You can inform your interest groups about the awarded grant, and about the Teosto Cultural Foundation, after we have published the information on our website.
Below, you will find important instructions about the use of your grant and funding. Please, read them carefully, including the grant decision emailed to you, before you log in to our online service and start using your grant.
Submit a payment request or report on the use of the support
Once you have read the instructions, proceed to the online service.
Online service →
Disbursement and using of grants
Once you have been awarded a grant or project grant, please, submit a payment request through our online service. The request is to be made within three months of receiving the grant decision by email, and at the latest by the end of the month preceding the requested payment month.
The payment request is submitted via our online service by using the same login information used for the application. In addition to the payment schedule, you will need to provide other details such as your banking details. The request is signed electronically.
For a grant for a working group, the person responsible for the group (=main recipient) handles the disbursement. They are responsible for distributing the grant among the group members and entering their banking details into the online service when they make the payment request. The grant is paid to the individuals and to the bank accounts the main recipient has provided.
The €8.000 grants (working and expenses) and the €32.000 grant for expenses awarded in the September 2025 round must be used during 2026. The €32.000 working grant for either 12 months full-time work or 24 months part-time work (50%) must be used between January 1, 2026 and December 31, 2027. The grants must be used as defined in the grant decision.
Regarding the 12-month full-time and 24-month part-time (50%) working grants, it may be beneficial to schedule the payments so that you only withdraw the portion you intend to use within that tax year.
If the grant or project grant is not disbursed within these deadlines, the unused funding is cancelled.
Grant payments
Grants are paid out quarterly in January, April, July and October.
Grants (working and expenses) of €8.000 are paid in one instalment and grants of €32.000 are paid in four instalments. Project grants are be paid in one or multiple instalments as specified in the grant decision, depending on the amount of the grant and the duration of the project.
Use of grants
All grants are to be used for the purpose specified in the application and the grant decision.
You may begin your work funded by a working grant, or using the grant for expenses or the project grant first after having received the grant decision. The funding can only be used for work or expenses accrued after the grant decision. The duration of a 12-month full-time and a 24-month part-time working grant is counted from the date on which you start your work.
Reporting
For the €8.000 working grant awarded in the September 2025 round, a report must be submitted via our online service no later than January 1, 2027. For the €32.000 working grant, the deadline is January 1, 2028. Regarding the grant for expenses and the project grant, a report must be submitted within three months of the end of the grant period. However, you may submit a report as soon as the grant has been fully used.
In case additional information is needed regarding your report, we will contact you. Failing to submit a report for an awarded grant will prevent you from receiving a new grant until the report is submitted.
Changes
Postponing the use for a grant is possible under certain circumstances. Please, apply for postponement well in advance via our online service. The Foundation has to approve request. Your request must include the reason of the postponement and its length in months.
If a working group member is unable to use all or part of the grant allocated to them, they must inform the main recipient about their waiving in writing. The main recipient then emails this information to the Foundation (). If a new person joins the working group, the main recipient must notify the Foundation. The grant cannot be paid to a new member before the change has been approved by the Foundation.
If the main recipient of the working group changes, they must notify the Foundation of the change in writing by email (), both the original and new main recipient sign the notification.
If the recipient has received or receives funding for the same purpose from another source, they must notify the Foundation. The Foundation reserves the right to cancel or withhold the grant and/or reclaim the part of the funding that reasonably can be considered to be overlapping. Any unused part of an awarded grant must be returned to the Foundation.
The Foundation may suspend payment of a grant or reclaim funding if the project or work has not been or is not being carried out, or if the recipient uses the grant for purposes not described in the application or approved in the grant decision without prior agreement with the Foundation.
Communication
All awarded grants are published on our website, after which all grants are public and may be freely communicated by the recipient to relevant parties.
Foundation logos can be downloaded here.
Taxation of personal grants
If the funding is awarded to you personally and it qualifies as a grant to the recipient, it must be notified to the tax authorities.
We report all grants paid to individuals to the tax authorities each year in January after the end of the tax year. The report includes, among others, the name and personal identification number of the grant recipient, and the purpose and the amount of the grant paid during the tax year. For working group grants, we report the share paid to each member.
Working grants are tax-free up to the annually stipulated Finnish state’s artist grant amount. If during a tax year, the total amount of personal grants exceeds the maximum threshold of the state’s artist grant, the excess amount is considered taxable income. Deductions may be made from this taxable part of income, such as travel, professional literature, rental costs, equipment purchases etc.
Grants are taxable in the year in which they are paid. We recommend to schedule withdrawals to correspond with your actual usage during the tax year. If a grant recipient uses the grant for expenses for hiring, they are responsible for the standard employer obligations, such as withholding tax and employer social security contributions.
Please, note that tax regulations may change and interpretations may vary. The Foundation cannot offer definite tax advice. In unclear situation, please, consult the tax authorities. More information is available on the Tax Admiration’s website.
Social security for personal grants
Insurance is legally mandatory for all working grants awarded for four or more months. Short-term work can also be insured. Mela, the Farmers’ Social Insurance Institution, provides social security for grant recipients related to pension, accidents and group life insurance. Mela also determines the insurability of a grant and the grant recipient.
Insurance premiums are included in the 12-month full-time or the 24-month part-time (50%) working grants. Therefore, the recipient must allocate approximately 15% of a working grant (12 or 24 months) to cover the insurance premiums. It is the recipient’s responsibility to obtain the insurance and pay the premiums.
The Foundation reports all personal working grants to Mela and, upon request, gives them additional information.
For more information on social security for grant recipients, please, visit the Mela website.
Data protection
By submitting an application, report or payment request to the Teosto Cultural Foundation, the applicant provides personal information about themselves and possible working group members, which forms a register of personal data for the Foundation. The right to collect, store, use and otherwise process personal data is regulated by law.