The Export Market Development Grant Round 4 (EMDG Round 4) provides funding for exporters with revenue below $20 million.  The EMDG Round 4 covers the 2025-26 and 2026-27 years (i.e. you are applying for 2 years of funding).

EMDG Round 4 Program itself

The EMDG Round 4 Program is an eligibility based program, which means if you are eligible, and apply before the round closes, and you incur appropriate expenses, you will receive a grant agreement to cover money you expect to spend in future periods.

Note each application is assessed in the order it is received and the grant round for that particular tier will close when funding has been fully allocated.

The table below shows how the EMDG Round 4 works for each tier.

The program is a matched funding program.  For example, if you are a Tier 1 exporter and applied under the EMDG Round 4 for the maximum $30,000 in grant funding, you will need to spend at least $60,000 in eligible expenses each year in order to receive the $30,000 in grant funding.

If you only spend $50,000, you will only receive $25,000 in grant funding.

And if you spend less than $40,000, you will not receive any grant funding at all, and will be asked to repay any grant funds advanced to you.

At the end of each year, you prepare a declaration showing how much you spent on eligible expenditure in that year which will be used to determine the final payment of your grant funds.

Business Eligibility for the EMDG Round 4

The key eligibility requirements is that the business:

• has an ABN (and this includes sole traders, partnerships and trusts),
• has revenue or turnover of more than the minimum required for each Tier as noted in the table above but less than $20 million, for the year ended 30 June 2024
• have (and show) the capacity to spend at least $20,000 per financial year of your own money on your proposed marketing and promotional activities (exclusive of the grant amount)
• have been conducting the business under the same ABN for at least two years
• have a high-quality plan to market for marketing or promoting eligible products in a foreign country
• is exporting eligible products of substantially Australian origin to overseas countries other than New Zealand.
• For Tier 1 you must not have previously exported eligible products and be ready to export
• For Tier 2 you must have established export revenue, commensurate with the size of your business and the value of your product or service; are expanding your marketing and promotional activities (i.e. you must be doing more than you have before as the grant is for new expanding activity); are undertaking marketing and promotional activities targeting existing markets that you are currently exporting to
• For Tier 3 grant, you must have established export revenue, commensurate with the size of your business and the value of your product or service; are expanding your marketing and promotional activities (i.e. you must be doing more than you have before as the grant is for new expanding activity); are undertaking a strategic shift. A strategic shift is a change in your business strategy including operational and/or supply chain readiness that supports changing your marketing or promotional activities to target a new export market. at the time you apply for a grant and at all times while you are a grantee, will be targeting one or more of the key markets (see below) and that the proposed marketing and promotional activities will be specifically for that market(s) only.
• Are up to date with tax lodgements

Note you can receive up to 8 years of grants so you can apply again.

What are Eligible Products under the EMDG Round 4

To be an eligible product, your product(s) must be of substantially Australian origin and can be goods, services, events, intellectual property, know-how and software.

Services include tourism services within Australia provided to foreign persons.  Non tourism services can include services provided in Australia as long as certain conditions are met and the services are not specifically excluded.

Events can include online events if held by an Australian person.

For software the work to develop the software needs to be substantially done in Australia.

Remember, getting a foreign person or business to spend money in Australia may qualify as an eligible product.

There are some specifically excluded services such as migration, unlawful services.

You must have a designated connection to the eligible product for your promotional activity expenses to be eligible.  For most businesses, the designated connection to a product will be that you own the product.   Other types of designated connection relationships may be appropriate depending on what the product is.

What Eligible Expenses can you get funding for

Eligible Expenses are those expenses incurred in respect of a promotional activities undertaken during the period of your grant agreement for the purpose of marketing eligible products in foreign countries and you have a designated connection to the eligible product (other than NZ), or training activities to develop skills in such marketing (Tier 1 only).

