Questions and answers regarding calls for applications that are currently open

The calls for applications that are currently open for government grants for communities differ in many ways to previous calls for applications. Listed below are answers to frequently asked questions regarding this autumn’s calls for applications.

How do I apply using the Applyforgrants.fi online service?

Some government grants for communities must be applied for this autumn using the Applyforgrants.fi online service. Here are a few tips on how to use the new service:

• Under Applications periods on the Taike website, you can see which forms of support must be applied for using the new service. You can type either applyforgrants.fi or www.haeavustuksia.fi/en to access the new service. 
• You must assign a name to your application. The name will help you differentiate it from other applications you submit in the future. The name will be visible to both you as the applicant and Taike.
• Remember to submit your application by clicking on Send the application! You can submit your application on the Applyforgrants.fi service under Management of the application. Before submitting your application, sign it in accordance with the signing rules of your community. Once the application has been signed, the Submit application button will be activated.
• The application form can be amended at any time during the application period. If you have already filled in and sent your application, remember to sign it and submit it again once it has been amended. If you do not submit the application again after amending it, the changes will not be saved. 

Where can I apply for support for a festival?

Taike now supports festivals in the form of general grants for festivals. The only exceptions to this are the following:

• Children’s culture festivals that are new or have been organised only 1–2 times. These can be applied for in the form of a project grant for children’s and youth culture.
• Art communities that do not organise festivals as their primary function can apply for funding for a festival as part of an operational subsidy for a specific artform.

The following types of communities are not eligible for general grants for festivals:

• Communities that receive government transfers
• Communities that receive general grants awarded by the Ministry of Education and Culture
• Communities that receive operational subsidies awarded by Taike

The Ministry of Education and Culture has transferred all festivals of national importance to Taike for processing, and the Ministry of Education and Culture’s appropriations for these festivals have also been transferred to Taike.

General grants for festivals can be applied for using the Applyforgrants.fi online service.

What is meant by de minimis aid and the General Block Exemption Regulation?

Taike now awards subsidies for communities in the form of de minimis aid or in accordance with the EU’s General Block Exemption Regulation GBER. De minimis aid refers to “minimal” state aid that does not exceed 300,000 euros per recipient over three years. The General Block Exemption Regulation may be used if the terms and conditions for receiving de minimis aid are not met.

In practice, this means that applicants must declare all their de minimis aid they have been awarded during the current and previous two fiscal years as a separate list on the application form. Support other than that awarded in the form of de minimis aid for art and cultural activities must also be included, as well as support awarded partly or entirely from EU funds as de minimis aid. If the support is awarded as de minimis aid, this is stated in the decision letter. Taike monitors the total amount of de minimis aid awarded to the community.

Read more in the blog by Henri Terho, Head of Arts Support

Does the applicant’s own capital affect the awarding of operational subsidies?

Taike aims is to provide communities the opportunity to secure the continuity of their operations by strengthening their own capital. For this reason, it is written in the call for applications for operational subsidies that own capital does not affect the amount of the subsidy if it does not exceed 50 percent of the annual operating budget. Accordingly, if the share of own capital is more than 50 percent of the annual operating budget of the applicant, the matter will be examined as part of the needs assessment. When processing the application, we take into account what the own capital comprises and what is its significance in terms of practical operations.

The amount of own capital therefore does not automatically affect the amount of the subsidy awarded. It should be noted that public financing cannot exceed 100 percent of eligible costs. It is possible to accumulate own capital with other income and through non-public funding.

What is the reason for the changes in the forms of support?

Some of the changes to the forms of support awarded by Taike are due to cuts to appropriations in the Government budget. In view of the budget cuts, it is even more important for Taike to guide applicants in what Taike is able to support and which types of grants and subsidies communities can apply for.

Changes have also been made due to Taike’s own strategic decisions and changes in the operating environment. Above all, Taike wants to safeguard the basic structure of artforms supported by operational subsidies and enable long-term change with a new type of special subsidy. Managing change also involves taking a new look at own capital with the intention of allowing communities to strengthen their financial foresight.

Regarding the changes in the operating environment, the goals of growth and, indirectly, internationalisation related to the Government’s economic policy play a key role. The global political situation has changed the international operating environment also with regard to the arts. In addition, the funding needs related to sustainability have increased both in relation to the goals of good governance in the arts sector and in the face of climate change and changes that threaten biodiversity.

Funding aims to support sustainable operations

Taike has stated that cuts to appropriations for different forms of support and artforms will not be divided equally. Instead, Taike will assess the importance of different forms of support and allocate resources accordingly. The same principle applies to changes affecting applicants. Taike will not take a “cheese slicer” approach by cutting funding equally for all recipients but instead make more precise choices about who will be awarded funding. Taike will try to maintain the individual amounts awarded at a level that supports sustainable operations. Correspondingly, this means that a larger number of applicants will be left without any support from Taike.

Why does it take so long to be notified about the decision?

Decisions on operational subsidies for specific artforms will be sent to applicants by 31 January 2025. Other funding decisions for communities (with the exception of project grants for “Percent for Art” projects) will be sent by 17 March 2025. This schedule is dictated by the fact that Taike, as a public authority, has an obligation to process government grant applications with care. Taike receives around 16,500 applications each year. Also, it is not just about processing individual applications, but about how to sustainably manage the entire government grant system. This takes its own time, and the process cannot be accelerated much with the current number of applications.

The time it takes to process applications is also affected by the start of the new term for our arts councils at the beginning of 2025, as well as the phasing in of the new government grant system.