The Canadian government has introduced the Research Talent Initiative, a comprehensive set of programs aimed at attracting top international researchers to the country.
Under this initiative, Canada will unveil three new streams to welcome and retain leading international and expatriate researchers who can bring direct economic, societal, and health benefits to Canadians.
These new streams will support the recruitment of international talent in STEM, healthcare, francophone studies, and other fields, who will then come to Canada through existing study permit and work permit pathways.
The three new streams are:
- Canada Impact+ Research Chairs program;
- Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders program; and
- Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards.
The Canadian federal government plans to welcome over 1,000 researchers through these pathways and will invest up to $1.7 billion CAD over the next decade to support their work and settlement in the country.
These streams will target researchers in priority areas such as advanced digital technologies, health, clean technology, environment, food security, democratic resilience, manufacturing, and defense technologies.
Additionally, the government has launched the Canada Impact+ Research Infrastructure Fund to assist institutions in covering expenses related to new researchers, investing $400 million CAD over the next six years.
Canada Impact+ Research Chairs
The Canada Impact+ Research Chairs program aims to welcome and fund approximately 100 world-leading researchers in key priority areas, with an investment of over one billion dollars over the next 12 years.
Individuals are nominated by eligible institutions rather than applying directly, with the program operating in a competitive format. Successful nominees can receive substantial funding over 8-12 years, including salary expenses, and Canadian institutions are expected to provide support to the nominated chairs.
The first registration deadline for this program is March 10, 2026. Nominees must be internationally based, appointable as full or associate professors, and take up a full-time faculty position.