Eligible promotional activities include:

• Maintaining representative in foreign country.
• Short trips to foreign countries (maximum claim of 21 days per trip).
• Payments to consultants to research into the market in the foreign country for the eligible product; or undertake promotional activities to market the eligible product in the foreign country.
• Short trips in Australia in order to undertake activities that relate to marketing the eligible product to potential foreign buyers of the eligible product (maximum claim of 21 days per trip).
• Soliciting for business in a foreign country such as expenses to attend trade shows and events
• Seeking the granting, registration or extension of intellectual property rights of your eligible product in a foreign country. Such as payments to patent and trademark attorneys and to relevant government trademark and patent offices.
• Foreign Buyer Visits.
• Promotional and advertising material.

Excluded Expenses includes:

• Capital expenses
• Expenses to solicit sponsorship for an event
• Staff remuneration in respect of someone ordinarily employed in Australia by the business.
• Any sort of remuneration or remuneration-like expenses are not eligible expenses if they are made by reference to sales or other commercial transactions in relation to the eligible product such as salaries, retainers, fees, discounts, or credits.
• Grant writing expenses.

What are the Key Markets for Tier 3 Applicants

For Tier 3 applicants, your marketing and promotional activities must shift beyond your existing markets (economies), to additionally target one or more of the key markets (economies) listed below:

Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Canada, China, Fiji, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam

The EMDG Round 4 Process

The process for receiving a grant will be as follows:

• You apply for a grant before you spend money on promotional activities. Note this grant is not a competitive grant.  You don’t need to “beat” other applicants, you just need to meet all the eligibility rules and spend the money for eligible purposes and apply before funding is allocated.
• Each application is assessed in the order it is received and the grant round for that particular tier will close when funding has been fully allocated.
• Austrade offers a grant agreement to each eligible applicant.
• You enter into a grant agreement with Austrade. You then undertake your promotional activities as agreed in the grant agreement.
• You request milestone payments in accordance with your grant agreement. This will involve you providing proof that the money was spend on eligible expenses.
• Your grant agreement will set out when your milestone payments should be made and what you need to do in order to receive these payments.

How to Apply for the EMDG Round 4

Click here to go to learn more about the EMDG Round 4 Program

Click here to apply.

Want Some help

If you are a NSW based business, I may be able to help you apply for the EMDG round 4 for free under the NSW Govt’s Business Connect Program

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Do you think you can improve early identification and warning systems for natural hazards such as floods and bushfires, then the NSW Natural Hazards Detection System Phase 1 Grant program may be for you.

Phase 1: is the Proof of Concept stage with the aim of testing the solution in a small-scale pilot to demonstrate its potential and feasibility to solve one of the challenges the NSW Govt is facing in improving early identification and warning systems for natural hazards such as floods and bushfires.

In Phase 1, successful applicants will be awarded up to $50,000 per challenge in unmatched funding (max funding pool $500,000) to develop their proof of concept solution in 6 months.

Successful Phase 1 applicants may be invited to apply for Phase 2 Pilot to deploy the solution (up to $350,000 in funding) and may end up having the NSW Govt as a customer.

What are the Challenges

The challenges are

• Water over Roads and Assets – cost-effective way to detect and monitor when water covers roads, water crossings and public spaces
• Flash Flooding Water Levels – provide timely alerts when water levels rise in smaller waterways and catchments prone to flash flooding
• Water Level from Imagery how can we leverage existing camera imagery to reliably measure water levels at key locations or when other sensors fail
• Rainfall/Soil Moisture Data – cost effectively provide high-quality, localised rainfall and soil moisture data in near real-time?
• Fire Ignition Detection – detect new fire ignitions across remote landscapes within 10 minutes of starting
• Fire Assessment and Monitoring – identify fires of concern based on their proximity to assets, infrastructure and people
• Local Fire Weather Monitoring – need for low-cost, portable weather stations that can measure temperature, relative humidity, wind speed & direction and precipitation
• Bushfire Fuel and Soil Moisture Monitoring – cost-effective methods to collect localised bushfire fuel and soil moisture information, minimising the necessity for personnel to enter the field.

Who is eligible to apply?

