Organisation and project eligibility

Eligibility

The same eligibility requirements apply to all applicant organisations and projects.

To be eligible for the program, your application must:

• meet the organisation eligibility criteria
• include only eligible grant activities that align with the CCIF objective
• submit all mandatory documents
• meet any matched funding requirements
• have no outstanding reports to the Department of Premier and Cabinet
• not be the responsibility of another ministerial portfolio (such as health or education)

Only eligible applications will move to the assessment stage.

Who is eligible to apply for a grant?

Organisation eligibility

Your organisation must:

• be an incorporated legal entity registered under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) or the Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012 (Vic) or incorporated through an Act of Parliament
• have a current Australian Business Number (ABN) matching the applicant organisation's name
• have no outstanding project reports from previous Multicultural Affairs portfolio grants, and
• be a not-for-profit Chinese Community Organisation which you must confirm by showing that your organisation is either:
  • registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission
  • registered with Consumer Affairs Victoria as an incorporated association, or
  • a social enterprise with a clearly stated purpose or mission related to supporting Chinese communities in Victoria (Social enterprises must attach their constitution, rules or governance documents with their application).

Definition of social enterprises

Social enterprises are organisations that:

• are led by an economic, social, cultural or environmental mission that is consistent with a public or community benefit
• get most of their income from trade
• reinvest most their profit or surplus to fulfil their mission (at least 50 per cent).

Auspiced applications

If your organisation is not incorporated or does not have an ABN, you may still apply if you are supported by an eligible auspice organisation. This organisation must agree to manage the grant for you.

You must include a letter of support from the auspice organisation in your application.

Auspice organisations must meet the organisation eligibility criteria.

Auspice organisations must meet all the requirements of the grant funding. They must ensure the project is completed and contractors have been paid. The CCIF funding does not cover administrative and operational costs, and contractors must be paid for the project to be considered complete. The auspice organisation is responsible for submitting milestone reports including the final report and acquittal.

Auspice organisations can include local councils, schools and TAFEs.

What are the responsibilities of an auspice organisation?

If your grant application is successful, your auspice organisation will be responsible for:

• signing the funding agreement
• all legal and financial matters of the grant on your organisation’s behalf
• receiving and distributing all grant funds to the contractors under the funding agreement
• ensuring all grant activities are completed in line with the funding agreement
• submitting progress and final reports and financial acquittals on your organisation’s behalf.

Who is not eligible to apply for a grant?

Organisations that are not eligible for 2024-25 CCIF program funding include:

• any organisation which is not a Chinese community organisation
• unincorporated legal entities
• individuals and sole traders
• organisations that:
  • are commercial or set up to make a profit (except social enterprises)
  • have not complied with the terms and conditions of previous grants
  • cannot show their ability to meet their project’s ongoing maintenance and running costs
• groups whose projects sit in another ministerial portfolio (such as health, education or sport and recreation)
• public companies limited by shares (unless a foundational document can prove not-for-profit status)
• commercial enterprises
• local governments (councils) including council-managed, operated, administered and regulated trusts (unless they are acting as an auspice for an unincorporated community group)
• TAFE institutes and universities (unless they are acting as an auspice for an unincorporated community group)
• registered pre-, primary and secondary schools.

To check if your organisation is:

• an Incorporated Association, go to Consumer Affairs Victoria
• a Company Limited by Guarantee, go to ASIC Connect
• registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), go to the ACNC website
• a registered business, go to ABN Lookup.

To check if your organisation is up to date with grant reporting requirements:

• email multicultural.infrastructure@dpc.vic.gov.au

Other eligibility requirements

Matched and Additional funding

The 2024-25 CCIF program offers an opportunity for the government to co-invest in Chinese community infrastructure projects. All applications for projects that are not targeting regional or rural located priority projects must include evidence of their ability to Match Funding.

If relevant, all organisations must also include evidence of their ability to provide the Additional Funding required to close any funding gap between the Grant Amount Requested and the Total Project Cost.

Without this evidence, the application will not be assessed. Matched or Additional Funding shows your organisation’s commitment to completing the project.

Acceptable evidence of funding sources include:

• bank statements in the name of the applicant organisation
• an approved bank loan to the applicant organisation
• evidence of other funding sources to meet any project funding shortfall (for example, other grants or loans that would meet at least the minimum cash contribution requirement).