Completing Expense Claims

This guide provides an overview of how to complete the financial report template portion of the  awarded project’s Quarterly Progress and Financial Reports. Eligible and ineligible costs are outlined for each budget category, along with helpful tips and references to support accurate and compliant expense claims. Please keep the following key points in mind when completing your expense claims:

  • All claimed expenses must align with the Project Plan and comply with the approved Project Budget.
  • Costs must be eligible and incurred within the project start and end dates.
  • Claimed expenses must clearly support the project.

All claimed expenses must be actual costs incurred during the quarter being reported, not estimations or anticipated costs. Supporting documentation should be maintained by the project team for cost validation purposes.

More detailed definitions, including post-award financial information and account information can be found in the NCC’s Call for Proposals Post-Award Guide

Direct Labour (Salaries and Wages)

Direct Labour includes the cost of staff working on project activities that directly support project deliverables, who are paid via the organizational payroll system.

  • Costs for staff working directly on the project in a technical capacity within the current reporting period. Note that the hourly rate should be included, not the overall salary (see “Tips and Tricks” for more information).
  • Pay raises received mid-reporting quarter should be clearly indicated by dividing the different pay rates and associated hours into separate line items (see “Tips and Tricks for more information).
  • Base salary of project staff.
  • Temporary, seasonal, or term project staff who are paid via the organization’s payroll system.
  • Costs for partner organization project staff working in technical capacity on the project and who are paid via the partner organization payroll.
  • Salaries classified as scholarships/stipends where the student works in a technical capacity to support project milestones and deliverables and are paid via the organization’s payroll system.
  • Salaries classified as flat fee payments with a signed/executed agreement in place. No hourly rate is required when reporting flat fee payments, however the work agreement for the flat fee payment may be requested during the supporting documentation review process.
  • All matching contributions under Direct Labour must be input as “cash”.
  • Staff benefits, including RRSP, the company portion of EI and CPP benefits, and medical and dental costs. These should instead be included in the Indirect Cost Category.
  • Overtime costs and staff allowance costs.
  • Staff bonuses.
  • Executive staff oversight work unless the Executive staff directly works providing technical expertise on project deliverables.
  • Scholarships/stipends where the student is being renumerated for participating in a project study or focus group, as this would be ineligible under the program guidelines.
  • Administrative and support staff costs. These should instead be included in the Indirect Cost Category.
  • Maximum Quarterly Hours: Generally, 480–520 hours represents the standard range of quarterly hours that an individual project staff member may claim as worked hours, depending on whether the quarter consists of 12 or 13 weeks.
  • Pay Raises: Pay raises should be reflected in two line items, separating different pay rates. For example, if the claim period is April-June, and the project staff received a raise effective May 1, recipient should make 1 line for April 1-30 hours at old rate, and second line for May 1-June 30 with new rate. Explain any pay rate changes in the comments field.

Subcontractors and Consultants Category

Subcontractors and Consultants include costs of individuals or consulting organizations that directly support the project deliverables.  This can include both subcontractor fees, but also equipment purchased by the subcontractor on behalf of the project. These costs are invoiced and not paid through the organization’s payroll system.

  • Invoiced wages classified as scholarships/stipends where the student works in a technical capacity to support project milestones and deliverables.
  • Please note that any matching contributions that fund subcontractor wages should be classified as “cash”. Any equipment purchased via the subcontractor specifically for the project should be classified as “cash”. Any equipment that is rented or borrowed (i.e. not specifically purchased for the project) should be classified as “in-kind”.
  • Canadian sales tax (HST, GST, PST, QST).
  • Project staff that are paid via the organization’s payroll.
  • If only a portion of the invoice is being claimed against the project budget, please explain in the “comments” section, and included the % allocation of the cost, if applicable. For example, including “Partial claim of $2,000 due to other non-project work included in invoice”, or “Including 50% of the invoice, as this cost was divided between the project and another business initiative” would provide context for reviewers.

Other Direct Expenses

Other Direct Expenses includes remaining direct costs that directly support the project deliverables. These include direct materials and consumable costs, any commercialization activities (e.g., product demonstration, market research, focus groups, patents, trade shows, customers/end users meetings), and other direct incremental costs.

  • Conference registration fees.
  • Software costs that directly support project milestones and deliverables.
  • Please note that any items purchased via matching contributions should be classified as “cash” if the item was purchased or rented specifically for use on the project. Any items that are borrowed or donated for the project should be classified as “in-kind”.
  • Travel costs including airfare, hotel, meals and incidental travel costs. These should be included under the Travel Category.
  • NCC membership fees and other membership fees as these are not eligible costs.
  • Canadian sales tax (HST, GST, PST, QST).
  • Office supplies, stationery, postage, general software and licensing costs. These should generally be allocated to the Indirect Cost Category.
  • Recruitment fees and associated costs would not be eligible under the program.
  • Gifts or awards as these are ineligible under the program.
  • Other currencies: For expenses incurred in currencies other than CAD, please include currency and exchange of the transaction in the provided columns (columns K & L in the Direct Expenses category).
  • If only a portion of the invoice is being claimed against the project budget, please explain in the “comments” section, and included the % allocation of the cost, if applicable. For example, including “Partial claim of $2,000 due to other non-project work included in invoice”, or “Including 50% of the invoice, as this cost was divided between the project and another business initiative” would provide context for reviewers.

Equipment

Important: Total equipment costs cannot exceed 20% of the NCC grant. 

The equipment category includes the cost of items that specifically support the success of the project deliverables. This includes either purchasing or leasing computer or special purpose equipment or infrastructure. This category also includes costs to modernize or update existing equipment to support the project deliverables.

