Budget allocated for Standard Grants is EUR 2,200,000. Deadlines for applications are March 15 and September 15. The minimum amount of funding allocated to a single project is EUR 5,001.

All applications should be delivered to the Fund both electronically and in one (1) hard-copy version. All attachments to the application form shall also be sent in a single copy only. No applications will be accepted after the deadlines mentioned above. In case of postal delivery, the date on the postmark will be considered decisive.

I. General Information

Under the approved budget and available resources, the Fund's financial resources are used to support the activities in the fields of:

   1. Cultural Cooperation (e.g. festivals, publications)
   2. Scientific Exchanges and Research (e.g. conferences, publications, research)
   3. Education (e.g. seminars, summer schools)
   4. Youth Exchanges (e.g. sport, educational and cultural events for youth and children)
   5. Cross-Border Cooperation (cross-border two-country projects within 50km from the border)
   6. Promotion of Tourism (e.g. guides, presentations, fairs)

The financial contribution of the Fund cannot exceed 50% of total project costs including the in-kind contribution of applicant (a non-cash input which can be given a cash value, e.g. one's own car for transportation, one's own premises for accommodation or business), or in-kind contributions of other co-financing subjects. The maximum time frame of the proposed budget is 12 months, even if the project is envisaged to last longer.

When considering funding, the Fund will prefer projects which involve partners (co-organizers) from all Visegrad Group (V4) countries (with the exception of Cross-Border projects). The Fund will not support projects in which less than three V4 countries are involved, except for Cross-Border projects. Within the Cross-Border Cooperation, partners from two V4 countries are sufficient. The Fund may also fund projects proposed by (or implemented in cooperation with) an entity outside of V4 countries, provided that such projects are in compliance with the objectives of the Fund. Applicants from non-V4 countries can apply for Standard Grants provided that they have at least two (2) co-organizing partners from different V4 countries and that their project is thematically related to Visegrad cooperation.

The Fund may grant financial resources only to cover the following costs:

   1. Printing and publishing costs, delivery
   2. Rent of premises and related technical services
   3. Fees for artists
   4. Accommodation and boarding
   5. Transportation costs
   6. Fees for experts
   7. Translating, interpreting costs
   8. Awards and prizes
   9. Office supplies and promotional material
  10. Public relations costs (advertising, promotion)
  11. Website design and update

The funding granted by the Fund is supposed to be used primarily for project participants from V4 countries and within V4 territory.

The funding granted by the Fund cannot be used for:

   1. capital investments
   2. the applicant's own indirect costs (electricity/gas/water/telephone bills, etc.)
   3. internal costs and invoices (rent of one's own premises, one's own accommodation and
       board, one's own work--e.g. coordination of the project, etc.)
   4. salaries, financial renumeration of employees, etc.
(or any expenses related to an employment based on the labor code, including daily allowances, part-time work, etc.)

The Fund will grant the funding only based upon a written contract (its draft is on the website), which clearly sets rules for the project funding.

Projects which fall under public budgets and are directly financed from public budgets cannot be financed by the Fund, e.g. ministries or cultural centers. (For example, the Hungarian Cultural Center in Bratislava cannot be considered a Hungarian partner in a Slovak project.)

When financing projects, the Fund will respect the principle of proportionate allocation of funds among the entities from the Czech Republic, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Poland and the Slovak Republic.

The Fund primarily supports activities aimed at the development of civil society.

II. Project Preparation

The applicant must prepare the project using the respective application form (available on-line). If necessary, the applicant can provide additional information on the project in a form of an attachment to the application form (uploadable on-line).

The application must be filled in English and delivered to the Fund both electronically and in a hard copy. The hard copy of the application must contain original signatures of the applicants. In case the applicant is not a natural person, the application form must be signed by the statutory representative of the organization.

Eligible applications must contain the following compulsory attachments apart from the application form as such:

   • (1) copies of identification document for natural persons

   • (2) copies of founding documents, registration documents or statutes of legal entities;
     such documents must, however, contain the following:
       - the name of the statutory representative
       - the registered seat of the organization
       - identification number of the organization (e.g. tax ID)

Note: Applicants from non-V4 countries must also attach a copy of each of the above mentioned documents in their mother tongue and an English translation thereof signed by the statutory representative.

   • (3) copies of registration or ID documents of the project partners

   • (4) original letters of intent from the project partners which:
       - must be written in English
       - must be printed on official letterhead paper
       - must be signed by the partner's statutory representative
       - must indicate the project's name and the partner's role
       - cannot be older than 3 months

   • (5) copies of letters from co-financing entities

   • (6) special permissions for project implementation (where applicable)

Note: All documents must be delivered to the Fund together with the application form in a single (one) envelope; separately delivered documents cannot be considered.

