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Additional information, application deadlines, documentation
Consideration of applications
Guide for Applicants 2003 (PDF file 188K)
How are applications evaluated?
Who evaluates your application?
Your application is forwarded to the department responsible for your discipline.
The department undertakes a formal assessment:
- Is your project in line with the Council’s objectives?
- Was your application submitted in time to meet the deadline?
- Is the documentation complete?
The department confirms receipt and tells you how long you can expect processing to take, should the Council not be able to notify you of its decision within 4 weeks.
The staff at Pro Helvetia headquarters prepare your application and pass it to the appropriate bodies of the Council.
Which body considers your application depends on the sum in question. Grants of Fr. 20,000 or less are decided upon by the specialist staff at headquarters, grants over Fr. 20,000 by the appropriate working group of the Board of Trustees. Approval of applications requesting grants over Fr. 200,000 must be confirmed by the Steering Committee.
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The decision-making bodies and the scope of their authority are noted in Art. 19 of the Pro Helvetia grant regulations |
What are the evaluation criteria?
The second step is to examine the content and financial aspects of your proposal.
Pro Helvetia can approve a work grant if
- the Council deems your previous achievements convincing;
- you can make a credible case for your inability to obtain sufficient funds from third parties.
Pro Helvetia can extend support to your project if it
- possesses cultural relevance;
- demonstrates a convincing standard of quality;
- will be carried out by professionals;
- is thematically or formally innovative;
- is of supraregional, national or international significance or possesses the character of a pilot project;
- demonstrates a suitable cost-benefit ratio;
- promises to have long-term effects;
- is accessible to the public; and
- has not yet been undertaken.
Please read under category «Discipline areas» for the additional criteria set out by the individual discipline areas.
When will you be notified of the decision?
How long it takes to process your application depends on the amount requested. Or, to put it more simply, on the body handling your application and its meeting schedule.
Have you submitted an application for which there is no fixed application deadline? Then you will hear from us 8 weeks after the fully documented application is submitted.
Is there a deadline for your application? Then you will be notified of the decision within 4 months of the deadline.
A few days after the decision has been taken by the appropriate body of Pro Helvetia, you will receive written notification of approval, outlining the purpose of the grant. Or, should your application be rejected – providing a brief explanation.
And what can you do if you are not satisfied with the decision?
On request, Pro Helvetia will be happy to provide as many further details about the decision as it can.
If you, as an applicant, are not satisfied with the decision, you can
- lodge a written reconsideration request with the Council within 30 days, if you can put forward new aspects not previously taken into account;
- lodge an appeal with the federal appeals commission responsible for Pro Helvetia (Rekurskommission für die Stiftung Pro Helvetia) within 30 days of being notified of the decision.
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Reconsideration requests and appeals must be lodged in accordance with Art. 11a of the federal law concerning Pro Helvetia and Art. 22 of the Pro Helvetia grant regulations («Verordnung über Beiträge der Stiftung Pro Helvetia»). Please address your request for reconsideration to the appropriate specialised working group of the Board of Trustees and send it to Pro Helvetia headquarters in Zurich. Please submit your appeal in duplicate to the Eidgenössische Rekurskommission |
What are your responsibilities as a grant recipient?
Approval of your application and your subsequent acceptance of the grant involve certain obligations on your part:
- You must carry out the project as set forth in your application.
- You are required to acknowledge the assistance you have received.
- We expect members of the headquarters staff or representatives of the Board of Trustees to be invited to a performance or to the launch/opening, and for specimen copies of publications/printed material to be made available to us.
Details can be found in the leaflet «Guidelines for recipients of awards», which is enclosed with your approval letter.
When can you expect payment to be made?
Pro Helvetia awards project grants in the form of non-repayable funding or deficit guarantees, the latter above all where a project is risky or has the prospect of raising the necessary funds itself.
Consequently, grants can only be paid out once the project is completed or the work executed/performed. Payment is conditional upon submission to headquarters of a final statement of accounts and a report on the completed project, plus specimen copies of publications/printed material. Work grants are paid out immediately upon approval.
In exceptional cases headquarters can pay an advance of up to 80 per cent of the approved grant.
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For information on the expiry of grant assurances and the repayment of advances, see Art. 24 of the Pro Helvetia grant regulations («Verordnung über Beiträge der Stiftung Pro Helvetia»). The responsibilities of grant recipients are based on Art. 15 of the Pro Helvetia grant regulations. |
