Special Measures for Journalism — Canada Periodical Fund
The Special Measures for Journalism component of the Canada Periodical Fund is designed to provide Canadian publishers of print magazines and print (non-daily) community newspapers that have a free circulation model or low levels of paid circulation with the financial support they need to produce and distribute high-quality, Canadian editorial content for Canadian readers.
Offered by Canadian Heritage
Amount
Formula-based funding on eligible editorial expenditures over 12 months; total government assistance cannot exceed 75% of the periodical's total eligible expenditures, to a maximum of $150,000 per eligible project (except farm periodicals)
Quick eligibility check
Who can apply
Your application must cover the 12-month fiscal year period of your publishing firm ending between April 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026.
Publishing firms producing magazines and community (non-daily) newspapers, in print format, and with either free circulation or a low level of paid circulation can apply.
To be eligible for funding, your organization must meet all of the following requirements:
- be a private-sector entity, which includes corporations, not-for-profit organizations, partnerships and sole proprietorships;
- be majority owned and controlled by Canadians;
- have its principal place of business in Canada;
- have published one or more eligible periodicals at the application deadline.
To be eligible for funding, you must meet all eligibility requirements at the time of your application and until March 31, 2027.
You must submit a separate funding application for each eligible periodical.
Eligible periodicals
General conditions
To be eligible for funding, your magazine or (non-daily) community newspaper must meet all of the requirements below:
- be published by an eligible publishing firm;
- be edited, designed, assembled and published in Canada;
- be a print magazine or a print (non-daily) community newspaper;
- maintain an editorial function with an appointed editor;
- have published between 2 and 52 regular issues and no more than 56 issues (including special issues);
- have completed at least one uninterrupted 12-month publishing cycle at the application deadline;
- continue to be published until at least March 31, 2027;
- have a minimum of $2,500 of eligible editorial expenses.
Specific conditions
To be eligible for funding, your periodical must meet the following minimal requirements for content.
Content
An eligible periodical can be published in any language and must meet all the following requirements:
- the Canadian editorial content represents an average of at least 80% of the editorial content in the issues published (or 50% for ethnocultural periodicals);
- the original editorial content represents an average of at least 51% of the editorial content in the issues published;
- advertising represents an average lower than 70% of the content in the issues published;
- clearly indicate authorship and date of publication of each article and published content.
About the funding
Using a formula based on eligible editorial expenditures incurred over a 12-month period, the Special Measures for Journalism component provides funding to eligible Canadian publications.
The total governmental assistance received from the Special Measures for Journalism component and other levels of government (federal, provincial, territorial and municipal) cannot exceed 75% of your periodical’s total eligible expenditures for the creation, production, marketing and distribution of your periodical.
Except for farm periodicals, the maximum amount that can be granted is $150,000 per eligible project.
We will determine if funding will be disbursed as a grant or as a contribution.
Show all funding details
A grant is a payment issued to a recipient based on established criteria. The conditions you agreed to at the time of application will apply. At the end of your project, you may be required to submit a report and/or participate in the evaluation of results.
A contribution is a conditional payment issued for a specific purpose, as outlined in a funding agreement. The agreement is signed by your organization and by us and specifies the terms and conditions to receive payment. At the end of your project, you must submit a final report.
How funding is calculated
Total funding is distributed among eligible recipients based on the total eligible editorial expenses in a year. For example, a publication that accounts for 2% of the total eligible editorial expenses will receive approximately 2% of the available funds for these expenses.
The final proportion is adjusted based on several factors, such as the type and category of the periodical.
The component provides flexibility to allow publishers to direct funding to the areas of greatest need. Recipients can spend the funding on a variety of publishing activities, including:
- creation (writing, editing, photography, illustration and design);
- production (prepress and printing);
- marketing;
- distribution;
- website development and enhancement (including content development, and enhancements to the site’s architecture and functionality).
The expenses must be incurred between April 1, 2026 and March 31, 2027, and any unspent amounts could be required to be reimbursed.
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