     International Visegrad Fund
     Kralovske udolie 8
     SK-811 02 Bratislava
     Slovak Republic

     E-mail: standard@visegradfund.org

The Secretariat of the Fund will record the applications in the order in which they were received. The applicants will be notified by e-mail about the receipt of their applications and each will be given their own serial number. The applicants are advised to use that number in all future correspondence with the Fund.

III. Project Approval

The Secretariat of the Fund reviews all delivered applications in terms of their compliance with formal requirements. The Executive Director reviews each application in terms of its content with special emphasis on its compliance with the aims of the Fund. The Executive Director then recommends or does not recommend an approval of the projects.

At its session, the Council of Ambassadors either a) accepts or b) rejects the projects. Decisions made by the Council of Ambassadors are final. They shall present no grounds for legal proceedings and they require no detailed reasoning.

In case of Standard Grants, the screening process may last up to 10 weeks after the deadline. When preparing calendar of activities, the applicants should take this fact into account as the Fund cannot consider and support projects that are to be implemented before the screening process is over.

The Fund shall inform the applicant about the results in writing (by post and/or by e-mail). The Fund has no obligation to give reasons for the decision, nor is it obliged to return the application to the applicant. The applicant, whose project was rejected, can apply with the same project again in the future rounds, provided that the time plan is changed for later period and a new application is submitted.

IV. Project Implementation

The applicant has the obligation to implement the approved project in compliance with the time frame and financial conditions agreed upon in the contract. The Fund shall make the resources available for the applicant according to the contract. In principle, the applicant is reimbursed upon receipts submitted to the Fund (invoices, cash receipts, travel expense statements or transportation tickets, contracts, copies of bank statements, etc.).

The applicant shall be reimbursed by the Fund either in one installment or in several installments (each in the value higher than EUR 1,000, except for the final one) after a successful implementation of the project and submission of the final report and relevant accounting documents.

In exceptional cases, the applicant can request changes in the already approved project. Requests for changes in the time frame and financial framework of the project will be considered by the Fund. All requests shall be addressed to the Secretariat of the Fund in written form.

The applicants have the obligation to provide the Fund with media monitoring related to the supported project and the project's promotion materials, and to regularly inform the Fund about the progress of the project.

The applicants also have the obligation to:

A.
Inform the Fund about the planned events that take place during the implementation of the project and send invitations or announcements to the Fund at least 14 days in advance.

B.
Spread and support the idea of Visegrad cooperation and the good reputation of the International Visegrad Fund during the implementation process and present the Fund's logo and the website address (www.visegradfund.org) in all information and promotional materials, including invitations related to the project implementation. Format and size of the Fund's logo has to be proportional to the Fund's contribution to the project.

C.
Submit to the Fund the Final Report on the results and achievements of the project including:

   • the final financial settlement
   • project documentation proving acknowledgment of the Fund's support to the project.

The Final Report must be delivered to the Fund not later than 30 days after the end of the contractual period.

V. Project Evaluation

All projects of the Fund are subject to continuous supervision and final evaluation by the Fund.

VI. Financial Settlement

The grant can be reimbursed only after the delivery of a complete Financial Settlement consisting of paid financial documents processed in a prescribed form (using the forms available on the Fund's website).

Financial settlement shall be prepared only for the costs requested for reimbursement from the Fund (i.e. as contracted). All remaining costs of the project shall be declared in a separate table of the Final Report. The Final report shall be signed by the statutory representative of the applicant.

Please note that the Fund can accept for reimbursement only those expenses which were paid by the applicant and/or his contracted partner/-s (enclosed to the contract) and within the contractual period.

Eligible cost items are clearly specified in the contract.

The Fund cannot accept any internal costs of the applicant or his/her contracted partners, nor costs resulting from contracts ruled by the Labor Code.

Formal criteria:

   • financial settlement must be prepared with the use of compulsory forms
     (i.e. financial settlement table - FS, enclosures to the FS - Enc., the final report - FR)
   • an enclosure (cover sheet) has to be attached to every single financial document
     (together with a payment confirmation)
   • all enclosures must be signed by a person who prepared it
   • all enclosures must be summed up in a summary table - FS
   • all enclosures must be in chronological order
   • both the FS and the FR have to be signed by the statutory representative of the applicant
     (representing an official reimbursement request towards the Fund)

Applicants from non-V4 countries must always attach to the Financial Settlement an English translation of the following documents signed by the statutory representative:

   • bank statement copy
   • petty-cash voucher
   • all financial documents (e.g. invoices, contracts, bills, receipts etc.)
   • other internal documents necessary for the project reimbursement
   • other documents requested by the Fund

All the compulsory forms, as well as "Instructions to FS" and "FS Requirements" can be downloaded from the Fund's website.

(10/2009)

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