1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

1.1. Baltic Culture Fund (hereinafter referred to as "the Programme") is established by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Estonia, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania on the 8^th of July, 2018 to promote cultural cooperation between Baltic States, to strengthen the internationalization of Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian culture, and to present a common Baltic dimension.

1.2. The annual budget of the Programme is at least €300 000, each founding member allocates to the Programme €100 000 annually. The Programme also admits donations according to the subsequent agreements signed.

1.3. The working language of the Programme is English.

1.4. The processing of applications takes place in rotation between the three Baltic States in alphabetical order (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) based on a three-year cycle. Processing of applications, and resolving any disputes that may occur in connection with that, is subjected to the law/jurisdiction of the Lead State at the time when the grant was distributed. The Lead State operates the Programme as a programme added to the Lead State’s Cultural Endowment:

• Estonia – the Cultural Endowment of Estonia (Eesti Kultuurikapital) (Lead State period 01.01.2019-31.12.2021)
  
• Latvia – the State Culture Capital Foundation (Valsts kultūrkapitāla fonds) (Lead State period 01.01.2022-31.12.2024)
  
• Lithuania – the Lithuanian Council for Culture (Lietuvos kultūros taryba) (Lead State period 01.01.2025-31.12.2027)
  

The Cultural Endowment of the Lead State coordinates the implementation of the Programme.

1.5 The application requirements of the Programme are established with this Statute.

1.6. The general objective of the Programme is to promote cultural cooperation between the three Baltic States within and beyond the Baltic States – Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia – and to strengthen the internationalization of Lithuanian, Estonian and Latvian culture through joint cultural events.

1.6.1 The Fund supports professional events in the fields of:

• architecture
  
• visual art
  
• design
  
• literature
  
• music
  
• performing arts
  
• libraries
  
• museums
  
• archives
  

1.6.2 The Programme provides grants for new (non-recurring) cultural events first and foremost outside the three Baltic States – Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia – including concerts, exhibitions, festivals, performances, international events with a Baltic focus, showcases and forums that promote the internationalization of culture.

1.6.3 In exceptional cases, events inside the three Baltic States can be supported if they have a very distinct international dimension with a Baltic focus.

2. Grants

2.1. Within the framework of this Programme project grants will be allocated.

2.2. The allocation of the grants is limited to between €25,000 and €100,000.

2.3. The Programme does not provide grants for investments in fixed assets.

2.4. The grants are not available for projects that have been completed before the deadline of the application.

2.5. The Programme only supports the costs directly associated with the project.

2.6. The Programme does not support the costs of receptions and catering.

2.7. The Projects should have self-financing and/or co-financing of at least 20% of the total project budget.

3. Who can apply?

3.1. Only an institution or organization registered in Lithuania, Estonia or Latvia are eligible to apply for funding.

3.2. The project must be composed of partners from all three Baltic States.

3.3. One of the partners must operate as a project coordinator. The coordinator submits the application for funding. The whole project funding will be transferred to the coordinator.

3.4. The institutions composed of partners which are not sufficiently financially solvent, or with tax debts, are not supported.

4. Grant application process

4.1. Applications are reviewed once a year.

4.2. The deadline for submitting the application is 22 February.

Grants are awarded annually and information about the next application round can be found on the web page of the Latvian State Culture Capital Foundation: Valsts kultūrkapitāla fonds.

4.3. When distributing grants, state aid rules shall be observed and applied where necessary.

4.4. Application, contract and report details are specified in Annex 1 of this Statute.

5. Application conditions

5.1. The application form includes:

• The introduction of the coordinator and partners.
• Contact details of the coordinator and project partners (names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mails etc.).
  
