General information about grants for culture
The aim of the grants for culture is to promote the opportunities of Helsinki residents to encounter, experience, participate in, and create art and culture. This objective put into action by supporting equal access to art and culture, a lifelong connection of Helsinki residents with art, the operating conditions of operators in the field of arts and culture, the diversity and diverse offering of arts and culture, as well as urban arts and cultural activities.
The actions are guided by an understanding of the importance of arts and culture in the good life of city residents and the attraction and vitality of the city and its districts. The services offered in the city are assessed as a whole, and the grants are used to achieve a balance of their availability and diversity.
Helsinki awards approximately EUR 18 million per year in grants for arts and culture. Grants for arts and culture are available in the form of operational grants and project grants, as well as development grants for projects for one to three years. In addition, the city assists educational institutions providing basic arts education and organises separate grant calls as necessary.
When applying for a grant, please read the grant criteria and instructions for applying with care.
What’s new
On the page Currents you will find up-to-date information about grants for culture, events, and grant application periods.
Read the current news. (Link leads to external service)
On the Cultural Partnerships page, you will find up-to-date information on other issues of the Culture Partnership Unit, such as art awards, tenders and artists’ studios.
Grant types
Arts and culture grants are awarded for artistic and cultural activities that are organised in Helsinki and are open to the general public. The grants are directed at supporting activities that are geared towards Helsinki residents, bring people together and into contact with artistic and cultural content, and offer possibilities for encounters and interaction. Arts and culture grants include two types of grants: operational grants and project grants.
Operational grants are awarded to Helsinki-based registered organisations that have been operating as registered for at least one fiscal year.
Arts and culture grants are awarded for artistic and cultural activities that are organised in Helsinki and are open to the general public. The grants are directed at supporting activities that are geared towards Helsinki residents, bring people together and into contact with artistic and cultural content, and offer possibilities for encounters and interaction. Arts and culture grants include two types of grants: operational grants and project grants.
Arts and culture grants are awarded for artistic and cultural activities that are organised in Helsinki and are open to the general public. The grants are directed at supporting activities that are geared towards Helsinki residents, bring people together and into contact with artistic and cultural content, and offer possibilities for encounters and interaction. Arts and culture grants include two types of grants: operational grants and project grants.
Development grants are awarded to Helsinki-based registered operators that are not included in the central government subsidies system (VOS) in the fields of performing arts or music.
The Helsinki Model is a model for inclusive regional cultural work which encourages art institutions and art professionals to work outside their own organisations in different city districts in cooperation with local residents and communities.
The aim of the Helsinki Model is to balance out and diversify the artistic and cultural offerings of the Helsinki districts, as well as to boost a sense of community and positive profiling of the districts and cultural inclusion of residents.
Basic arts education is progressive and goal-oriented instruction in various forms of art, mainly intended for children and young people, which provides the students with skills to express themselves and apply for vocational or higher education in a specific arts discipline.
Development projects in basic arts education can receive grants for one to three years between 2023 and 2025. An annual appropriation of EUR 300,000 has been earmarked for the grants. The call for applications is directed at Helsinki-based art operators that are not included in the central government subsidies system (VOS) in the field of basic art education.
The targeted grants are intended for educational institutions in Helsinki providing basic arts education that also provide weighted-curriculum music education in the form of music clubs. The grants are intended for music club activities for pupils in weighted-curriculum music education in 2021–2023. The music club activities must be integrated into the pupils’ school day, and the service provider’s teachers must handle the teaching.
The discretionary targeted grants are intended for cultural activities that increase the wellbeing and functional capacity of elderly Helsinki residents. You can apply for the grant from 9 January to 10 February 2023 until 16.00. The Culture and Library Sub-committee will decide on the projects to be funded at its meeting on 18 April 2023.
Read more about the grant for the promotion of cultural activities for the elderly.
Please note: The application period for microgrants has ended.
On 22 March 2022, the Culture and Library Sub-committee of the Culture and Leisure Committee decided to allocate EUR 1.75 million to recovery from the pandemic during 2022 and 2023. The microgrant was a new experimental grant form for which EUR 250,000 was earmarked. The aim was to increase the diversity of events around the city and to support employment in the field of arts and culture. The call for applications was open from 10 May to 23 May 2022 at 16:00. Decisions were made in June 2022. The grants were to be used between 1 June and 31 October 2022.
Please note: The application period has ended.
On 22 March 2022, the Culture and Library Sub-committee of the Culture and Leisure Committee decided to allocate EUR 1.75 million to recovery from the pandemic during 2022 and 2023. EUR 600,000 was earmarked for registered operators not included in the central government subsidies system (VOS). The call for applications was open from 13 April to 27 April 2022 at 16:00. Decisions on the grants were made at a meeting of the Culture and Library Sub-committee on 9 June 2022. The grants were to be used between 1 July and 31 December 2022. The reporting deadline is 31 May 2023. Reporting form(Link leads to external service) (a Questback form, in Finnish).
Read more about the targeted COVID-19 grant for organisations.
Please note! The application period has ended.
The City of Helsinki, Arts Promotion Centre Finland and the University of the Arts Helsinki have launched a pilot project to promote the skill development and performance-related operations of established independent dance communities at Dance House Helsinki. The Culture and Library Sub-committee of the City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Committee made a decision on the project at its meeting on 26 August 2021. The City of Helsinki and Arts Promotion Centre Finland will fund the operators’ projects with EUR 100,000 each. The application period was from 4 October to 22 October 2021. The Culture and Library Sub-committee made a decision on the grants on 23 November 2021. The grants must be used by 31 December 2023. The reporting deadline is 31 March 2024. Reporting instructions will be given later.
Read more about the targeted grant for independent operators in the field of dance.
Please note: The application period has ended.
On 23 November 2021, the Culture and Library Sub-committee of the Culture and Leisure Committee awarded
grants for recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic to organisations and events in the field of arts and culture, as well as to educational institutions providing basic art education, totalling EUR 2.12 million. The grants were to be used by 31 December 2022. A report on the use of the grant must be submitted by 31 May 2023 at the latest.
There are separate forms for reporting special COVID-19 grants:
- Targeted COVID-19 grant report form 2021: Organisations and events in the field of arts and culture. The report must be submitted by 31 May 2023. The reporting form (Link leads to external service)(Questback form, in Finnish).
- Targeted COVID-19 grant report form 2021: Educational institutions providing basic art education. The report must be submitted by 31 May 2023. The reporting form(Link leads to external service) (Questback form, in Finnish).
Guidance and support
We have compiled general instructions for the application of cultural grants.
Read the guidance and support section(Link leads to external service).
Contact information
For more information about culture grants, please contact the culture grant coordinators.