Canada’s counter-tariffs took effect on 8 September, applying rates of 15, 25 and 50 per cent to roughly 700 categories of United States goods. For businesses in Kamloops, this follows months of pressure on export markets, and it introduces a new cost for anyone importing inputs from the United States.
Alongside that pressure, a considerable amount of federal and provincial support is now open. Kamloops businesses are already accessing it. In early September, Axis Forestry received $590,000 to adapt its harvester for smaller timber and take the redesigned product into new international markets, and Kamloops Precision Machining received $1 million to add laser coating technology to its metal components line. Both came through the Regional Tariff Response Initiative.
The programs below are open now. Some are financing, some are non-repayable contributions, and some are advisory services offered at no cost. Terms and eligibility vary considerably, so please confirm details with the delivering agency before committing time to an application.
Pivot to Grow Loan
Business Development Bank of Canada | Federal · Any sector
$250,000 – $5,000,000 · Interest-only payments for 36 months
The workhorse of the federal response and the first call for most Kamloops SMEs. A $500M new liquidity stream was added in August 2026 specifically for cash-flow shortfalls, alongside the existing pivot financing. The application process has been simplified.
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Steel, Aluminum and Copper Industries Support
Business Development Bank of Canada | Federal · Metals & fabrication
$250,000 – $50,000,000 working capital · $1B program · Closes 31 December 2026
Announced May 2026 for manufacturers and exporters that use steel, aluminum or copper in a significant way, which in Kamloops means fabricators, equipment builders and anyone whose input costs moved when the Section 232 rate went to full customs value on 6 April 2026.
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Trade Impact Program
Export Development Canada | Federal · Exporters and their suppliers
$5B capacity · $3B deployed to 800+ companies as of August 2026
Credit insurance, expanded working capital, longer loan amortization, financing guarantees and foreign exchange risk management. Covers accounts receivable exposure, useful when a US buyer starts stretching payment terms because they are absorbing the duty.
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Large Enterprise Tariff Loan Facility
Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation | Federal · Large firms
$10B facility · Up to 36 months of liquidity · Terms to 15 years
The LETL facility is a program instituted by the Government of Canada to provide liquidity assistance in the form of interest-bearing term loans to large Canadian enterprises who have been (or expect to be) affected by new tariffs and countermeasures.
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Regional Tariff Response Initiative
PacifiCan | Federal, delivered in BC · SMEs
Non-repayable contributions to $3,000,000 (up from $1M) · Liquidity support to $2,000,000
Funds productivity improvement, market expansion, supply chain optimization and domestic trade, and now covers liquidity needs alongside a pivot or capital investment plan.
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Canada Strong Diversification Fund
Strategic Response Fund | Federal · Medium & large firms
$2 billion · Fast-track, one-step review and approval
A new stream within the Strategic Response Fund, opened August 2026, for capital maintenance and diversification projects. The draw is speed: one-step approval, coordinated with the regional development agencies, aimed squarely at projects that are already shovel-ready.
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Export Navigator
Province of British Columbia | BC · Free
No cost · Community-based advisors · Ongoing guidance
Free, staged export guidance with a real advisor rather than a portal. For a business that has only ever sold south, this is the low-friction first step toward Asia or Europe — and roughly half of BC’s softwood already goes to Asia, so the route exists.
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Trade and Invest BC
Province of British Columbia | BC · Free
Market intelligence · Trade missions · Information sessions
Provincial trade infrastructure, market research, buyer connections and the trade mission calendar. Useful for validating whether a target market is real before a client spends money chasing it.
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Trade Accelerator Program
World Trade Centre / Trade and Invest BC | BC · SMEs
Cohort-based · Written export plan · Mentorship
Structured workshops that end with a written export plan, plus mentorship for scaling internationally. More demanding than Export Navigator and better suited to a business already exporting that needs to change where.
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AgriStability and Agriculture Supports
Province of BC / Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada | BC + Federal · Agriculture
Income margin support · Plus Agritech Development Program
AgriStability covers income losses from trade disruption, including the China measures that hit canola and other commodities. The Agritech Development Program reduces upfront costs and barriers for agritech adoption. The Tree Fruit Climate Change Response Fund covers crop loss recovery.
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BC Forestry Workforce Grant
Province of BC, delivered by Northern Development Initiative Trust | BC · Forestry
$20,800,000 · Approximately 1,400 workers, contractors and employers
Covers job retraining and rapid re-employment, wage subsidies so businesses can retain staff, community-based employment projects, and land-based work opportunities through BC Bid. Delivered province-wide in partnership with the Province.
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Canada – British Columbia Workforce Tariff Response
Employment and Social Development Canada + Province of BC | Federal + BC · Multi-sector
$70,400,000 over three years · 8,000+ workers across affected industries
The umbrella agreement the forestry grant sits inside. Reaches beyond forestry to every tariff-affected industry, and funds Community Transition tables that identify local needs.
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Dates to keep in view
| Date | What it is |
| 21 September 2026 | PacifiCan RTRI information session, 1:00 to 2:00 PM PT |
| 31 December 2026 | BDC Steel and Aluminum program closes, or when $1B is committed |
| 31 March 2028 | BDC Pivot to Grow availability ends |
How we can help
Knowing that a program exists is the easy part. The difficulty is working out which one fits your situation, whether you meet criteria that are rarely highlighted in the announcement, and how to present your project so that it reads the way the program is designed to fund.
That is the work we do with Kamloops businesses every week. We can help you assess whether your project fits before you invest time in an application, identify which stream is the right target, connect you directly with the delivering agency, and talk through what your application needs to demonstrate. Where a program is not the right fit, we will tell you that too, which is often the more valuable conversation.
If you are a Kamloops business considering an application, please reach out before you start writing. The conversation is free, it is confidential, and it is considerably faster than discovering a mismatch after you have drafted.
Contact Venture Kamloops at 250-828-6818 or info@venturekamloops.com, or visit venturekamloops.com/contact.