To be eligible to apply to the NHCP-LTCF Program, Applicants must meet all the criteria below:

• Be a Canadian land trust as defined by the Canadian Land Trust Standards and Practices;
• Be a registered Canadian charity;
• Be in compliance or working towards substantial compliance with the Canadian Land Trust Standards and Practices 2019 or Guide des bonnes pratiques en intendance privée: aspects juridiques et organisationnels;
• Have an established Stewardship Endowment Policy; and
• Thoroughly review all program documentation.

To be eligible for funding, proposed projects must:

• Count towards objectives for permanent or long-term protection of land, either as a “Protected Area” (PA) or an “Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measure” (OECM), as defined by Appendix 1 of One with Nature 2019;
• Be a single parcel or a group of parcels that share the same conservation objectives;
• Consist of Fee Simple lands, Conservation Agreements or a combination.  If your project involves other methods of securement, please contact WHC staff prior to application submission;
• Fall within a Key Conservation Area;
• Have a closing date between April 1, 2026 and January 16, 2027;
• Meet a minimum 1.5:1 match. For every $1 of Program funds awarded, a minimum of $1.50 in matching funds from cash or in-kind sources other than Canadian federal government investments must also be contributed; and
• Have a funding request of at least $10,000.00 and no more than $500,000.00.

• Eligible project expenses will be those directly related to the project that have been incurred between July 17, 2026, and March 31, 2027.
• Associated project expenses that occurred between April 1, 2026, and March 31, 2027 may be applied to the project as matching funds (provided that the expenses were not paid for with other sources of Canadian federal funds).
• *NEW: Applicants may claim eligible staff expenses without a maximum dollar limit, provided that staff expenses do not exceed 15% of total eligible project expenses.

Application decision considerations :

• Projects with higher hectares may be considered more favorably,
• Projects with higher match ratios may be considered more favorably,
• Projects with a lower LTCF dollar value per hectare conserved may be considered more favorably.
• Eligible projects that are not initially approved for funding will be placed on a “waiting list,” Applicants will be notified.
• WHC is the sign off authority on all funds and funding agreements for successful projects under the NHCP-LTCF.
• WHC reserves the right to award partial funding to eligible land trusts.

Applicant responsibilities:

• If the project’s closing date changes at any time, Applicants must notify WHC immediately.
• Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all required supporting documentation is uploaded in the acceptable format at the time of application submission. Failure to provide the required documentation may result in the application being deemed incomplete and rendered ineligible for funding consideration.
• In cases where multiple eligible organizations are working in partnership to complete a project, WHC will only communicate with the Applicant land trust on project and application related matters.

Use of other Federal funds:

• NHCP-LTCF funds can be combined with other Canadian federal funds on the same project, as long as funds go towards unique (separate) expenditures.
• Other Canadian federal funds cannot be used as matching funds for NHCP-LTCF funds.
• If your project is receiving funding from other federal government sources, hectares may be shared between programs. Hectares must be prorated based on percentage of Government of Canada funding received.

Project Audit*:

• Projects receiving less than $100,000.00 in NHCP-LTCF funding must submit proof of expenses over $1,000.
• Projects receiving $100,000.00 or more in NHCP-LTCF funding must submit an independent financial audit conducted by an external Chartered Professional Accountant.

*New guidelines for 2026-2027 to reflect single program stream.