IWSCC’s Certification is a guarantee that your Canadian business is Veteran-Owned or Disabled-Owned. Our guarantee is recognized by Canada’s largest buyers – our Corporate Members – as a signal that working with your company is an investment into a community they want to support.
Certification is a signal to buyers – like IWSCC’s Corporate Members – that your business is creative, innovative, and dedicated.
Buyers want to know who they’re working with. Like all entrepreneurs, Veterans and Persons with Disabilities bring unique life experience to their work. They face and overcome unique challenges. They build great businesses.
IWSCC Certified Suppliers must be registered in Canada and owned by Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents.
IWSCC Certified Suppliers must be 51% or more owned, operated, and controlled by Veterans or Persons with a disability.
IWSCC Certification costs $500. Businesses can save on their membership by supporting IWSCC as a Community Contributor.
IWSCC collects a range of information to confirm that your business meets our requirements.
The documents you’ll need depend on the type of company you own. Before getting started with your application, here are some handy checklists:
Sole Proprietor Checklist
Solopreneurs who own 100% of their business have the shortest list of documents:
- A copy or scan of your Master Business License: This helps us confirm that your business is legally registered, active, and is in fact a sole proprietorship.
- A copy or scan of your Photo-ID: The owner of the business must be a Canadian Citizen or a Permanent Resident of Canada. Your Photo-ID helps us confirm this.
- Documents confirming that your are a person with a disability or Veteran:
- To confirm your status as a Person with a Disability, we recommend using our IWSCC Physician’s Form. This form is completed by your doctor or other healthcare professional to confirm that you live with a permanent disability.
- To confirm your status as a Veteran, we recommend submitting a copy or scan of your Veteran Service Card (VSC). This ID-card is issued by the Canadian Armed Forces, and you can learn more about getting one here.
Our application will also ask you for a range of information about your business without requiring supporting documents. Getting this information ready in advance, or considering what your answer might be will help make your application easier. This includes:
- Your business’ Legal Name and any Operating Names
- Your 9-digit Business Number (BN) provided by the CRA when you registered your business
- A written description of your business (150 – 250 words)
- A selection of Industry Categories to help describe your business at-a-glance
- The staff size of your business (answered as a range, not an exact number)
- The Canadian Service Area of your business by province / territory
- Whether you deliver your products in-person, remotely / virtually, or both
- The revenue amount your business reported last year OR a business plan for businesses less than 1 year old
- (Optional) the NAICS codes for your business; the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is a series of number codes that help identify your core goods or services to potential buyers. They are mostly relevant to exporters to the USA and Mexico, and are not required to certify or market your business.
Our application can be rigorous, and is designed to maintain the integrity of our community. While completing your application you can save and return later, and if you’d like to ask questions about the application or the information we collect you can contact us at info@iwscc.ca.
Corporation Checklist
Corporations with mixed ownership need several supporting documents to confirm the structure of their company and the Veteran / disability status of the individuals who own a majority of the company:
- A copy or scan of your Articles of Incorporation
- A copy, scan, or diagram of your Corporate Ownership Structure including any parent(s), trust(s), and personal shareholder(s)
- A copy or scan of your Shareholder’s Register or Ledger
- *Photo-ID: proof of the owners’ Canadian Citizenship or Permanent Residence
- *Documents confirming that your are a person with a disability or Veteran*:
- To confirm your status as a Person with a Disability, we recommend using our IWSCC Physician’s Form. This form is completed by your doctor or other healthcare professional to confirm that you live with a permanent disability.
- To confirm your status as a Veteran, we recommend submitting a copy or scan of your Veteran Service Card (VSC). This ID-card is issued by the Canadian Armed Forces, and you can learn more about getting one here.
*Note: In cases where multiple Veterans / Persons with Disability own a majority of your company, Photo ID and Veteran / Disability Status documents must be provided for each of those individuals.
