IPIC's Pre-Budget Recommendations Included in FINA Pre-Budget Report to Parliament

Late last month IPIC President Louis-Pierre Gravelle was invited to present before the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA), and Member of Parliament Julie Dzerowicz, on IPIC’s recommendations for the 2022 Federal Budget.

President Gravelle was part of a panel of key innovation stakeholders assembled by MP Dzerowicz. Given the short time frame for FINA to hear from stakeholders as part of their pre-budget consultations, MP Dzerowicz was charged with assembling the panel and communicating the relevance and importance of these recommendations to the committee.

President Gravelle focused his presentation on IPIC’s recommended First Patent Program, and also a ‘commercialization coupon’ to improve commercialization of Intellectual Property (IP) resulting from University Research. MP Dzerowicz was interested in finding ways to better commercialize IP in Canada and abroad that results from government funded research grants, and industry subsidy programs.

IPIC’s full Submission for Pre-Budget Consultation in Advance of the Upcoming Federal Budget can be found here.

Following the consultations the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA) released its Pre-Budget Report to Parliament titled Considering the Path Forward. IPIC was pleased all of its proposed recommendations, outlined below, were included within the report.

• Bolster intellectual property generation in Canada by allowing IP-related costs to be recognized as eligible Scientific Research and Experimental Development expenses for income tax purposes.
• Establish a government action plan with the objective of fostering the commercialization of innovative technology in Canada and around the world.
• Implement a first patent program or patent incentive program similar to Quebec’s Passeport Innovation, to cover both the initial searching and establishment of an intellectual property strategy as well as the drafting and filing of—at least—a first patent application on an invention.
• Fund the stimulus program directed to Canadian small and medium-sized enterprises for brand protection strategy to cover costs associated with clearance searches and trademark applications.
• Implement legislation or policy mandating that all federal government subsidies and research grants must earmark a small percentage of the funds to be used on intellectual property strategic advice and professional services to ensure our public investments in Canadian innovations are protected and commercialized by Canadian companies.
• Maximize the benefits of COVID-related research and development and address leakage of publicly funded intellectual property by expanding Canada’s Intellectual Property Strategy.

The report was released on March 21st and while the window for inclusion into the upcoming Federal Budget (rumored to be released as early as next week), IPIC remains hopeful the interest that followed its recommendations at the pre-budget consultation will result in favourable IP and innovation policy initiatives.

IPIC would like to thank the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA), its Chair Peter Fonseca, Member of Parliament Julie Dzerowicz, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, and Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne for their invitation, their ongoing collaboration on IP issues, and their support of IP and innovation in Canada.