Victorian Government Values Statement
The Victorian Government is committed to building community harmony and ensuring every Victorian feels safe and can participate in all aspects of Victorian life. This commitment is reflected in the contractual relationship with funded organisations, which sets out the expectation that organisations will uphold the Victorian Government values and the Commitment to Social Cohesion, when delivering their funded projects.
Message from the Minister for Multicultural
I am pleased to announce the launch of the 2025-26 Multicultural Capacity Building Program.
The Victorian Government is proud of the rich history of multiculturalism and the diversity that makes our state such a vibrant place to live.
Multicultural organisations play a key role in enriching our communities. Their work fosters connection, belonging and opportunities across Victoria.
However, grassroots groups and those representing new and emerging communities can face complex demands and challenges.
Victoria’s Multicultural Review, led by George Lekakis AO, highlighted the importance of community-led action. It called for greater support to grassroots organisations so they can become strong and sustainable.
The Victorian Government recognises that strengthening the work of multicultural organisations and their capacity to engage with government and communities is vital.
In response, I am proud to launch the Multicultural Capacity Building Program. This program aims to support the day-to-day operations of organisations, build their capabilities and resilience, and increase their impact.
Supporting organisations to grow with confidence supports Victoria’s commitment to a vibrant and inclusive multicultural society. It ensures they can continue their important work and make a lasting difference in the lives of multicultural and multifaith Victorians.
Ingrid Stitt MP
Minister for Multicultural Affairs
What is the Multicultural Capacity Building Program
The Multicultural Capacity Building Program (MCBP) supports multicultural community organisations in Victoria to strengthen their capacity and continue to create positive change for communities.
The MCBP aims to help multicultural organisations, to deliver better outcomes for Victorian communities by:
- enabling strength-based capacity building that supports organisational sustainability
- fostering collaboration between multicultural organisations, government and communities.
This one-year grant program is:
- competitive – meaning not all applications will be successful
- awarded based on merit and at the discretion of the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, factoring in assessment recommendations from Department of Premier and Cabinet
Who does the funding prioritise?
The department will prioritise applications by organisations who engage with:
- new and emerging communities
- rural and regional communities
These organisations often have less access to resources.
Please see the definitions and abbreviations page.
Timeline
Applications open on 15 January 2026 and close on 19 February 2026 at 3:00 pm.
What type of grants are available?
The program has three funding streams to support multicultural organisations of different sizes and capacities.
Organisations can only submit one application.
| Small Stream | Up to $10,000 | For emerging and established organisations that:
|
|---|---|---|
| Medium Stream | $10,001 to $100,000 | For emerging and established organisations that reach more than 250 people |
| Large Stream | $100,001 to $400,000 | For established organisations that reach more than 500 people |
Who can or cannot apply
Who can apply
An organisation can apply for funding if it:
- is a multicultural organisation based and operating in Victoria and
- has a current Australian Business Number (ABN) and
- agrees that employees, contractors, and volunteers will uphold and promote the Victorian Government Values Statement (which includes the Commitment to Social Cohesion) while delivering supported activities and
- has no overdue reports with Multicultural Affairs funded grants by 19 February 2026 and
- is a legal entity and a not-for-profit, with evidence that your organisation is either:
- registered with Consumer Affairs Victoria Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012 as an incorporated association. This entity type is considered not-for-profit
- registered as a company under the Corporations Act 2001 via the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
- incorporated through an Act of Parliament
- eligible as a not-for-profit through your organisation’s constitution, rules or governance documents.
Who cannot apply
- Private (for profit) companies
- Sole traders and individuals
- Charitable trusts
- Local government authorities (LGAs), including LGA-managed, operated, administered and regulated trusts
- Registered public and private primary and secondary schools, preschools, TAFE institutes and universities – excluding community language schools that are eligible
- Political organisations.
How to check your Australian Business Number (ABN)To check your ABN, visit the Australian Business Register (ABR). How to check your organisation type
How to check if your organisation is up to date on reporting requirements
|
Eligibility tool
How to check if your organisation is eligible
What activities can or cannot be funded
What activities can be funded?
All project activities must help achieve the program objectives by:
- developing your organisation’s internal capacity. For example, building skills, systems, leadership and strategies to improve long-term effectiveness and impact
- supporting your organisation’s daily operations to make things easier and more effective.
Below are examples only to help you think about what might be possible.
If your project and activities align with the program objectives, we encourage you to apply, even if it is not listed here
Examples of activities that build capacity
Examples of activities that support the organisation
What could your project look like?
You can apply for funding for a single activity or a combination of activities – whatever suits your organisation best. The key is that your project should help build your organisation’s capacity or support its day-to-day operations.