An eligible applicant must:

• Have ABN and if not currently incorporated as a company, agree to form a company to enter into a grant agreement
• Hold the intellectual property (IP) rights or possess the rights to commercialise the technology
• Demonstrate that the technology can be trialled in NSW during the testing periods

Learn More

Click here to learn more and apply

Note applications close 12 December 2024

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

If you think you can develop a solution to validate the authenticity of the information disseminated by the Australian Government, then the BRII – Cyber Security Strategy Challenge Grant may be for you. 

 The intended outcomes of the grant opportunity are to:

• Identify opportunities to improve cyber security in a generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) environment
• Identify opportunities to reduce the dissemination of misinformation
• Improve public sentiment in the authority of government advice and messaging
• Authenticate the legitimacy of the source of government information
• Identify when information is AI generated.

The grant runs as part of the Business Research and Innovation Initiative (BRII).  BRII aims to provide SMEs with grant funding to develop innovative solutions for government policy and service delivery challenges.

Funding Available

In stage 1 there are grants of between $50,000 and $100,000 for a feasibility study (maximum 3 months) for your proposed solution that validates the authenticity of the information disseminated by the Australian Government.  Note you don’t need to provide matched funding.

The purpose of a Feasibility study is to test the technical and commercial viability of your proposed solution.

If your feasibility study is successful, you may receive up to $1 million to develop your proof of concept.

Who is eligible to apply?

An eligible applicant must:

• have a combined annual turnover of less than $20 million for each of the 3 financial years prior to the lodgement of the application
• Have ABN and if not currently incorporated as a company, agree to form a company to enter into a grant agreement.

You can’t apply if you are:

• a Commonwealth, state or local government agency or body (including government business enterprises)
• an organisation, or your project partner is an organisation, included on the National Redress Scheme’s
• an employer of 100 or more employees that has not complied with the Workplace Gender Equality Act (2012).

Learn More

Click here to learn more and apply for the BRII – Cyber Security Strategy Challenge Grant

Note applications close 18 December 2024

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Unlike in the past, there will be a limited number of applications for the EMDG Round 4 accepted on a first come first served basis.  In Round 3 there was 2,184 successful applications.  There is expected to be less than 1,800 applications accepted in Round 4.  If the demand is the same or even higher, then some businesses will miss out.

Here are the limits by tiers and how many successful applicants in round 3: Tier 1 Expected limit 500 vs 666 in round 3; Tier 2 Expected limit 620 vs 641 in round 3; Tier 3 Expected limit 650 vs 847 in round 3. 

To make sure this is not you, you need to get your application in as soon as possible.

If you want help with your application, please reach out to me.  And if you are a NSW business, I might be able to help you for no cost under the NSW Governments Business Connect Program.

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

The Tech Ready Women Female Founder Startup Program is a program to help NSW female founders to test and launch their idea in the market.

This program is comprised of online modules delivered over 8 weeks that are taught by experts who have “been there, done that” experience.  There is also weekly mentoring sessions and an online community where you are able to connect and chat with our mentors, industry experts and female founders, who are on their startup journey.

What the Tech Ready Women Female Founder Startup Program covers

Over the 8 weeks the program cover topics such as:

• Customer & Market Discovery
• Business & Financial Modelling
• Developing your MVP
• Tech & Product Management
• Prototyping & UX Design
• Startup Legals
• Pitch Preparation

Eligibility

This program is open to female permanent residents and Australian citizens based in NSW, who have an idea for a tech startup.  And you also do not have to have prior experience in order to apply. 

Cost of the Program

There are 50 part scholarships available reducing the program cost to $723 ex GST, as compared to the full program cost of $2,723 ex GST.

Learn More

Click here to learn more and register your interest for the next round of the Tech Ready Women Female Founder Startup Program

Note there is an online webinar about the program where you can ask questions on 21 November 2024

The key dates for the next round are:

Applications deadline: 5 PM AEDT on Monday, 9 December 2024

Applications outcome: between the 2nd and 3rd week of January 2025

Program starts: Monday, 3 February 2025

Program ends: Monday, 31 March 2025

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Did you know Overseas Workers May Be Employees Under Australian Law?