• The duration of the project.
• The location (locations) of the project.
• The time plan of the project.
• A detailed description of the project activities.
• Detailed budget outlining self-financing/co-financing and planned income (for instance information on ticket costs etc.).
• Information about applications for financial support from other sources.
• Detailed dissemination plan (media- and marketing plan).
• Expected impact of the project (number of attendees etc.).
• Partners’ letters of commitment confirming their willingness to participate in the project.
• Letter of commitment from the receiving organization confirming the agreement to host the project.
  

6. Grant decisions

6.1. Grant decisions will be made by a 6-member Expert Committee, appointed for a three-year period. Decisions made by the Expert Committee will be confirmed by the Supervisory Board of the Cultural Endowment.

6.2. Grant decisions will be published on the lead country's Cultural Endowment’s website approximately two months after the end of the application period.

6.3. While deciding the funding the following aspects will be considered:

• Relevance of the project to the Programme statute and its objective
  
• Project objectives and potential outcomes
  
• The management of the project
  
• The dissemination and exploitation of the Project results
  
• The soundness of the project budget
  

6.4. In allocation of grants, the Expert Committee will base its decision on the analysis of the applications. Support can be granted fully, partially or be declined. Support will be granted partially when the granting of full funding is not justified, or when it is not possible or appropriate because of limited resources. Partial funding is granted on the assumption that the objective of the application is achievable. This is determined via communication with the applicant.

Annex I

1. Conditions of application

1.1. The signed application must be submitted in time and on the required format to the e-mail or postal address of the Lead State (See Annex 2).

1.2. Only applications that are submitted and received in time and in the required format will be considered.

1.3. The Programme does not accept responsibility for delays in postal services or any other technical faults.

2. Contract

2.1. An original of the grant contract will be posted to successful applicants in two copies. This contract must be signed by the coordinator of the project and returned to the Lead State.

2.2. Grants are awarded on the condition that the applicant agrees to clearly include in the promotional/marketing materials, press releases, etc. that the “Project was supported by the Baltic Culture Fund” and/or uses the logo of the fund.

2.3. Recipients of the grant are obliged to adhere to the final date of the project period. When this is not possible for valid reasons, the recipients of the grant are obliged to submit a request for an extension of the project period.

3. Conditions for the payment

3.1. Conditions for the payment of the grant are decided by the Expert Committee. As a rule, the grant will be paid as follows:

• 80% of the amount is paid out after the Project has been approved and the contract has been signed;
  
• 20% of the amount is paid out after the Project has been completed and the report has been approved by the Expert Committee.
  

4. Amendments

4.1. The applicant has to inform the Estonian Cultural Endowment immediately of any circumstances that prevent achieving the project in its planned format, including:

• change in time and/or place
  
• more than 20% change in the budget
  
• change of project partners or key personnel
  

5. Reporting

5.1. Recipient of the grant is obliged to submit a substantive and financial report no later than two months after the end date of the grant utilisation agreed in the Contract.

5.2 The Programme reserves the right to terminate contracts that have missed the report deadline and have not been extended, and reclaim allocated funding.

5.3. Recipients of the grant have to account for the project’s expenditure and revenue and keep project-based accounting records, differentiating between eligible and non-eligible costs. Documents and other evidence of eligibility have to be kept for at least 10 years after receiving the grant.

5.4. A signed report has to be submitted on the Programme template, by email or sent on paper to the postal address of the corresponding Lead State (Annex 2)

Annex II

Lead States

• Estonia – the Cultural Endowment of Estonia (Eesti Kultuurikapital) (Lead State period 01.01.2019-31.12.2021) – Suur-Karja 23, 10148 Tallinn ESTONIA
  
• Latvia – the State Culture Capital Foundation (Valsts kultūrkapitāla fonds) (Lead State period 01.01.2022-31.12.2024) – K.Valdemara iela 20, Riga LV-1010 LATVIA
  
• Lithuania – the Lithuanian Council for Culture (Lietuvos kultūros taryba) (Lead State period 01.01.2025-31.12.2027) – Naugarduko g. 10, 01309 Vilnius LITHUANIA