Announced in April, the EMDG will be receiving a A$60 million boost over the following three years, following confirmation of the Federal Government’s proposed subsidy increment.

The grant is highly popular among the SMEs. In 2018–19, over 3,900 businesses successfully applied for reimbursement of promotional expenses under the scheme. Claimable expenses include flights, marketing collateral and digital campaigns.

This program aims to encourage businesses to increase international marketing and promotion expenditure to achieve more sustainable international sales. The program is a key Australian Government financial assistance program for small to medium aspiring and growing export-ready businesses.

“Through the EMDG scheme we’re supporting businesses to increase their marketing and promotional activities in international markets so they can connect with new customers and grow their exports,” Senator Birmingham said in a statement.

“This funding boost will help Australian companies get more exposure in international markets allowing them to develop brand recognition and form relationships with potential customers, that we know is so critical to export success.”

 

So, how are applications processed?

All EMDG applications are audited by Austrade on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. 

Given this fact, the timing of your application submission can have a significant impact on how long it takes for Austrade to process your claim. A claim can take up to a couple of weeks right up to months.

Therefore to get approved, it is advisable to apply between July and September with an average processing time of 5 weeks as compared to an application in November which will take 16 weeks to process.

Download the EMDG Playbook to find out m

I’ve applied, whats next?

So, after you lodge an application, Austrade will send you a receipt as a formal confirmation of your application. If this is your first application, or if you have been a previous applicant and there have been substantial changes to your application when compared to previous applications; then you will more than likely be allocated for an audit assessment. An Austrade auditor, who has been allocated your file, will process the applications in the order that they have been received.

As a creative agency, we work closely with EMDG Partner Miles Davis who has over 28 years of experience working within Austrade’s EMDG division, and has audited over $120m of EMDG applications. So if you’re unsure on your eligibility to apply, let’s have a chat to explore your options in export marketing and digital strategy today.