CIHR – Catalyst Grant : Partnering for Impact

Eligibility Criteria

For an application to be eligible, all the requirements stated below must be met:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant (NPA) must be:
   1. an independent researcher or a knowledge user affiliated with a Canadian postsecondary institution and/or its affiliated institutions (including hospitals, research institutes and other non-profit organizations with a mandate for health research and/or knowledge mobilization).
      OR
   2. an individual affiliated with an Indigenous non-governmental organization in Canada with a research and/or knowledge mobilization mandate.
      OR
   3. an Indigenous non-governmental organization in Canada with a research and/or knowledge mobilization mandate
2. The NPA must have their substantive role in Canada for the duration of the requested grant term.
3. The Institution Paid receives and administers the funds on behalf of the NPA and therefore must be authorized by CIHR before the funds can be released.If the Institution Paid is not on the List of CIHR Eligible Institutions, they are encouraged to contact the Contact Centre, in advance, to enquire about the authorization process and timelines.
4. Applications must be developed in partnership amongst researchers, knowledge users, Knowledge Holders, and/or health or community organizations, and require co-leadership and co-production approaches.
5. As a result, the team must be co-led by:
   1. A minimum of one independent researcher (as either the NPA or a Principal Applicant – PA);
      AND
   2. A minimum of one knowledge user (as either the NPA or a Principal Knowledge User* – PKU).
6. Applicants must include a Project Coordinator, (as either a Co-Applicant or a KU) who will support meaningful engagement as part of co-produced activities. This role cannot overlap with the roles above.
7. For applications involving research with First Nations, Inuit or Métis Peoples, at least one member of the research team in a principal role (i.e., NPA, PKU* or PA) must self-identify as First Nations, Inuit or Métis and/or provide evidence of meaningful and culturally safe involvement with Indigenous Peoples (see How to Apply section).
8. An individual or an organization cannot submit more than one application as the Nominated Principal Applicant. If the Nominated Principal Applicant submits more than one application, CIHR will automatically withdraw the last application(s) submitted based on the timestamp of submission. (Updated: 2025-08-27)

* In relation to CIHR’s applicant categories, Principal Knowledge Users are responsible for leading the intellectual direction of proposed activities, whereas Knowledge Users actively participate in proposed activities but not to direct them.

Note: Participants, including Elders and/or First Nations, Inuit or Métis Peoples Knowledge Holders, may participate on an application in a Collaborator role without the need to secure a CIHR PIN. Follow the instructions in the How to Apply section that pertain to Collaborators and indicate their role in the participant table.

Elders and/or First Nations, Inuit or Métis Peoples Knowledge Holders’ contributions to the proposed activities and their meaningful engagement must also be captured in the research proposal to address the points outlined in the evaluation criteria. Please note that the names of Collaborators do not appear in CIHR funding decision databases and documents.

Sponsor’s Website

CIHR – Catalyst Grant : Partnering for Impact

Internal Contacts

Faculty: Faculty Research Facilitator.

Deadlines