Below are examples:
| Small Stream | $5,000 application example | Great for focused, low-cost improvements.
|
|---|---|---|
| Medium Stream | $25,000 application example | Ideal for strengthening systems or scaling up support.
|
| Large Stream | $150,000 application example | Best for big-picture projects that build long-term capacity in partnership with smaller organisation/s.
|
What cannot be funded?
Funds cannot be used for:
- Public Liability Insurance and other required insurances
- retrospective costs for activities that were started before funding approval
- activities and programs extending beyond the MCBP period
- capital works including permanent structures or anything that increases the value of your facility
- activities that are solely for fundraising activities
- activities taking place outside of Victoria
- international or interstate travel
- gift cards
- purchase of land
- political activities.
Mandatory documents
Small Stream: up to $10,000
- You must include these documents with your application.
- Use the checklist table to make sure you have everything ready.
Important:
- You do not need to provide proof of Public Liability Insurance when applying.
- If your application is successful, you will need to show proof of Public Liability Insurance before we can finalise your funding agreement.
Medium stream: $10,001 to $100,000
- You must include these documents with your application.
- Use the checklist table to make sure you have everything ready.
Important:
- You do not need to provide proof of Public Liability Insurance when applying.
- If your application is successful, you will need to show proof of Public Liability Insurance before we can finalise your funding agreement.
Large stream: $100,001 to $400,000
- Applications must show:
- wide impact
- strong partnerships with at least one smaller community organisation
- clear strategic benefit.
- You must include these documents with your application
- Use the checklist table to make sure you have everything ready.
Important:
- You do not need to provide proof of Public Liability Insurance when applying.
- If your application is successful, you will need to show proof of Public Liability Insurance before we can finalise your funding agreement.
How your application will be assessed
Your application should explain how your project will build your organisation’s capacity or support its day-to-day operations. It should explain how the project will help your organisation meet the needs of people from multicultural communities.
All applications in the three streams will be checked for eligibility based on:
- how well your proposed activities match the programs objectives
- your budget
- the mandatory documents you provide.
Important:
- Not all organisations that apply will receive funding.
- Some organisations may receive less than the amount requested.
- Small stream applications will only undergo an eligibility assessment. Note: final funding recommendations are subject to the overall subscription of the program.
- The medium and large stream applications that are eligible, will also be assessed on merit using the criteria listed in the table below.
| Assessment criteria | Criteria description | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Alignment with the program objectives | Explain how your project supports the objectives of the grant program. Questions to guide you:
| 30% |
| Demonstrated need | Describe the challenge or opportunity your organisation is facing and why this project is needed. Questions to guide you:
| 25% |
| Impact | Show how your project will help your organisation work better and support your community over the long term. Questions to guide you:
| 25% |
| Value for public money | Provide a clear and realistic budget for your project and explain how the funding will be used to deliver strong outcomes and good value for the community. Questions to guide you:
| 20% |
For support in developing your application, please visit our grant page to access templates and guidance. You can also contact the Multicultural Affairs Partnerships team by email at MA.capacitybuilding@dpc.vic.gov.au or call on 1300 112 755.
Assessment process overview
Completed applications will go through these steps.
Submitting your application
To make sure your application is accepted:
- Start early and check the application closing time and date.
- Allow enough time to answer all the questions and upload the correct documents.
- Complete all questions and attach all mandatory documents. If anything is missing, your application will be ineligible and will not be assessed.
- Submit your online application form by 3:00 pm on 19 February 2026.
Important:
- We will not accept late or incomplete applications.
- Only one application per organisation will be accepted. If you submit more than one, we will only assess the first application.
- The online application will not let you continue if you do not meet the eligibility criteria.
Submit your application by completing the online application form:
Successful grant recipients
If your application is successful:
- your organisation must sign a Victorian Common Funding Agreement (VCFA) with the department within 30 days of your funding offer. If you do not accept the offer within this time, the department may withdraw the grant.
- the funding agreement will include:
- the grant terms and conditions, including how funds can be used
- key deliverables and due dates
- applicable department policies, including the Victorian Government Values Statement
- reporting requirements.
- grant payments will be made based on the milestones listed in your agreement.
- The VCFA will be sent electronically. Hard copies will not be sent or accepted.
- Your organisation must have Public Liability Insurance of at least $10 million per incident. You will need to provide proof of this when signing the funding agreement.
- You must use all funds during the activity period and follow any funding conditions in your letter of offer or funding agreement. If you do not meet these conditions, you will have to return the funding.
- The department will publish details of successful organisations on our grant information page, including:
- organisation name
- project name
- grant amount.
Goods and Services Tax (GST) and grants awarded under this program
If your organisation is successful in receiving a grant and is:
- registered for GST, you will be paid GST on top of the amount awarded
- not registered for GST, you will only receive the grant amount awarded –
GST will not be added on top.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) considers grants and sponsorships as taxable income. The ATO can help with information on tax, including GST.
