility with CIHR in mid-February of each year—see the instructions listed in each funding opportunity or decision documents for details.

Termination of award

Award holders who are no longer eligible to hold the award (for example, termination of graduate studies or discontinuation of full-time studies or research) must complete a Request for Termination of Award form and submit it to the appropriate awards administration contact. Supporting documents may be required. To confirm continued eligibility, review the decision documents and the funding opportunity. Some programs require final reports; consult the Reporting section for more information.

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.

The value of the award will be prorated to the end of the award. Any funds already paid that were intended for use beyond the revised end date must be returned to the agency.

All CIHR awards
Expenses against unused research allowance funds may be incurred up to three months beyond the award termination date. After three months, all expenses must be reconciled and the account must be closed. Unused research allowance funds must be returned to the agency.

CGS M
Award holders must contact the faculty of graduate studies (or its equivalent) at the institution where they hold the award to terminate their award; the faculty of graduate studies will then inform the agencies.

The completion of degree requirements does not necessitate the termination of the award in all circumstances; for more information, see Changes to the program of study, research project or degree.

Taxation and immigration

The agencies do not provide advice on taxation or immigration. Award recipients can contact the relevant government agencies for information on these topics and can seek the advice of professionals where appropriate.

Individual students may be exempted from federal and provincial income tax attributed to their award, see  Line 323 – Your tuition, education, and textbook amounts on the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) website, for the applicable conditions.

Postdoctoral awards holders should plan for their award to be taxed as income in Canada, regardless of whether they are held inside or outside Canada.

Award recipients receiving payments through Canadian institutions will be issued tax forms by the institution rather than by the agency. The agency issues T4A slips in February to directly paid award recipients.

Since no deductions are made at source by the agency, award recipients are responsible for determining the amount of tax they must pay and for arranging payment of this amount to the CRA.

Award recipients can obtain information about the amount and method of payment, the deductions allowed, and the receipts required from  Tax services offices and tax centres of the CRA. Residents of Québec can obtain information from  Revenu Québec.

If award holders hold or intend to hold their award at an institution outside Canada, they must contact the appropriate immigration and taxation offices. The agency cannot advise award holders on such matters.

Post-award forms

• Degree Completion
• Request for Changes to Award
• Request for Deferment of Start Date or Interruption of Award
• Request for First Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid by Canadian Institution
• Request for Instalment or Reinstatement of Award Paid Directly to Award Holder
• Request for Termination of Award

Direct deposit form

• Payee and Direct Deposit Enrolment Form