PSCE Volet 3 — High-Growth Export Support

Program Description

Volet 3 of Québec's PSCE is a selection-gated grant for large, high-growth exporters: a non-repayable contribution of $25,000 to $60,000 per project per year toward a structured international market-diversification project. The aid rate is degressive across the life of the program — 50% of eligible expenses on your first authorized project, 40% on the second, 25% on later ones. Applicants need $10M+ in annual revenue, a project with at least $1M in potential sales, and must be selected by Investissement Québec International for accompaniment in one of Québec's top-20 diversification markets and in one of four sectors: aerospace and defence, construction and infrastructure, life sciences, or transport. Only one PSCE grant may be awarded per company per fiscal year across all volets.

Eligibility Requirements

• Be a for-profit business legally incorporated under the laws of Québec or Canada; OR a social-economy non-profit under the Loi sur l'économie sociale whose financial viability rests on more than 40% autonomous revenue from its own economic activities in the last financial year; OR a non-financial cooperative constituted under the Loi sur les coopératives or the Canada Cooperatives Act
• Be registered (immatriculée) in Québec regardless of the law under which it was constituted, have an establishment in Québec, and actively carry on an activity there
• Have annual revenue of $10 million or more — measured on the most recent annual financial statements available (at minimum a compilation engagement) filed with the application; for a subsidiary of a foreign company or a group of companies, the revenue counted is that of the APPLICANT entity, not the group
• Propose a project with a minimum potential of $1 million in sales returns on the market in question
• Be SELECTED by the Investissement Québec International teams according to sector and market priorities — selection is a precondition, not an outcome; IQ states that selected companies then receive instructions for filing their application
• The accompaniment must be in one of Québec's twenty leading diversification markets: Canada, plus China, France, Mexico, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, South Korea, Switzerland, Belgium, India, Italy, Australia, Singapore, Spain, Brazil, Turkey, Taiwan and Finland
• The accompaniment must be in one of four sectors: aerospace and defence, construction and infrastructure, life sciences, or transport
• The project must form part of a structured and strategic approach to international and rest-of-Canada market diversification, and must NOT consist of the company's recurring activities
• A first application must present a minimum of $50,000 in eligible expenses; a second application $62,500; a third application $100,000 — if analysis finds eligible expenses below the applicable threshold, the application is refused
• Only ONE PSCE grant may be awarded per company per fiscal year (April 1 – March 31) across ALL volets of the program; the fiscal year is set by the date all parties sign the offer or agreement, so a company that signed under Volet 2 or Volet 3 on or after April 1, 2026 must wait until after April 1, 2027 to file again
• Project financing must include a private-source contribution equal to at least 35% of eligible expenses, and only cash contributions are accepted
• Total government assistance — direct or indirect, from Québec and Canadian departments, agencies and crown corporations, including tax credits, and from municipal entities — must not exceed 65% of eligible expenses
• The aid may not be combined with financial assistance from another Ministère program, including programs of the Fonds du développement économique (FDE)
• Be in compliance with the francisation process under the Charter of the French Language if the company employs 25 or more people in Québec over a six-month period, and must not appear on the OQLF's list of non-compliant businesses
• Not be listed, provisionally or definitively, in the Registre des entreprises non admissibles aux contrats publics (RENA), including RENA-listed subcontractors slated to perform project work
• Not be in default, or have been in default, on obligations tied to a previous financial intervention by the Minister or a Québec government body in the two years preceding the application
• Not be a state-owned corporation, a corporation controlled directly or indirectly by any municipal, provincial, federal or foreign government or municipal entity, or a business majority-owned by a state corporation
• Not be under the protection of the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act or the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act
• EXCLUDED by principal sector of activity (SCIAN): agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (11); mining, quarrying, oil and gas extraction (21); utilities (22); construction (23); retail trade (44-45) unless the business does pre-production product development AND post-production commercialisation, marketing and distribution AND has its head office in Québec; broadcasting (516); telecommunications (517); finance and insurance (52); real estate and rental and leasing (53); management of companies and enterprises (55); administrative and support services (561); educational services (61); health care and social assistance (62); arts, entertainment and recreation (71); accommodation and food services (72); other services except public administration (81); public administration (91)
• EXCLUDED by principal line of business: production or distribution of controversial weapons; exploration, extraction, drilling, production and refining of fossil fuels such as oil and thermal coal, except activities aimed at a low-carbon transition; gambling operations such as casinos, bingo halls and gaming terminals; violent games, combat sports involving any living species, races and similar activities; sexual exploitation such as erotic bars, escort agencies, erotic massage parlours or swinger clubs, and the production of pornographic material; production, sale and services linked to the consumption of tobacco or drugs, with defined exceptions for Health Canada-approved pharmaceutical-grade cannabis and industrial hemp products
• A commercial representative hired under the project must be a new full-time resource in a new position, must be a salaried employee of a Québec company or of a foreign subsidiary more than 50% owned by the applicant Québec company, and must not be a related person nor have previously worked for the company, a subsidiary or a related company as an employee, intern or even consultant
• The project must start no later than three months after authorisation, with the start date agreed before the offer or grant agreement is signed
• Project duration is limited to a maximum of 12 months; an eligible hire may also run up to 12 months and may start on a different date, but the combined total of project and hire may not exceed 18 months from the project start date
• Supporting documents must be submitted in French, and the application is filed through a ClicSÉQUR Entreprises account linked to a valid NEQ