Apply for a Grant

Understand WHAT we fund under our Investment Strategy
Familiarize yourself with our new Investment Strategy. Attend an applicant information session near you and check our Events Calendar for upcoming dates and locations. If you cannot attend an information session, you can also download the presentations from our resources page.

Understand HOW we fund under our Investment Strategy 
OTF has four Investment Streams: Seed, Grow, Capital and Transform. Each has its own criteria and applications. Read an overview of each Investment Stream to help you determine which best fits your project. 

Complete the Applicant Self-Assessment
Complete a quick online self-assessment to find out which Investment Stream makes sense for you.

Please note that this tool is only for OTF core Investment Streams (Seed, Grow and Capital). It does not apply to other programs such as the Youth Opportunity Fund (YOF) and Local Poverty Reduction Fund (LPRF).

Read our Policies
Don’t skip this! The following policies contain key information needed to submit a successful application. Policies that may apply to your organization or project include: Eligibility, Advocacy Activities for Grantees, Collaborative Applicants, Emerging Governance Platforms, Financial Health, Overhead and Administrative Costs.

Register your Organization

Before you begin a grant application, you must first register your organization or update your organizational profile with specific information about your organization. If you have successfully registered your organization in the last year, you do not need to register again. Simply ensure your organization’s information is up-to-date. Follow these six steps in order to register:

1. Check our registration and application deadlines to ensure that you are registering or applying at the right time.
2. Read the checklist for OTF registration and browser requirements
3. Registration happens in two parts. First, enter the basic information about your organization. This part must be done in one sitting. You will then be emailed a username and password that will allow you to complete your registration – by uploading your most recent Financial Statements and enter the names of your Board Members. 
4. If your organization was awarded a grant in 2014 to today’s date, you need to use your current user ID and password in order to update your organizational profile.
5. If your organization was not awarded a grant in 2014, you need to register your organization.
6. If you are an Emerging Governance Platform (EGP) read the EGP Tip Sheet.
7. Once your registration is verified, OTF will email you a new user ID and password that you can use to begin a grant application for Seed, Grow and Capital grant streams.

Review Application Questions and Assessment Criteria

Before you start, know what we will be asking for. First, review our application questions for Seed, Grow and Capital. These sample applications will give you a good idea of what we will be asking. 

• Please note, we are making revisions to application questions to provide more clarity, and therefore questions may be worded differently when you apply.

Second, when preparing your answers consider our assessment criteria specific to each stream (Seed, Grow and Capital) to ensure we have everything we need to assess your project fairly.

Review our Application Deadlines and related Registration dates
Seed, Capital and Grow Investment Streams each have their own application deadlines and associated decision dates. Choose the application deadline that’s right for your project. 

Submit an Application
Using your user ID and password, log in and access the online applications for the Seed, Grow or Capital Investment Streams. Upon submitting your application, you will receive OTF confirmation that we have received it. Your application will be reviewed for eligibility, completeness, and how well your project fits with your chosen Priority Outcome.