In this section

Keep up to date on funding

Keep up to date with news, application dates, and deadlines for all of our funding schemes via our e-newsletter.

Subscribe to our e-newsletter

Contact Us

If you require more advice on funding, please contact your local support team.

Festivals and Participative Events Programme

Our scheme offers financial foundations for the thriving festivals industry:

400,000 overseas visitors attended festivals in Ireland in 2010
40% of adults in Ireland attend festivals, with 72% of these spending on accommodation
More than 2 million bednights are generated by festivals, from the domestic market alone
€448 million was generated by festivals in Ireland in 2010, with €300 million of this originating from domestic and overseas visitors who travelled specifically to attend a festival

You can apply for funding for a festival under either the regional or national sections of the programme.

National Festivals and Participative Events Programme

The minimum eligibility requirements:

Festivals must generate a minimum of 3,000 overnight stays.
Participative sporting events must generate a minimum of 4,000 overnight stays.
Events must raise a minimum of €50,000 in private sector funding (ticket sales, sponsorship, merchandise etc).
Festivals and Events that do not exceed these thresholds may be eligible to apply for the Regional Programme.
Spectator-based sporting events are not eligible for this programme.

National festival applications are now closed

The 2013 application process for the national programme closed on 22 June 2012.

The evaluation process is underway. Applicants will be notified in due course.

National grant claims

To draw down a grant that has been offered in the National Programme, please download the claim instructions document and follow the steps outlined.

Download claim instructions and templates

Regional Festivals and Participative Events Programme

The minimum eligibility requirements:

Festivals must generate a minimum of 600 overnight stays
Participative sporting events must generate a minimum of 1,000 overnight stays.
The festival/event must have a minimum expenditure of €10,000.
If your festival or event is not eligible under this scheme, you may be able to avail of some of the practical business tools we provide. These include training, mentoring and, in some cases, promotion.

Regional applications are now closed

The 2013 application process for the regional festivals and participative events programme closed on 7 September 2012.

The evaluation process is underway. Applicants will be notified in due course.

Regional grant claims

To draw down a grant that has been offered in the Regional Programme, submit a claim to the festival co-ordinator in your region.

Claim your regional grant

#cookie-wrapper { display: block; } #cookie-text { display: none; } #cookie-close { display: none; }

We invested €3.62 million in 210 events in 2011...