The grant may only be used for the purpose it was applied for and awarded. The grant must be withdrawn and used following the grant time limits. The expenditure grant portions must be approximately equal to the sums outlined in the budget attached to the application. Using the grant in other ways or against regulations leads to a recovery claim of the grant.
The use of the grant must be paused for the duration of, for example, full-time employment, another corresponding grant, or annual paid leave. The Cultural Foundation does not need to be informed separately about the break, if the grant is used within the limits specified in chapter 2 and the break has no effect on the MYEL pension insurance period (for more information, please ask The Farmers’ Social Insurance Institution Mela).
If all of the grant payments have been made before the break and the report on the use falls due during the break or the grant period following the break, an indefinite return of the portion of the grant intended to be used after the break must be considered. The sum to be returned will be arranged with the Cultural Foundation beforehand. The grant will be returned to the Cultural Foundation’s account Nordea FI7315723000011486. The grant number (eight numbers) found in the Online Services for Grantees and the grant decision must be entered in the message field of the refund payment along with the text “indefinite return of grant”.
Applying for Change
It may be possible to change the purpose of use of the grant in some situations and it always requires an application. The change of the purpose of use can be applied in the Online Services for Grantees. The application must be sent in good time before the work or project phase subject to change is carried out. Change applications entered into reports on the use of the grant will not be taken into consideration.
Minor changes to the content and budget do not require an application. Neither does the rescaling of the project in relation to the overall funding secured, unless otherwise stated in the grant guidelines or the grant decision.
A grant awarded for personal work cannot be applied to be moved to a different individual to use. A grant that has in its entirety been awarded for a certain purpose of use, for example for doctoral dissertation work, for postdoctoral research or as an expenditure grant, cannot be later applied to be used for a completely different purpose.
Other Possible Changes:
- Working Hours Used for Grant Work
- If the working grant has been awarded for full-time work and there is a need to use it to work for fewer hours, the grant may be changed to be intended for part-time (75/50/25%) work. In this case the grant sum does not change but, instead, the duration of the grant period is extended. When, for example, the portion of grant work is 50%, a half-year grant is extended to one year, a one-year grant is extended to two years, and a two-year grant is extended to four years. With regard to three- and four-year grants, working for more than 48 months is not possible, so the remaining part is canceled as unnecessary.
Correspondingly, if the grant has been awarded for part-time work and there is a need to use it to work for more hours, the grant period will become shorter.
Other part-time percentages than the ones provided by the Cultural Foundation are not possible. The tables listing the grant sums with various part-time percentages can be found here.
The length of the grant period reported to MELA (The Farmers’ Social Insurance Institution) can only be changed when the change is made before the payment of the grant or its first instalment, or the confirmation of the insurance.
- Time Limits Regarding the Payment and the Use of the Grant
The time limits on the payment and the use of the grant are flexible, covering the standard causes that may extend the use of the grant within the three- and five-year deadlines. Extensions to the three- and five-year deadlines can be granted upon application only for exceptional reasons, such as serious illness or several successive family leaves. An extension will not be granted for another grant or for an employment contract.
- Change in the Composition of Working Group
The grant is intended to be used by the working group named in the application according to the specifications in the Online Services for Grantees and in the grant decision.
If a member of the working group is unable to use a part of or the whole working grant designated for them, they must notify in writing the person responsible of the working group that they are waiving the grant or a part of it. The person responsible will append the notification to the Online Services for Grantees.
If a new member joins the working group, their name, degree or profession must be submitted in the same service. The person responsible may not make any grant payments to the new member until the change has been agreed upon with the Cultural Foundation.
If the person responsible of the working group changes, the original person responsible appends a written notification of the change to the Online Services for Grantees. The notification is undersigned by both the original and new person responsible, and it must contain the contact information, personal identification number, and degree or profession of the new person responsible.
- Change of the Contact Person of an Organisation
If the contact person of an organisation changes, the previous contact person will notify the name, contact information, and the personal identification number of the new contact person on the Online Services for Grantees. Alternatively, a representative with the authority to sign documents on behalf of the organisation may notify the Cultural Foundation of the information of the new contact person on a secure email to apurahainfo(at)skr.fi or by phone to +358 (0)9 612 810.
A grant or its portion must be waived, if:
- the grantee receives other funding for the portion or work intended to be covered with the Cultural Foundation’s funding.
- the project or work has not materialised or will not be materialising for one reason or another.
- the project or work (e.g. doctoral dissertation) is completed faster than planned or on a smaller budget.
If the grant payment has already been fully completed, the whole grant or its unused portion must be returned. The sum to be returned will be arranged with the Cultural Foundation beforehand. The grant will be returned to the Cultural Foundation’s account Nordea FI7315723000011486. The grant number (eight numbers) found in the Online Services for Grantees and the grant decision must be entered in the message field of the refund payment along with the text “grant return and cancellation”.