Submit your recommendations for Canada’s budget

The federal government prepares a budget every year on how it will fund the programs and services it’s responsible for.

Individuals and organizations have 2 opportunities to share their ideas and help inform the government’s decisions in the federal budget.

• July-August: Survey by the Department of Finance
• June-August: Formal briefs may be submitted to the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA)

Complete the Department of Finance survey

In 2025, the federal Department of Finance opened a pre-budget survey which took approximately 5 minutes to complete. It ran from July 14, 2025 to August 28, 2025. Formal submissions, including letters or papers, could be sent to [email protected] or by mail at:

Department of Finance Canada
90 Elgin Street
Ottawa ON
K1A 0G5

To be notified of the next survey, follow the Department of Finance on social media or subscribe to federal government announcements.

To see active consultations, visit Department of Finance consultations.

Submit a brief to the Standing Committee on Finance

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance (FINA) conducts an annual pre-budget consultations process during which all individuals and organizations can submit a written brief with their views and recommendations. The consultation period takes place in the summer and runs from June or July until August. In 2024, the deadline for submitting written briefs for the 2025 federal budget through the committee’s website was no later than Friday, August 2, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Each year, Canadians are invited to contribute their views to the committee on their priorities for the next federal budget. Once again, we’re eager to hear from Canadians, who provide invaluable insight into this committee’s recommendations to the government

Mr. Peter Fonseca, M.P., Chair of the House Finance Committee

This process is more formal than the Department of Finance survey and is popular with organizations, associations and businesses, but individuals can also take part. In 2025, the Committee heard from 74 witnesses and received 828 briefs.

Briefs are concise, factual documents outlining specific proposals for government action. They must be no longer than 2,000 words and should adhere to the following template:

All text contained in the written brief, including – but not limited to – graphs, quotes, images and footnotes will count towards the limit of 2,000 words. Only one written brief per organization or individual is accepted.

They are then submitted in this online form.

The committee then writes a report (2025 report) based on these consultations which provides recommendations to be considered by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in the development of the 2025 federal budget.

Example briefs

For the 2024 budget, 858 briefs were submitted, including from:

Wealthsimple

Century Initiative

News Media

Individuals

176 witnesses were registered, including representatives of:

• Individuals
  • Christian Hébert
  • Joany Boily
  • Julie Bernier
  • Marie-Hélène Gagnon
  • Marie-Pier Gravel
  • Michel Côté
  • Paul Crête
  • René Grenier
  • Roseline Roussel
  • Thomas Le Page-Gouin
• Calgary Chamber of Commerce
• Co-operative Housing Federation of British Columbia
• National Cattle Feeders’ Association
• Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions
• Canadian Bankers Association
• Butler Mortgage Inc.
• Wealthsimple Investment Inc.
• Questrade Financial Group
• Union des municipalités du Québec
• Cannabis Council of Canada

These briefs and witness presentations resulted in the report Shaping Our Economic Future: Canadian Priorities by the Standing Committee on Finance which made recommendations to the Government of Canada.

Briefs become part of the public record

Briefs submitted to committees become part of their public archives. They may be posted on the Committees’ website and become public documents.