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Grants and deadlines

Grants an independent Australian musician in NSW can apply for. Funding only open to organisations and venues is left out. Every entry was read on the funder's own page on 25 September 2026.

Closing next

Open now 12

Community Creative, Round Three
Randwick City Council
Closes 30 September 2026
Creative arts and cultural projects — cash, or fee waivers on Council venues, or both. Live music fits.
Not individuals. You need to apply as a sole trader with an active ABN, or through a community group. The project must happen in Randwick City.
Up to $20,000, capped at $10,000 for sole traders · closes 30 September 2026
Australian Music Prize (22nd)
Industry-run, peer-judged
Closes 30 September 2026
A prize for the best Australian album released 1 Oct 2025 – 30 Sep 2026. Not a project grant — no acquittal, spend it how you like.
Australian artists with an album in the window. You can enter yourself. No membership needed.
$50,000 to the winner · closes 30 September 2026
Professional Development Awards 2027 — First Nations categories
APRA AMCOS
Closes 9 October 2026
Professional development — workshops, courses, co-writing, career-building here or overseas.
APRA members only. All other categories closed on 23 September; the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander categories are still open.
$10,000 cash · closes 9 October 2026
Contemporary Music Touring Program
Creative Australia
Closes 13 October 2026
Touring original Australian music — at least three venues outside your home town. Regional and remote routing is prioritised and unlocks the higher tiers.
Musicians playing original Australian contemporary music. Individuals and groups. Metro-only tours are capped at $15,000.
$5,000–$50,000 · closes 13 October 2026
Creative Australia need you registered in their system two business days before closing. The real cutoff is about 8 October.
Export Development Fund — International Touring
Creative Australia
Closes 13 October 2026
International touring and showcase activity.
Australian artists, solo or in groups. Several Australian acts touring together can apply jointly.
$5,000–$75,000, matched funding required · closes 13 October 2026
Creative Australia need you registered in their system two business days before closing. The real cutoff is about 8 October.
Export Development Fund — Professional and Artistic Development
Creative Australia
Closes 13 October 2026
Official showcases, co-writing sessions, overseas recording, international residencies, trade fairs. The activity has to be outside Australia.
Australian citizens or permanent residents working in contemporary music.
$3,000–$15,000, matched funding required · closes 13 October 2026
Creative Australia need you registered in their system two business days before closing. The real cutoff is about 8 October.
Export Development Fund — Market and Audience Development
Creative Australia
Closes 13 October 2026
International PR and promotion, and content — video clips, social reels, lyric translations.
Australian citizens or permanent residents, currently practising.
$2,000–$10,000, 50% matched · closes 13 October 2026
Creative Australia need you registered in their system two business days before closing. The real cutoff is about 8 October.
ACF Boost 2027
Australian Cultural Fund
Closes 19 October 2026
Dollar-for-dollar matching on donations you raise through an ACF campaign. Not a grant — you have to run the campaign.
18+, Australian citizen or permanent resident, with an active ABN or an auspice. Campaigns run 1 Feb – 30 Apr 2027.
Up to $5,000 matched · closes 19 October 2026
Touring and Travel Fund — Domestic
Sound NSW
Closes 30 October 2026
Travel and accommodation for domestic touring, performances and music markets like BIGSOUND. Flights, transport, per diems, beds.
Individuals and bands. 18+, living in NSW at least 12 months (half the touring party must qualify), active ABN. No career-stage restriction and no co-contribution.
Up to $5,000 per person, plus $500 for regional applicants · closes 30 October 2026
Rolling monthly rounds. Deadline is midday, and they do not accept anything after it.
Touring and Travel Fund — International
Sound NSW
Closes 30 October 2026
International touring travel — flights, ground transport, insurance, visas, per diems, accommodation.
Established acts, or a music business applying for one. New and original music only, no cover bands. NSW residency and an active ABN.
Up to $30,000, matched funding required · closes 30 October 2026
Rolling quarterly rounds.
Our Place Local Community Fund
Waverley Council
Closes 8 November 2026
Small sponsorships for community events, programs and activities in the Waverley area.
Individuals and organisations operating in Waverley, 18+. Not open to anyone who got a Council grant in 2025.
Up to $5,000 · closes 8 November 2026
Generations — Western Sydney Music Fellowship
Sound NSW, with Powerhouse and Blacktown Arts
Closes 16 November 2026
Two six-month fellowships supporting early-career development in the NSW music industry.
Early-career contemporary musicians and bands based in Western Sydney.
Not published · closes 16 November 2026
Opens 19 October.

No deadline 3

Quick Response Grant
City of Sydney
No deadline
Projects that improve access to opportunities for priority communities, with an urgent need. A music project needs that community-access angle.
The only council grant found that an individual with no ABN can apply for. Must operate in the City of Sydney area or clearly benefit its communities. The project has to start at least four weeks after you apply and finish within four months.
Up to $5,000
Open year-round until the budget runs out. Outcomes usually within a month.
Crisis Relief Grants
Support Act
No deadline
Crisis support, not project funding. Paid direct to your biller — rent, mortgage, medical, utilities. It will not fund recording, touring, marketing or gear.
Australian citizen, PR or valid working visa; five years of professional work in Australian music; two referees; household expenses above household income; currently in a crisis affecting your ability to work. No membership needed.
Not published
No deadline. Around two weeks for assessment. Wellbeing helpline 1800 959 500, 24/7, no eligibility test.
Australian Cultural Fund
Creative Australia
No deadline
Not a grant. A donation platform with deductible gift recipient status, so donations to your project are tax-deductible for the donor. 100% goes to the artist.
Australian artists. No competitive assessment for a standard campaign.
Whatever you raise
Always open.

Before you start

Create NSW does not fund contemporary music.Creative Steps, Next Steps and Regional Arts Touring all say so in their own guidelines and send you to Sound NSW.
Support Act is crisis support.It pays rent, medical and utility bills direct to the biller when you are in trouble. It does not fund records, tours, marketing or gear. The wellbeing helpline is separate and open to anyone in Australian music — 1800 959 500, 24/7.
PPCA Performers' Trust Foundation is closed.Their own page says they are not taking applications. Other sites still list it as open.
Go by the closing date, not the status label.NSW government pages often still read “Open” after the deadline has passed. The First Nations Creative and Professional Development page was doing that when this page was checked.
Creative Australia want you registered two business days early.For the four programs closing 13 October that makes the real cutoff about 8 October. Register first, write later.
Check the membership rules before you start.Every APRA AMCOS program needs APRA AMCOS membership. The Art Music Fund needs that plus Australian Music Centre membership, and it excludes popular, rock and folk music. Support Act, Sound NSW and City of Sydney need no membership. Sound NSW does need an active ABN and 12 months in NSW.

Two bigger lists to keep looking through: APRA AMCOS funding and opportunities, about 70 entries and free to read without membership, and the Sounds Australia funding directory.