Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC) Policy - Federal

Please be advised that funding opportunities include relevant research security requirements.

For information on different funding sources, see the University of Toronto (U of T) Funding Opportunities Database.
For information on grant application requirements pertaining to cyber and data security, contact the Research Information Security Program or see Information Security.

On January 16, 2024, the Government of Canada introduced the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC) for funding opportunities launched after May 1, 2024.

The STRAC Policy applies to the following funding agencies.

• Tri-Agencies:
  
  • Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR)
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)
  • Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
  • Tri-Agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (TIPS)
• Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) 

The STRAC Policy states that to be eligible to receive new research funding in any Sensitive Technologies Research Areas (STRA) each researcher with a named role in the grant application cannot have any affiliations with and cannot be in receipt of funding or in-kind support from entities on the Named Research Organizations (NRO) list.

• Affiliation: Individuals are considered affiliated with any organization at which they are employed, appointed, or conduct research. In cases where individuals hold multiple affiliations, all must be identified and considered when ensuring compliance with this policy.
• Funding and in-kind support: Monetary or non-monetary contributions, that include but are not limited to goods, equipment, materials and supplies, professional services, use of facilities (office space, lab access), software, technologies, and databases.

Each researcher with a named role in the grant application (for CIHR applications, see named role definition) must submit the Attestation for Research Aiming to Advance Sensitive Technology Research Areas confirming that they are not affiliated with or in receipt of funding or in-kind support from entities on the Named Research Organizations (NRO) list.

For CFI applications, researchers are required to submit the Attestation for Research Advancing Sensitive Technology Research Areas.

Grant applicants should ensure that all prospective research team members are aware of their individual responsibilities with regards to compliance with the STRAC Policy. Although highly qualified personnel (HQPs), such as graduate students and post-doctoral students, are not required to submit an attestation form, they are required to be compliant with the policy (see this STRAC Policy FAQ on HQPs).

Use this STRAC Questionnaire to determine if research team members have an existing affiliation with NRO entities and are required to complete individual attestation forms.

Funding will not be granted for projects on the STRA list if a listed researcher has an affiliation with a named research organization.

Should the grant application be funded, grant recipients must inform the corresponding granting agency and their institutional officials if the nature of their research evolves (see this STRAC Policy FAQ on changes) or if the composition of the research team changes (see this STRAC Policy FAQ on team members).

All research team members involved in the activities funded by a grant that was identified as aiming to advance a STRA are individually responsible for ensuring that they do not hold an active affiliation or receive funding or in-kind support from any of the listed Named Research Organizations, following the versions of the lists that were publicly available on the date that the grant application was submitted. 

-Tri-agency guidance on the Policy on STRAC Policy

The above requirement applies for the duration of their involvement in the activities supported by the grant, regardless of whether an attestation form was required from a research team member at the time of application.

Please see the Tri-agency guidance on the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern and CFI’s Research Security page for up-to-date information on the implementation of research security measures by the federal granting agencies, including relevant definitions, the responsibilities of researchers, and information on the attestation validation process, as well as the STRAC FAQs for additional information.

For any questions about STRAC or assistance completing the attestation form, please contact the Research Security Team at researchsecurity@utoronto.ca.

• Attestation for Research Aiming to Advance Sensitive Technology Research Areas (Tri-Agency)
• Attestation for Research Advancing Sensitive Technology Research Areas (CFI)
• STRAC Questionnaire for determining a researcher’s NRO affiliation status and attestation form requirements (U of T)

• Provide support in conducting research security due diligence and partner vetting
• Provide guidance and support with research risk assessments and attestation forms
• Provide outreach and training on best practices for safeguarding your research
• Communicate updates on research security requirements