Our application will also ask you for a range of information about your business without requiring supporting documents. Getting this information ready in advance, or considering what your answer might be will help make your application easier. This includes:
- Your business’ Legal Name and any Operating Names
- Your 9-digit Business Number (BN) provided by the CRA when you registered your business
- A written description of your business (150 – 250 words)
- A selection of Industry Categories to help describe your business at-a-glance
- The staff size of your business (answered as a range, not an exact number)
- The Canadian Service Area of your business by province / territory
- Whether you deliver your products in-person, remotely / virtually, or both
- The revenue amount your business reported last year OR a business plan for businesses less than 1 year old
- (Optional) the NAICS codes for your business; the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is a series of number codes that help identify your core goods or services to potential buyers. They are mostly relevant to exporters to the USA and Mexico, and are not required to certify or market your business.
Our application can be rigorous, and is designed to maintain the integrity of our community. While completing your application you can save and return later, and if you’d like to ask questions about the application or the information we collect you can contact us at info@iwscc.ca.
Partnership Checklist
Businesses owned in partnership need several supporting documents to confirm the structure of the partnership and who owns a majority of the company. Note: IWSCC does not certify 50/50 partnerships where only one owner is a Veteran or person with a disability; Veterans or persons with a disability must own 51% or more of the business to qualify.
- A copy or scan of your Partnership Agreement
- A copy or scan of your Partnership Registration Document
- *Photo-ID: proof of the owners’ Canadian Citizenship or Permanent Residence
- *Documents confirming that your are a person with a disability or Veteran*:
- To confirm your status as a Person with a Disability, we recommend using our IWSCC Physician’s Form. This form is completed by your doctor or other healthcare professional to confirm that you live with a permanent disability.
- To confirm your status as a Veteran, we recommend submitting a copy or scan of your Veteran Service Card (VSC). This ID-card is issued by the Canadian Armed Forces, and you can learn more about getting one here.
*Note: In cases where multiple Veterans / Persons with Disability own a majority of your company, Photo ID and Veteran / Disability Status documents must be provided for each of those individuals.
Our application will also ask you for a range of information about your business without requiring supporting documents. Getting this information ready in advance, or considering what your answer might be will help make your application easier. This includes:
- Your business’ Legal Name and any Operating Names
- Your 9-digit Business Number (BN) provided by the CRA when you registered your business
- A written description of your business (150 – 250 words)
- A selection of Industry Categories to help describe your business at-a-glance
- The staff size of your business (answered as a range, not an exact number)
- The Canadian Service Area of your business by province / territory
- Whether you deliver your products in-person, remotely / virtually, or both
- The revenue amount your business reported last year OR a business plan for businesses less than 1 year old
- (Optional) the NAICS codes for your business; the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is a series of number codes that help identify your core goods or services to potential buyers. They are mostly relevant to exporters to the USA and Mexico, and are not required to certify or market your business.
Our application can be rigorous, and is designed to maintain the integrity of our community. While completing your application you can save and return later, and if you’d like to ask que
Ready to join Canada’s National Community for Veteran-Owned and Disabled-Owned Businesses? Use the button below to access our application.
Still wondering if Certification is right for your business? We’re here to help. Find our Certification FAQ at the bottom of this page, email us any time at info@iwscc.ca, or visit our Contact Form and we’ll connect you with the right person on our team.
Calling all thought leaders and educators! Promote your expertise and with the IWSCC Community.
Not a writer? No problem! Tap into our Community Spotlight project. Share your unique perspective as a business owner in a structured interview format.
Every article submitted by a Certified Supplier saves 25% on their next year with IWSCC – a $125 value!
Does your business host inclusive events for learners, networkers, entrepreneurs, and more?
IWSCC Certified Suppliers can submit their events to us, and we’ll help promote them in our community!
