If you receive a grant from Creative Victoria, at the conclusion of your funded activity you will need to complete an acquittal report - including financial reconciliation - that evaluates the project and accounts for how the funds have been spent.
All grants of $40,000 and over require an independent certified practising accountant/financial auditor's opinion or certification of the grant expenditure as part of the acquittal process.
Go to the acquittal processes or read on for some further information about acquittals.
What you need to provide
In general, acquittal reports ask you to provide:
- a description of your project and how it met your objectives
- an evaluation of the impact of your project, including things like attendance figures, community impact and creative outcomes
- a financial reconciliation, showing your actual finances compared with the budget you submitted to Creative Victoria
- supporting documentation, including reviews, photos, recordings, dvds, manuscripts etc
- feedback on the Creative Victoria program.
Why you are required to acquit
The information you provide in your acquittal report will:
- account for your use of public funds, demonstrating that the funding has been used for the purpose for which it was provided and in accordance with your Funding Agreement
- assist Creative Victoria in assessing how successful funding programs are in meeting the needs of the arts sector and the Victorian community
- provide you with the opportunity to make suggestions regarding improvements to the funding program.
Once Creative Victoria has received and accepted your acquittal report, you will have completed all of your obligations under the Funding Agreement.
If you do not satisfactorily acquit your grant you will not be eligible to apply for further Creative Victoria funding and action may be taken to recover the grant.
Acquittal requirements
All funding recipients will be sent information about the acquittal process and timeline directly via email. Acquittals must be submitted within a specified period following the conclusion of your funded activity.
You can also use the table below to access the online acquittal report template relevant to your grant. Please note: If you received a Creative Victoria grant prior to 30 June 2021, your acquittal will be submitted via the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. If you received a grant post 1 July 2021 your acquittal will be made via the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions Grants Portal, the appropriate links are below.
All forms are in Word format. Contact your Creative Victoria Contact Officer if you have trouble downloading your template, require an alternate format or your program doesn't appear in the list.
Programs and Categories - Acquittal | Days to acquit |
Creative State Commissions | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal and includes a financial reconciliation and evaluation report. | See funding agreement |
Creative Activation Fund | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal and includes a financial reconciliation and evaluation report. For more information please see the Creative Activation Fund Online Acquittal Guide. | 90 |
Creative Suburbs | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal and includes a financial reconciliation and evaluation report. | 90 |
Creators Fund | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Diversity and Inclusion | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 60 |
Education Partnerships | |
Acquittal for Artists in Schools is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. | 60 |
Acquittal for Creative Learning Partnerships is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Learning Partnerships Online Acquittal Guide |
|
Major Touring | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. At the conclusion of your project you will submit a financial reconciliation of the Acquittal Report. | 90 |
Innovation in Marketing Fund and Building Audiences Fund | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Music Works | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Pax Rising | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. At the conclusion of your project you will submit a financial reconciliation of the Acquittal Report. | See funding agreement |
Regional Centre for Culture - Local Grants | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Regional Development | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | See funding agreement |
Regional Partnerships - programming and operations | 90 |
Acquittal documents should be submitted electronically to your client manager. Check your funding agreement for specific acquittal requirements in addition to the following templates. Templates: Reporting portal (for funded organisations only) | |
Regional Partnerships - Engaging Audiences | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 90 |
Small Regional Presenters | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Social Impact | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | See your funding agreement |
Strategic Initiatives | |
Check your funding agreement for exact requirements. Acquittal can be completed using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 90 |
Strategic Investment Fund - Stage 2 | |
Check your funding agreement for exact requirements. Acquittal can be completed using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Stage 2 - Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Strategic Investment Fund - Stage 3 | |
Check your funding agreement for exact requirements. Acquittal can be completed using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Stage 3 - Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Sustaining Creative Workers Initiative | |
Check your funding agreement for exact requirements. Acquittal can be completed using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information please download: | 30 |
Touring Victoria | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
VicArts Grants | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | 30 |
Victorian Live Music Venues | |
Check your funding agreement for exact requirements. Acquittals can be completed online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Live Music Venues Program Acquittal Guide | See your funding agreement |
Victorian Music Industry Recovery Program | |
Acquittal is online using the Creative Victoria Grants Portal. For more information download the Creative Victoria Online Acquittal guidance document | See your funding agreement |