The following scenarios illustrate eligibility requirements for the Arts and Culture Event Support Scheme.
Check if any of the scenarios match your situation.
If you’re not sure you’re eligible,
- email us at: [email protected]
A ‘season” event
You have a production or exhibition presented in the same venue over a period of days or weeks.
A season event has the same presentation or performance to be shown multiple times in a single location (over largely consecutive days, allowing for rest and closure days). This is considered to be one event and a single registration should be submitted.
When considering eligibility, registrants will need to count the total size of audience participation across all the presentations or performances included as a part of the event.
In the case where only some of your event dates are affected by COVID-19 restrictions, discuss your needs with Manatū Taonga.
In the case where some event dates extend past the end of the scheme, you can register your event as long as most of the performance dates fall within the eligibility period.
A non-cultural event with a cultural component
You are delivering a wine and food festival. You have contracted musicians to entertain the attendees.
In this situation the musical act needs to be a major drawcard for audiences, and this would be featured in the events public promotions to encourage audience attendance.
The scheme aims to support events where the audience has chosen to attend primarily for the purpose of seeing performances, rather than to experience products like food and wine.
Only the performance-related costs within the wider event would be considered eligible for the scheme.
Event organisers in this scenario are encouraged to contact us at [email protected] and discuss what costs may be in scope for support.
A touring event
You are promoting a musician or production with a number of gigs or performances planned across the year. A number of these gigs are included in festival programmes.
A touring event is when the same presentation or performance is being shown multiple times across multiple different locations. This is considered a multi-location event. Organisers of touring events can submit a single registration.
When considering eligibility, you need to count total audience participation across all the presentations or performances in the tour. When you register you should include the key financial details for each performance. Use the multi-locations financial template. Provide overarching costs, as well as a breakdown of specific income and expenditure for each performance or presentation in each town.
With some tours there may be an overlap with festivals also registering to the scheme. When this happens it is important to clearly identify the overlap and only include the non-recoverable costs that you (as the event organiser) are responsible for.
From 4 April 2022, any tours with a cumulative audience over 5000 may be eligible for the MBIE Events Transition Support Payment scheme. You will need to register with the MBIE first. If you are assessed as ineligible for the MBIE scheme, you can then register for consideration under the Manatū Taonga Arts and Culture Event Support Scheme.
Different productions = different events
You are an event organiser presenting several different productions or festivals scheduled throughout the year.
If you are planning to deliver different productions, performances, or festivals during the scheme eligibility period, each production, performance, or festival should be registered as a separate event (subject to all other eligibility being met).
For example, if you have a dance production booked for a week in June and a comedy show booked for a two-week season in August, these are considered two separate events.
As an event organiser you can claim reasonable costs for the planning and development of each event. However, you must ensure that your total costs are not duplicated (claimed more than once) across all submitted registrations.
Festivals and related productions
You are presenting an arts festival in a major centre showcasing 20 different performances across several different venues and dates
You can register to the scheme for unrecoverable costs related to the promotion and operation of the festival.
You can also apply for any events for which you have financial responsibility. This might include responsibility for the payments of involved artists, production crew and companies and other associated suppliers.
Individual events being presented as part of the festival but with financial responsibility for themselves are encouraged to separately register their event with the scheme.
If individual events are making payments to the festival (or vice versa), only one party can claim the costs of that payment. Either the festival (because they refunded it) or the individual event (because the festival kept the payment).
Contact us
Email us with any questions about the scheme or the registration.
Updated on 12th September 2022