For more information, call 13 28 66 or visit the ATO website.
More information and help
Visit the Multicultural grant resources website page for other resources, including how to write a grant application and grant terminology
For support in developing your application please make sure you have read all information on our grant page, which is where you can also access templates and further guidance.
To check if your organisation is up to date on reporting requirements, view your current grants in the DFFH Grants Gateway, any report which is showing as red is overdue. Visit Grants Gateway.
For more informationContact the Multicultural Affairs Partnerships team: Email - MA.capacitybuilding@dpc.vic.gov.au Phone - 1300 112 755 |
Program definitions and abbreviations
| Key term/abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| Capacity Building | Activities that help people, communities, or organisations develop the skills, knowledge, and resources they need to do their work better and achieve their goals and become more self-sufficient over time. Examples include financial training, governance courses, mentoring, providing tools or technology, improving systems and processes. |
| Collaboration | Organisations or groups work together to plan, deliver, or support a project by sharing skills, resources and responsibilities to achieve strong outcomes for communities. |
| Demonstrated need | Showing clear evidence that your project is important and necessary. This could include explaining the problem or gap your organisation or community is facing and why your project will help. |
| Eligible | Your organisation or project meets the rules and requirements to apply for or receive funding. |
| Emerging organisation | Organisations that are just starting out. They may be new or still growing, with fewer programs, resources, or experience. |
| Established organisation | Organisations that have been operating for a long period and have regular programs. |
| Funding agreement | A legal document that explains why the funding is provided, the amount of money, and the conditions attached to the grant. It also defines the rights and responsibilities of both parties. Once signed, your organisation must follow all the terms and conditions in the agreement. |
| Grants | Money or in-kind support given to applicants for a specific purpose that helps achieve policy goals. These funds support the services or projects proposed by the applicants. |
| Impact | Clear and lasting improvements that happen because of the funding activity. These improvements show real benefits for communities or systems and can be directly linked to the funding provided. |
| Incorporated association or similar legal entity | An incorporated association is a type of organisation that is officially registered under state or territory law. It is usually set up as a not-for-profit. These organisations are registered under:
|
| Ineligible | Your organisation does not meet the rules and requirements, so it cannot apply for or receive funding. |
| Multicultural communities | Groups of people in Victoria from different cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. These communities may include refugees, newly arrived migrants, migrants who have lived in Australia for many years, and members who are second or third generation Australians. Multicultural communities bring unique cultural practices, languages, and traditions that enrich Victoria’s social fabric. They may also face challenges such as accessing services, adjusting to life in Australia, and maintaining cultural identity in a new environment. |
| Multicultural community organisation | An organisation that is owned and managed by an ethnic, language, or cultural community that has common needs, customs, and traditions. The organisation will exist to support people from the ethnic, language or cultural group or several related ethnic groups. |
| New and emerging communities | Communities who have arrived as refugees or through a humanitarian visa may face unique challenges when resettling in Australia. These groups may need extra support as they settle into life in Australia. The main identifiers are:
The department has worked with the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) to create a priority list of new and emerging communities. Many of these communities have recently been, or are currently, part of Australia’s Refugee and Humanitarian Program. The priority list includes both countries of origin and specific ethnicities. You can find the list on our grant page. |
| Not-for-profit organisation | An organisation that does not work to make money for its owners or members whether directly or indirectly. A not-for-profit organisation can still make a profit, but this profit must be used to achieve the purposes of the organisation - not given to owners, members or private individuals. |
| Partnership applications | Partnership applications are when two or more organisations apply together. Organisations choose to partner because:
|
| Public liability insurance | Public liability insurance protects your organisation or community group if someone from the public is injured or their property is damaged because of your activities. It helps cover the costs of claims or legal action. |
| Reach | The expected size, audience or community that takes part in or benefit from your organisation’s activities. |
| Revenue | All the money your organisation receives to run its activities. This can include donations, grants, membership fees, or money from fundraising events – before any costs or expenses are taken out. |
| Rural and regional communities | Eligibility as a rural or regional organisation is based on your organisation being located outside the metropolitan Melbourne area, as defined by Regional Development Victoria’s list of Victoria’s regions. |
| Value for money | The project is well planned, affordable, delivers benefits to multicultural communities and uses resources in a responsible and efficient way. |
| ABN | Australian Business Number |
| ABR | Australian Business Register |
| ACNC | Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission |
| ASIC | Australian Securities and Investments Commission |
| DFFH | Department of Families, Fairness and Housing |
| DPC | Department of Premier and Cabinet |
| GST | Goods and Services Tax |
| MCBP | Multicultural Capacity Building Program |