Business Grants Guide

Innovation may be the key to running a successful business, but ideas need finance to get them to market. Here is a guide to government and private industry grants and awards programs, for SMEs in need of funding.

Adair Innovation—www.ausinnovation.org

Supported by government and private industry partnerships, Adair promotes Australian innovation, and organises the following initiatives:

* The Australian Innovation Festival. This annual festival has been increasing public understanding of the importance of innovation since 2002 by offering a multitude of events for SMEs, entrepreneurs, and start-ups.

* The Leaders of Innovation. The national seminar series features presentations from innovative Australian entrepreneurs.

AusIndustry—www.ausindustry.gov.au

AusIndustry is the Australian government agency responsible for delivering more than 35 products, services and information to support industry, research and innovation. Alongside a number of small business products and services, AusIndustry also offers the following innovation grants:

* Building Entrepreneurship in Small Business (BESB) is supporting Australian entrepreneurs, by providing a set of four grants to develop Australian small business skills.

* The Commercial Ready Program aims to support the growth of innovative Australian business and products, and to increase collaboration between industry and research institutions. Financial assistance ranges from $50,000 to $5 million, on the condition that SMEs match the assistance dollar for dollar.

* The Commercial Ready Plus Program is offering SMEs grants between $50,000 and $250,000 for innovative projects lasting up to 18 months. Any aspect of the project can be funded.

* The Commercialising Emerging Technologies (COMET) program will be assisting the commercialisation of innovative products, processes, and services until June 2011. The Federal Government decides the level of funding each year. To be eligible for the grant, applicants must become incorporated under the Corporations Act 2001.

* The Industry Cooperative Innovation Program offers grants ranging from $150,000 to $3 million to encourage business-to-business cooperation on innovative projects.

* The Innovation Investment Fund provides venture capital funds to SMEs. However, a licensed fund is required to invest in eligible ‘investee’ small businesses.

* The Renewable Energy Development Initiative assists Australian businesses to commercialise innovative renewable energy projects.

* The R&D Tax Concession is a broad-based tax concession that provides a tax deduction of up to 125 percent of eligible expenditure, to further develop innovative products and services. Under certain circumstances, a 175 percent Incremental (Premium) Tax Concession and R&D Tax Offset are also available. Talk to AusIndustry to find out if you qualify.

Australian Apprenticeships—www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au

An initiative of the Department of Education, Science and Training, Australian Apprenticeships is offering new apprentices and their employers special incentives such as the Innovation Incentive—an additional $1,100 to be paid on commencement to business owners who employ an apprentice in a defined innovation training package.

Australian Institute for Commercialisation—www.ausicom.com.au

This assists entrepreneurs in turning their innovative ideas into successful commercial businesses. One of the initiatives is Ideas2Market, a series of workshops supported by the Queensland Department of State Development and Trade. Participants will be provided with advice on how to take their idea to market and develop their business through innovative products and services. The workshops currently only run in Queensland.

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry—www.daff.gov.au

This federal government department offers numerous programs to develop innovative and sustainable industries. The programs include:

* Food Innovation Grants, aiming to improve industry competition by providing matching funds to Australian food companies undertaking research.

* Pilot Commercialisation Project Grants: provide funding to commercialise innovative agriculture products and services. Funding is between $35,000 and $120,000 and is only granted on a matched dollar for dollar basis. Applicants must have completed the initial market research and assessment.

* The Natural Resource Innovation Grants are a one-off grant and aim to encourage SMEs in the agriculture industry to develop innovative and sustainable production. Start-up businesses are not eligible to apply for this grant.

* The Science and Innovation Awards for Young People in Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry are open to applicants between the ages of 18 to 35. Applicants who demonstrate a use of innovative technology to further the development of the agriculture industry could receive up to $10,000 to further their business venture.