The City of Calgary’s Secondary Suite Incentive Program is closed to applications. It applied to a suite inside the main dwelling, not a backyard or detached suite. The amounts and conditions below describe the program’s published terms; they are not a current funding offer. The City’s overview says applications to both the interior-suite and backyard-suite incentive programs closed on September 28, 2026. If you applied before closure, check the City program page and ask the City about your own file.
Current application status
The City’s program page says it is no longer accepting applications. It reports that applications made after June 23, 2026 were placed on a waitlist; that refers to earlier submissions, not a way to apply now. Waitlist placement does not guarantee funding. The page’s latest receipt-verification notice lists submissions dated September 27, 2026. This is a processing snapshot, not a payment date or award promise. Earlier applicants should check the City’s current waitlist and contact the program about their application or receipts. For any reopening or successor, start with the City’s current program page.
Published program limits and conditions
The closed program provided qualifying homeowners with up to C$10,000 toward building and registering an interior secondary suite. It also listed up to an additional C$1,900 for specified ENERGY STAR egress-window and split-heat/separate-air equipment, and up to an additional C$7,500 for accessibility features. These were separate published maxima, not guaranteed reimbursements; approval depended on program criteria and eligible costs.
The historical program required an active building permit and property ownership. It reimbursed qualifying missing safety elements, such as egress windows, interconnected alarms, protected exiting, and separate heating or air measures. Work completed before the incentive application did not qualify; the program was not intended to fund the entire suite. The City required applicable permit inspections to pass, the suite to be registered, and receipts or paid invoices to be submitted. Its program page also identifies a mandatory eLearning course.
A suite that received program funds could not receive a short-term-rental business licence for two years after payment unless the funds were returned to the City in full. This was a term of the incentive program, not a general Calgary rental rule. Because intake is closed, prior applicants should use the City’s current guidance for file-specific requirements rather than relying on an older copy of a form or checklist.
Keep the separate Calgary routes distinct
The Backyard Suites Incentive was a separate program for backyard or detached suites; its intake also closed on September 28, 2026. Its status and terms should not be applied to the interior-suite program.
The City’s Secondary Suite Amnesty Program is a different route for some existing suites, not an incentive application. A suite built before March 12, 2018 may qualify for reduced requirements. The City says the amnesty ends December 31, 2026; homeowners who use it before then can avoid development-permit charges and registration fees. An upgrade may qualify for reduced building-code requirements, but minimum life-safety requirements still apply. Check the City’s suite and amnesty overview for current steps and confirm the property’s requirements with the City.
Before budgeting or beginning work
For a prior incentive application, confirm its status and any outstanding documentation directly with the City; the published caps do not establish an individual award or payment date. For an existing suite, confirm whether it qualifies for amnesty and what permits, inspections, registration, or safety upgrades remain. Incentive closure or amnesty eligibility does not determine whether a particular suite is permitted, safe, or eligible for a separate program.