- List your event on our web calendar
- Appear in our monthly e-newsletter
- Get a shout-out on Social Media
Educate and elevate when you host an IWSCC Webinar: Accessible and inclusive learning opportunities shared for free to support more growing entrepreneurs.
Every IWSCC Webinar becomes a permanent resource available for free and open to the public. Check out some of our lessons so far on our Research and Resources Page.
When an IWSCC Certified Supplier hosts a lesson, they save a full year of Membership; a $500 value!
When the IWSCC Community Grows, we pass the savings around with our Community Referral Bonuses!
Certified Suppliers save a year of membership (a $500 value!) when their peers join IWSCC, and we let you choose how to spend it:
- Pay toward your next renewal
- Gift the savings to the new member and pay for their first year
- Split it 50/50 and share the savings!
Why do IWSCC Certified Business need to be majority Veteran-Owned or Disabled-Owned?
IWSCC uses a strategy called Supplier Diversity to encourage more Canadians to work with business owners with great ideas who face unique challenges other entrepreneurs don’t. Our majority-owned requirement ensures that an IWSCC Certified business is led by the entrepreneurs we want to support so that we can use our resources to reduce or remove the unfair barriers unique to them.
It also means that every dollar spent with a Certified business contributes to economic stability and success for Veterans, Canadians with Disabilities, and their communities. Veteran and Disabled entrepreneurs use their lived experience to create accessible and inclusive workplaces – the kinds of workplaces we want to see more of in Canada. It’s our mission to help Canada recognize the potential of Veteran-Owned and Disabled-Owned businesses by connecting them with buyers who share our vision
How does IWSCC define “Disability?”
IWSCC shares our definition with the Accessible Canada Act – Canada’s federal law protecting the rights of Canadians with disabilities to participate in Canadian life, community, and economy by removing unfair barriers. This definition comes in two parts that define what a “Disability” is, and what a “Barrier” is:
- Disability means “any impairment, including physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, communication, or sensory impairment – or a functional limitation – whether permanent, temporary, or episodic in nature, evident or not that, in interaction with a Barrier, hinders a person’s full and equal participation in society.”
- Barrier means “anything – including physical, architectural, technological or attitudinal, anything that is based on information or communications, or anything that is a result of a policy or practice – that hinders the full and equal participation in society of persons with an impairment, including a physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, communication or sensory impairment or a functional limitation.”
Canadians with disabilities encounter barriers every day that prevent them from participating in society at their best, and many of these barriers only exist because we didn’t consider everyone when we made our plans, wrote our policies, and designed our spaces. By removing the barriers we put up ourselves – even if we didn’t mean to – we can live our best lives, strengthen our communities, and grow our economy together.
How does IWSCC define “Veteran?”
IWSCC shares our definition of a Veteran with the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF):
- A Veteran is “any former member of the Canadian Armed Forces who successfully underwent basic training and is honourably discharged.”
- IWSCC also recognizes Veterans of foreign militaries who moved to Canada and founded businesses as long as they are now a Permanent Resident or Citizen of Canada. Our criteria to recognize Veterans of foreign militaries are handled case-by-case when you apply.
Many former servicemembers may not regard themselves as Veterans. Like the Canadian Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs Canada, IWSCC want to help change this. Regardless of whether a servicemember was full-time or a reservist, how long they served, or whether their service was domestic or on foreign soil, every individual who wears the uniform and takes the pledge accepts the same risk and deserves honour, recognition, and support for the values and traditions they represent and protect.
Can I Certify my business if it’s owned by multiple Veterans or persons with a disability, or a mix of the two?
Yes. As long as all of the people who own a portion of your business are Veterans OR persons with a disability, and that portion equals 51% of the company or more, you still qualify. There are some points worth noting:
- Every individual who makes up the majority portion of ownership must provide documentation supporting their claim of Veteran / disability status when applying
- All of those same individuals must be Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents
- IWSCC does not certify businesses that are split 50/50 unless both sides are a person with a disability or a Veteran.