A recent decision from FairWork Commission should start to send alarm bells to any business owner that retains offshore resources directly.

The case, [2024] FWC 2669, involved a resident of the Philippines, who the FairWork Commission allowed to lodge a claim for unfair dismissal.

Now under the law, only an employee can claim unfair dismissal under the Act.

Leaving aside why this person was considered an employee rather than an independent contractor (a whole another issue in itself), the thing that should raise alarm bells, is that being based in the Philippines had no impact on whether this person was an employee or not.

Effectively FairWork stated that as the employer was constitutional corporation, it would be deemed to be a national system employer.  As a result all employees irrespective of where they were located, including this person in the Philippines, would be considered a “national system employee” and covered by the Fair Work Act.  As long as they were considered an employee and not an independent contractor

So based on this case, if you thought that having a person working for you outside of Australia automatically meant they were not covered by Australian workplace law, including minimum wages then you need to think again.

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Today, I want to talk about the issue of employees vs independent contractors and the importance of understanding difference between.

Under Australian law, if you are an incorporated business (for example a Pty Ltd business) any person who is deemed to be an employee is covered by the FairWork Act.

What this means, is that the person who is considered an employee has rights such as minimum rates of pay, selected leave and superannuation entitlements and even unfair dismissal protection.

If the person is not an employee, then these rights don’t apply.

So as a business owner, you need to understand what rights apply to the resources you deploy in your business.  If for example, you treat someone as a contractor and they are subsequently deemed to be an employee, you could be up for a lot of back pay and even worse case scenario be convicted of Wage Theft.

Therefore, it is important that you understand the difference.

And whilst there has been various case law that considered this matter, most of this has been overturned by the Closing the Loopholes No 2 legislation that came into effect on 26 August 2024.

This legislation introduced a new test for determining whether the person you are engaging is an employee captured under the FairWork Act or a contractor who can operate outside the FairWork Act.

It is a 2-step process.

Firstly, a person can elect to opt out the new rules.  But this can only be done if the individual worker’s earnings exceed the ‘contractor high income threshold’. For the 2024 – 25 year this is set at $175,000.  An independent contractor is able to revoke the opt out notice at any time, should they wish to do so.

If the person does not elect, (either they don’t want to do or are below the contractor high income threshold), then they are tested on the ‘real substance, practical reality and true nature of the relationship’ between the person engaged and the business.

You can no longer rely on the words of any agreement.  You (and FairWork and the Courts if necessary) must consider:

1. the totality of the relationship between the individual and the person; and
2. in considering the totality of the relationship, regard must be had to not only the terms of the contract governing the relationship but also to other factors relating to the totality of the relationship, including (but not limited to) how the contract is performed in practice.

In practical terms, focus now moves to how the work done by the individual is actually performed and based on what has been considered by FairWork and the Courts.

Factors to consider include:

1. The Amount of Control Over Work: The higher the control the more likely employee than operating independently.
2. Mode of Remuneration: If the person is paid on a set number of hours at an hourly rate is consistent with employment rather than independent contracting.
3. (In)ability to Delegate Work: Can the person delegate work or do they have to do the work themselves.
4. Who provides the Equipment: More provided by the business is more indicative of an employment relationship.
5. Nature of Work: For example, was the work of a professional, trade, or distinct calling that would typically characterize an independent contractor.
6. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Are these daily task orientated or outcome based.
7. Contractual Terms: Make sure you don’t have the word employee in the agreement if they are supposed to be a contractor.
8. Lack of Business Independence: Is the person delivering the work operating their own business.

In summary, if you don’t want the risk that someone who think as a contractor is subsequently deemed to be an employee, you need to go and have a look at your arrangements with any “independent contractors”

And don’t for get to consider contractors not located in Australia as this case here shows that even people not located in Australia could be an employee and covered under the FairWork Act.

