Government programs

Export Development Canada (EDC): insurance, guarantees and financing support for exporters.

Insurance, guarantees and financing support for exporters

✓ Checking what you qualify for does not affect your credit score.

How does Export Development Canada help exporters?

Short answer: Export Development Canada is a federal Crown corporation that supports businesses selling abroad. It offers trade credit insurance against foreign customers not paying, guarantee programs that help banks lend more for export growth, financing and market knowledge. EDC usually works alongside your bank rather than replacing it.

Key facts

Federal Crown corporation for exporters
Trade credit insurance protects foreign receivables
Guarantees can raise a bank's working-capital limit
Usually works with your bank

What it is

Export Development Canada is a federal Crown corporation that supports Canadian businesses selling abroad. Its services include trade credit insurance, which protects against foreign customers not paying, guarantee programs that help banks lend to exporters, and financing and market knowledge.

EDC usually works alongside your bank rather than replacing it.

Who it is for

Canadian businesses that sell, or plan to sell, outside Canada.
Exporters who extend credit terms to foreign buyers.
Companies whose bank needs additional security to lend for export growth.

How it works in practice

Trade credit insurance can insure receivables from foreign customers.
Guarantee programs can help your bank increase a working-capital facility.
EDC also provides export guidance and market information.
Applications are typically made directly or through your bank.

Cash-flow timing to plan for

Exporters often wait 60 to 90 days or more for foreign customers to pay. Insured receivables can make a bank more willing to lend against them, easing that wait.

Currency movements between invoicing and payment can change what you receive in Canadian dollars.

Tips before you apply

Talk to your bank about EDC-backed facilities.
Insure large foreign receivables.
Plan for longer collection times.
Consider currency risk in pricing.

Questions to ask before you commit

Can EDC insure our largest foreign receivables?
Does our bank work with EDC guarantee programs?
What would insurance cost relative to the risk?
Can EDC help us assess a foreign buyer?
How do currency movements affect our coverage?

Common mistakes with program funding

Starting eligible spending before an agreement is signed, which can make those costs ineligible.
Assuming a payment date that the program never promised.
Losing receipts and timesheets needed for claims.
Forgetting that repayable contributions must be repaid on a schedule.
Using program support and private financing without checking stacking rules.

Using programs and private funding together

Government programs are usually the lowest-cost money available to a Canadian business, and they are worth pursuing first when you qualify. They are also slower, have intake windows and often pay after you spend. Many owners use a short, revenue-based advance only to cover a timing gap, such as paying a share of a project before a contribution arrives, and repay it when the program pays out. Size any advance to the gap, not to the whole project, and confirm that the program's terms allow other financing.

Source and date

Official program information: www.edc.ca. Program details change; check current eligibility, intake dates and terms with the program directly. Summary as of October 2026. Merchant Fund Express is not affiliated with this program and does not administer it.

How do exporters handle the cash gap?

Foreign customers often pay on 60 to 90 day terms, and goods may be in transit for weeks before that. Insuring the receivables with EDC lets a bank lend against them more readily. For a one-off gap, such as a first large export order, a short advance tied to the signed order can bridge the time until payment.

Common questions

Is EDC a lender?

It offers financing and also supports bank lending through guarantees and insurance.

Do I need to be a large exporter?

No. EDC works with small and medium-sized exporters.

Does EDC replace my bank?

Usually it works alongside your bank.