The Homelessness Reduction Innovation Fund (HRIF) provides one-time grants for innovative projects aimed at achieving measurable reductions in homelessness.
More about the fund
HRIF grants will be distributed to communities for targeted, data-informed projects that measurably reduce homelessness. The Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness (CAEH), along with our partner the National Indigenous Homelessness Council (NIHC), will provide one-on-one project guidance and coaching to communities, and will share learnings and successes from funded projects with other communities across the country.
HRIF is part of the federal government’s commitment to Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy, as announced in Budget 2024.
Eligibility
An Expression of Interest (EOI) will be used to assess eligibility and project suitability for HRIF. Based on EOI responses, communities may be invited to complete an application.
To be eligible for the Homelessness Reduction Innovation Fund (HRIF), communities (outside Quebec1) must be:
- the Reaching Home Community Entity (CE) for:
- the Designated Community (DC) stream, or
- the Indigenous Homelessness (IH) stream, or
- the Territorial Homelessness (TH) stream
- or the community lead organization participating in Built for Zero – Canada (BFZ-C)
If your organization is not the CE or community lead for BFZ-C in your community, please connect with one of them to collaborate on a project. They are required to serve as the lead organization for an HRIF project.
If your community has both a CE and a community lead for BFZ-C, and these are different organizations, we encourage them to collaborate on one project, with one organization taking the lead.
If you are an Indigenous-led organization but are not your community’s Indigenous Homelessness Community Entity (IH CE), please reach out to them, or to the Designated Community if no IH CE exists.
Applications must be submitted by the CE or BFZ-C lead. To find your city or region’s Community Entity, see the Reaching Home directory.
In addition to the eligibility criteria above, applicants must also be able to demonstrate:
- An improvement project aimed at reducing homelessness by increasing move-ins to housing or decreasing inflow to homelessness for the chosen target population
- Quality By-Name Data (QBND), confirmed by CAEH
- QBND v 4.0 if your project’s target population is unsheltered or all homelessness
- QBND v 3.0 if your project’s target population is chronic or veteran homelessness
Priority populations for HRIF projects are:
- Unsheltered Homelessness (strongly encouraged)
- Chronic Homelessness
- Veteran Homelessness
Note: You can choose to target any population for which you have QBND. However, HRIF projects that target the above priority populations are strongly encouraged and will be prioritized for funding.
Updates on Reaching Home requirements for By-Name Data
If you are funded under Reaching Home, please note that communities are required to move from current ways of measuring aggregate inflow/outflow/active homelessness data to adopting the Canadian Methodology developed by Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities Canada (HICC), which requires use of the Community Outcomes Report (COR).
As part of the Expression of Interest (EOI)I and application process, CAEH may assess a community’s current Homelessness Management Information System (HMIS) and COR usage, readiness, or transition plans. Please contact your Improvement Advisor(s) or HRIF@caeh.ca for any questions related to adoption of the Canadian Methodology.
* Organizations in Quebec are not eligible to apply for the Homelessness Reduction Innovation Fund. Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada will collaborate with the Government of Quebec to put in place this funding in recognition of the jurisdictions and priorities of both governments in the prevention and reduction of homelessness. Questions can be directed to Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada at: reachinghomeinfo-infoversunchezsoi@infc.gc.ca.
Not eligible yet?
We still want to hear from you!
The HRIF is intended to help communities make measurable progress in reducing homelessness. Communities that don’t currently meet all the eligibility criteria are still invited to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). Use the space provided in the EOI to share additional context about your efforts and plans. While eligibility is required for funding, projects that aren’t ready may receive guidance and support to strengthen future applications. Your EOI may also be shared with the NIHC for review and additional support.
Note: If you are an IH CE that does not have QBND confirmed by CAEH, but are interested in applying, please indicate this in your EOI. NIHC may follow up with you to learn more and explore how they can support your community and application.
Share your learnings
CAEH will share learnings and successes from funded projects with other communities across the country. Funded communities must commit to sharing their learnings, outcomes, and project data with CAEH. Communities must be able and willing to share QBND with CAEH monthly (at minimum).
Calls for Expressions of Interest open on February 17, 2026
Interested communities are encouraged to attend a one-hour information session to learn more:
- English: February 18, 2026 at 2 PM EST – Register here
- French: February 19, 2026 at 2 PM EST – Register here
- Indigenous-led Community Organizations & IH CEs: February 25, 2026 at 2 PM ET (to join, email: lisaS@nihc-cnasa.ca)
This information session is for all Indigenous-led organizations and CEs funded through Reaching Home’s Indigenous Homelessness stream (including CEs that receive both IH & DC funding). Led by the National Indigenous Homelessness Council (NIHC), this will be a chance to learn about the opportunities and implications of being funded through HRIF, including topics related to QBND and data governance, project design and evaluation, as well as narrative sovereignty and knowledge sharing. Please bring your questions!
For additional information about HRIF, see our Frequently Asked Questions. These are updated prior to the start of each new round of EOIs.
Key Dates
February 17, 2026 – Expression of Interest submission period opens
March 13, 2026 – Expression of Interest submission period closes (4 PM ET)
March 30, 2026 – Invitations to complete an application. Communities will also be informed if they are not selected to receive an application
May 1, 2026 – Applications due (4pm ET)
June 1, 2026 – Applicants will be informed of decision
Target of Summer 2026 – Expression of Interest submission period opens for HRIF round 4
Learn more about the funded communities
Meet the 16 communities receiving funding through the first round of the Homelessness Reduction and Innovation Fund (HRIF). If you wish to receive correspondence, newsletters and updates from CAEH or one of our Allied Networks, please join a mailing list below.
Prepare Before Submitting Your EOI
The following checklist contains readiness criteria that you can reference to prepare before submitting an EOI.
This checklist is a reference tool to help you prepare before submitting an Expression of Interest (EOI). It is for your use only and does not need to be submitted to CAEH. You only need to complete and submit the EOI, which will be used to assess eligibility.
Note: Communities that don’t currently meet all the eligibility criteria are still invited to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). The EOI provides space to share additional context about your efforts, plans, and areas where support may be helpful. While eligibility is required for funding, projects that aren’t ready may receive guidance and support to strengthen future applications. Your EOI may also be shared with the NIHC for review and additional support.
About us
The Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness works to prevent and end homelessness by helping to build effective community response systems and campaigning for the policy changes needed for everyone to have a place to call home.