Impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s grant rules 

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the lives of grantees in a variety of ways, and the Cultural Foundation has responded with even more flexibility than usual. First and foremost, the grant recipients have been requested to check the three- and five-year rules related to the use of grants in the grantee guidelines, as well as the instructions concerning the grant report submission schedule.  If these clauses have not been applicable to or have not provided sufficient flexibility in the situation, the recipients have been asked to comply with the following additional instructions:

• The Finnish Cultural Foundation has accepted, without separate notification, a twelve-month extension to the completion of the purpose of the grant and to the submission of the report on the use of the grant, for those grantees whose work plans have been affected by the pandemic. If, for example, an event scheduled to be held in 2020-21 has been cancelled, but it has been possible to organise it one year later, everything is in order.
• If a grant has been drawn in full, but its use delayed due to the pandemic, the Cultural Foundation has accepted a six-month extension to the submission of the grant report without separate notification. From July 2022 onwards, this extension for the submission of the grant report will no longer be automatically granted. Submit a report on the use of the grant on the Online Service for Grantees before its deadline.
• If the use of the grant for its original purpose cannot be delayed and the grantee wishes to change the purpose of use of the grant, this must have been agreed in advance with the Cultural Foundation.
• If a grantee has been unable to organise a planned event or a similar arrangement due to the coronavirus, the Finnish Cultural Foundation will not ask for the reimbursement of grant money already spent. However, the unused portion of the grant must either be returned, or a change in its purpose of use must be negotiated (in advance) with the Foundation.
• It has not been necessary to interrupt or postpone the use of a personal working grant even if implementing the work or research plan has not been possible according to the original plan when it has been possible to further the implementation of the plan with minor adjustments. In this case, the Cultural Foundation does not need to be separately contacted. Submit a report on the use of the grant on the Online Service for Grantees within a year of receiving the final instalment of the grant money.
• For mobility grants, the aim has been to postpone them to a later date.
• Critic course grants related visits abroad will take place when the Coronavirus situation allows for them.

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