Eligible Expenses

Dialogue McGill provided research funding is restricted to the following broad categories of eligible expenses under the Official Languages Health Contribution Program. Dialogue McGill reserves the right to request supporting documentation for any project cost(s).

We strongly encourage researchers to contact Dialogue McGill in advance to verify eligibility for any expense not listed below.

Please note that indirect expenses are ineligible expenses.

Budget Items

Dialogue McGill funds may only be used for expenses incurred for the purpose of carrying out the approved project and follow the pre-approved budget. The following is a description of the broad categories of eligible expenses. Dialogue McGill reserves the right to request supporting documentation for any project cost(s). All eligible expenses must include the applicable taxes.

Personnel Salaries and Benefits

This cost item includes salaries and benefits for employees directly working on the project. Clearly indicate total salary and benefits amount for all project employees. Employee salaries, benefits, and/or stipends should follow your organization’s employment guidelines. For projects based at McGill University, student stipends are an eligible expense. For projects based at other institutions, internal guidelines regarding student stipends should be followed.

 Important note: Project Leads, Principal Investigators, and Co-investigators are not eligible for salaries, benefits, stipends, or any other compensation.

Contractual Personnel

Goods and services received from contractual personnel are entered here (e.g., costs for a professional translator).

Travel and Accommodation

This cost item includes travel for the activities related to your project. Institution standards in effect for travel expenses apply here. Under this heading, include travel expenses for project activities, such as mileage for personal vehicles, air, train or bus travel, meals, and accommodation for meetings/conferences/workshops/seminars as well as travel, accommodation, and honoraria for speakers.

 Note: For research partners, conference registration fees should be categorized under Performance Measurement and Knowledge Translation.

 All expenses for international travels (outside of Canada) must be pre-authorized by Dialogue McGill.

 The request must explain the following:

  1. the nature of the activity

  2. how you calculated your estimated costs (mode of travel, number of persons, destination)

  3. the relevance of the travel plans to the objectives of Dialogue McGill project

Any request for travel costs deemed necessary for the purpose of the project, must be submitted at least one month prior to the planned travel to the attention of the Dialogue McGill Team.

Materials and Supplies

Please write the amounts planned for the purchase of project-related materials. This includes costs for printing, office supplies, as well as delivery expenses (e.g., postage and courier service). These items must be reported separately in the Detailed Budget Form of the project’s CFRE spreadsheet (Tab 1a).

Equipment

Please write only the costs related to equipment required for the activities of the project. This includes laptops, headsets, software, and license fees. Items must be specified in the Detailed Budget Form of the project’s CFRE (Tab 1a). The cost of leasing computers or other equipment owned by the Third Party is ineligible. The Third Party’s in-kind contribution is expected to include, when it is possible, the use of its equipment by the project personnel.

Acquisition of assets must be reported at the end of the fiscal period. For this purpose, “Asset” means any item that costs at least $1,000 or is an electronic device (e.g. laptops, computer equipment, audio visual equipment) under $1,000, these must be reported using the following online form by April 30 of each year.

Rent and Utilities

Rent includes the cost of any necessary premises for project activities. Rent charges for space and computer use when already owned by the recipient organization are ineligible. For utilities, include the cost of all utilities that are not already covered in the monthly rental fee. In most cases, it is only telephone, teleconferencing, and Internet charges. Rent and utilities must be reported separately in the Detailed Budget Form of the project’s CFRE spreadsheet (Tab 1a). Dialogue McGill may request a detailed justification for these expenses.

Performance Measurement and Knowledge Translation

This category includes activities related to performance measurement, evaluation, dissemination, or knowledge transfer activities. Examples include annual reports, publications, presentations, and workshops. This includes costs for attending conferences (registration fees) only for the purpose of disseminating the project’s results to a relevant audience. These items must be reported separately in the Detailed Budget Form of the project’s CFRE spreadsheet (Tab 1a).

Other 

This cost item is to be used to show all expenditures that are directly related to the project but do not fit within any of the specific sections above. All information provided in this section must be clearly identified and justified.