  • Equipment specifically purchased or modernized to support the project milestones.
  • Please note that any items purchased via matching contributions should be classified as “cash” if the item was purchased or rented specifically for use on the project. Any items that are borrowed or donated for the project should be classified as “in-kind”.
  • Software costs as these should instead be included in the Other Direct Expenses budget category.
  • Canadian sales tax (HST, GST, PST, QST).
  • General equipment for the organization.
  • Extended warranties – these should be included in Indirect Costs.
  • If only a portion of the equipment is being claimed against the project budget, please explain in the “comments” section. If this portion being claimed is a percentage of the total cost, please include the percentage being claimed in the “comments” section.
  • If your total NCC Grant amounts to $100,000, then your Equipment cannot exceed $20,000, or 20% of total NCC Grant amount.

Travel and Outreach

The Travel and Outreach Category includes costs that are directly related to supporting the project deliverables and the overall project success. This does not include organizational travel and promotion costs that don’t specifically support the project.

  • All travel expenses (airfare, accommodation, meals, incidentals, mileage) that directly support the project, including those outside of Canada. Please ensure that travel costs are separated by project staff and by project travel event. Multiple invoices can be included on one line item providing that the costs only pertain to one project staff’s expenses and one travel event.
  • Daily meal costs should be simplified using the National Joint Council per diem rates, rather than submitting individual receipts (see “Tips and Tricks” below).
  • Local taxes incurred outside of Canada associated with the costs listed above.
  • Please note that most travel purchased via matching contributions funds would be considered as “cash”. However, if an event is sponsored by another organization (i.e. free passes, travel arrangements are provided), then that cost would be considered an “in kind” matching contribution.
  • Conference registration fees. These should be included in Other Direct Expenses.
  • Canadian sales tax (HST, GST, PST, QST) for travel within Canada.
  • Travel insurance – these costs should be included in the Indirect Cost category.
  • Seat upgrades – these are generally not considered eligible
  • Costs of regular daily commuting, alcoholic beverages, valet parking, costs for passport issuance, unless it is for urgent and required travel, costs for drivers’ licenses, in-flight movies and refreshments, hotel room movies and mini-bar service, personal articles (i.e., toiletries, magazines, etc.), laundry service, and credit card fees for cash advances when using a personal credit card.
  • Per Diem Rates: Simplify your travel expense claim by using the National Joint Council directive per diem rates as per Appendix B,C, and D. If National Joint Council directive per diem rates are claimed, then the associated project staff to which that claim has been made must be reimbursed that same per diem rate accordingly.
  • Expense caps: Travel costs must adhere to the National Joint Council directive (appendices B & C) or Treasury Board Secretariat policies. Costs that exceed these recommendations may not be validated in full.
  • National Joint Council Tip: Please ensure that you are using the correct version of each Appendix, ensuring that the reporting quarter aligns with the displayed version (i.e. do not use October 1st version if reporting July-September costs, use the previous version).
  • Cancellation: Trip cancellation costs (i.e. hotel, flight, etc.) are generally not considered eligible costs.

Outside of Canada Costs

Important: Cannot exceed 10% of the NCC Grant. 
  • Non-Canadian staff outsourced to work directly on supporting project deliverables outside of Canada.
  • Paying non-Canadian researchers to work directly on supporting project deliverables outside of Canada.
  • Using non-Canadian equipment to directly support project deliverables outside of Canada.
  • Local taxes incurred outside of Canada associated with the costs listed above.
  • Please note that any matching contributions that fund non-Canadian staff wages working outside of Canada should be classified as “cash”. Please note that any items purchased via matching contributions should be classified as “cash” if the item was purchased or rented specifically for use on the project. Any items that are borrowed or donated for the project should be classified as “in-kind”.
  • Travel costs for Canadian residents for trips outside of Canada. These should be entered in the Travel and Outreach Category and should not be included in “Outside of Canada” costs.
  • Any registration costs for outside of Canada (international) events should not be included in Outside of Canada costs but instead included in  Other Direct Expenses.

Indirect Costs

Important: These costs cannot exceed 15% of the Total NCC grant.

The Indirect Cost Category includes costs that are not directly required to carry out the project. This category includes overhead costs and administrative costs. Note that use of this category is up to the discretion of the awarded project, and that no details/receipts are required as supporting documentation. Please note that staff benefits, including RRSP, medical and dental costs, should be included in this category.

Matching contributions: Please note that any benefits or employee bonuses paid via matching contributions should be classified as “cash” contributions. Any items purchased via matching contributions should be classified as “cash” if the item was purchased or rented specifically for use on the project. Any items that are borrowed or donated for the project should be classified as “in-kind”.

  • Non-technical project staff costs (administrative, support staff).
  • Executive staff project oversight costs.
  • Overhead and administrative costs.
  • Project staff bonuses.
  • Project staff benefits, including RRSP, medical and dental costs.
  • Travel insurance for project travel.
  • Office supplies, stationary, postage, general software and licensing costs.
  • NCC membership fees and other membership fees as these are not eligible costs.
  • General organizational costs that don’t benefit the project.
  • Canadian sales tax (HST, GST, PST, QST)
  • Recruitment costs or fees.
  • Gifts or awards are not eligible costs.
  • If your total NCC Grant amounts to $100,000, then your Indirect Cost cannot exceed $15,000, or 15% of total NCC Grant amount.
  • Office supplies, stationery, postage, general software and licensing costs should generally be allocated here.
  • Please refer to your URA for a comprehensive listing of eligible and ineligible expenses.
  • Please note that Indirect Costs cannot exceed 55% of direct labour over the Total Project Cost.