Companies news
Export Market Development grant now open
The EMDG aims to encourage SMEs Australian businesses to develop export markets through increased international marketing and promotional activity.
Austrade’s Export Market Development Grant (EMDG) Scheme for the 2020 financial year is now open.
Applications can be submitted from 1 July 2020. The scheme reimburses up to 50% of eligible expenses above $5,000 threshold, provided that the total expenses are at least $15,000. Each eligible applicant is entitled to eight annual grants (these do not need to be in consecutive years).
IMPORTANT CHANGES
Temporary removal of Export Performance Requirements due to Covid-19:
- For the 3rd to 8th applications the government announced that it has waived the Export Performance Test for the 2019-2020 grant year. Companies will be assessed on eligible expenditure and not against the value of exports achieved.
Promotional Expenditure impacted by Covid-19:
- Austrade announced that they will treat costs incurred for marketing and promotional activities cancelled due to Covid-19 as eligible expenditure for the purposes of EMDG eligibility for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 grant years.
- If you are reimbursed a portion of marketing and promotional activity costs, then the net amount will be eligible EMDG expenditure if it meets the criteria.
EMDG SUPPORTS NINE CATEGORIES OF PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING:
- Overseas representatives
- Marketing consultants
- Marketing visits
- Free samples
- IP registration
- Trade fairs, seminars, in-store promotions
- Promotional literature and advertising
- Overseas buyers
- Insurance of Eligible Intellectual Property
For more information on the amounts allocated by sector, please refer to Mazars Website.
TO BE ABLE TO CLAIM FOR ANY OF THE ABOVE ACTIVITIES:
- You must have spent the funds to seek out, create, or increase demand for your product in an export market;
- You must be the intended principal in export transactions, i.e. not an agent (See on Mazars Website);
- The expense must have been paid by you during the claim year. If this is your first grant application, these expenses may have been incurred during the preceding two financial years being the claim years;
- The item paid for must have been provided to you and you must have evidence of the expense and what it was incurred for
GRANT FUNDING
The maximum grant funding available for eligible applicants is up to $150,000, subject to the availability of funds in scheme. Members of related company groups may apply individually. The maximum payable to a group of related companies is $250,000 per annum.
Grants will be paid under a split-payment system in two rounds:
- Round 1: An initial payment of grant entitlements up to the initial payment ceiling amount. Please note the Government has increased this from $40,000 to $100,000 in 2019-2020.
- Round 2: A second-tranche payment of grant entitlements above the initial payment ceiling amount.
Any grant received is regarded as assessable income for tax purposes.
WHO CAN APPLY?
Eligible applicants include any Australian individual, partnership, company, association, co-operative, statutory corporation or trust that has carried out export promotional activities during the year for which they seek. See application requirement and eligible activities on Mazars Website.
Applications close at midnight on the 30th of November 2020 with an extension to 2 March 2021 for applications lodged under the EMDG Consultant Quality Incentive Program.
Source: Mazars