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

The eBay Circular Fashion Fund supports innovative start-ups & businesses that bring innovative technology and services to make us change shopping habits and think differently about circular fashion.

One Australian business will receive a cash investment for their business of $100,000. There will be 2 other businesses who will each receive a cash investment of $50,000.  The Australian winner also gets the opportunity to pitch for an additional $300k USD of investment as the global winner

Who is eligible?

Applicants must have an established business with an ABN that has been trading for a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 6 years.

Can be a charity or social enterprise as long as they have a registered Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) number as well as an ABN.

Is also open to both eBay and non-eBay account holders. 

The assessment criteria?

Applications will be reviewed against:

• The ability to leverage emerging technologies to create products or services which advances fashion’s circular economy.
• Having a unique value proposition that has game-changing advantages over other alternatives.
• The business model is commercially viable and economically desirable.
• The business or its created works or services addresses a need and solves a problem.
• The business has an immediate and longer-term positive impact on people and the planet.
• The quality and completeness of the application form.

Businesses selected for global assessment will additionally be reviewed against their team, traction of their business, and thesis.

Learn More

To learn more about the eBay Circular Fashion Fund click here

Note applications close on 15 November 2024.

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Cohort 2 of the LiftHER Female Founders Grant Challenge is looking for 9 visionary and impact-driven female entrepreneurs who could secure a $8,000 jumpstart pack, including a $5,000 scholarship and $3,000 in customized marketing support. Plus, a chance to win up to $40,000 in non-dilutive funding.

And you can also join their community as a paid or free member.

Who can apply?

To be eligible for the LiftHER Female Founders Grant Challenge you must:

• Be a female founder or have a team where the majority of founders are female
• Have a business registered in Australia or Asia
• Your business/startup idea or venture is addressing at least one UN Sustainable Development Goal and fulfil one of the program focus areas​: Sustainable Future Projects (Projects that contribute to environmental sustainability, reduce carbon footprints or develop eco-friendly solutions);  Impact Projects (Projects that address and solve at least one of the UN SDG Goals, promoting social and economic development);  Digital Innovation and Commerce (Projects that bring creativity and innovation to the future of digital commerce, enhancing online retail experiences or advancing technology-driven solutions in e-commerce). 
• Comfortable with English communication
• Early stage of business generating less than AU$2 million in annual revenue and having raised less than AU$2 million in dilutive capital
• Be able to travel to Melbourne for the Grant Pitch Night in April 2025

Learn More

Click here to learn more and apply for the LiftHER Female Founders Grant Challenge

Note Application close 10 January 2025

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052

Did you know that the Department of Industry, Science and Resources publishes a Venture Capital Dashboard based on returns submitted by Australian Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnerships (ESVCLPs) and Venture Capital Limited Partnerships (VCLPs).

The latest report for the 2023-2024 financial year has been released this month and it has some very interesting data that founders looking for capital may find interesting.

There is more information in the actual report attached, but here are my key takeaways

1. Plenty of dry powder in the space (over $14b). But most of this is in the VCLP space who do limited pre-seed, seed and startup funding.
2. Participants in the markets continues to grow
3. Where you are seems to matter as NSW got over 52% of the funds invested in 2023 /24. Victoria got less than half of NSW and the other states split the rest.
4. What stage you are at matters. Pre-seed, Seed and Startup received less than 14% of the funds invested in 2023/24.
5. Median cheque size for pre-seed was $225,000, seed $400,000 and start up around $550,000

The sweet spot from what I can see if NSW companies in the expansion phase.  If that’s you then your chances of VC funding are improved.  If that’s not you, make sure you consider other fund raising options

Click here to see the full report

Contact Wayne on wayne@arealcfo.com.au or 0412 227 052.

Click on the below buttons to access free Resources developed by Wayne Wanders, A Real CFO to help your business scale and grow profitably

Want a confidential discussion on your business situation, help with your grant application or to learn more about my Outsourced CFO Services, simply email me at wayne@aRealCFO.com.au or call me on 0412 227 052