Q&A

We receive 1,000–1,500 project ideas each year. About 10% of these proceed to funding.

No. To apply for support from us, your organization must be a charitable organization (a registered non-profit organization, non-profit association or a public benefit foundation). This is because our funds come from the Swedish Postcode Lottery and are subject to Swedish gambling legislation, which limits the types of organizations we can support.

In certain thematic initiatives and calls for proposals, we may have different requirements and are sometimes open to other types of organizations. In these instances, this will be clearly stated.

For projects within Sweden and International, the average funding amount is around two million SEK. We aim to remain flexible and let societal needs and the project’s purpose guide us. Therefore, we don’t have fixed limits on the amount you can apply for, but we generally don’t grant less than 700,000 SEK except in exceptional cases. The requested amount is assessed in relation to the project’s scope, the applicant organization’s turnover and capacity, and its previous experience managing project funding.

If you’re seeking support for a smaller project, we refer you to the Neighborhood Initiative or our thematic initiatives, which sometimes offer smaller grants.

For smaller projects within Sweden, you can apply for support through the Neighborhood Initiative. Within this initiative, you can apply for 20,000–60,000 SEK for projects carried out in local Swedish communities.

Sometimes smaller grants are available through our thematic initiatives. In those cases, the available amount will be specified. Subscribe to our newsletter to learn about upcoming call for proposals and thematic initiatives.

No, we support projects both as sole funder and co-funder. If we co-fund a project, the budget should show which costs our funding would cover and whether other funders are confirmed. When describing your idea, make it clear which activities and results you could achieve with our funding.

Projects within Sweden and International usually run for 12–24 months. We fund time-limited projects where the support is earmarked for specific activities during the project period. This earmarking complements the Swedish Postcode Lottery, which provides long-term unrestricted funding to its beneficiary organizations.

Most supported projects are not limited to a single location but have broader geographic reach. For projects carried out in one specific location in Sweden, we generally refer to the Neighborhood Initiative. In some cases, we make exceptions if a project is particularly innovative or has potential to be scaled to other locations.

Since the funds we distribute come from the Swedish Postcode Lottery, we must comply with Swedish gambling legislation. This means our funding must be used for something that serves a public interest. This includes addressing an important societal issue and benefiting a broader public — directly or indirectly.

It also means the project should fall outside the responsibilities of the state, region, or municipality.

Our role as a funder is to complement the Swedish Postcode Lottery, which annually provides non-earmarked support to its beneficiaries. We do this by funding projects that differ from an organization’s regular operations. In our assessment, we look at what your organization normally does and how the proposed project differs from that.

By “project,” we mean a clearly defined effort that differs from your organization’s regular work. It could involve testing a new method or reaching a new target group, and it should have a clear start and end date.

We aim to support civil society broadly, both geographically and thematically. To maximize impact, we work within four focus areas that reflect current societal challenges:

• Climate and Environment
• Culture
• Human Rights and Democracy
• Sport for Development

We also welcome project ideas outside these areas, as long as they contribute to positive societal development. Read more about our focus areas here.

We receive up to 1,500 applications per year and unfortunately can’t support them all. While we are unable to provide detailed individual feedback to everyone, but we have compiled the most common reasons for rejection – and you can find them here. In some cases, we may request a revised version of the application.

Yes! You will find our best recommendations here.

Contact us at info@postkodlotterietsstiftelse.se.

To apply, you must be a Swedish non-profit organization or foundation that has been in operation for at least one year. To confirm this we require a Swedish organization number that is at least one year old, and a completed yearly financial statement. The organization must also have a bank account to receive funding.

No. To apply for support from the Neighborhood Initiative, you must be a Swedish non-profit organization or a public benefit foundation (ideell förening or allmännyttig stiftelse in Swedish). We cannot support for-profit companies, property owner associations, or neighborhood associations. Since our funds come from the Swedish Postcode Lottery, we must comply with Swedish gambling legislation, which limits the types of organizations we can support.

You can apply for support from the Neighborhood Initiative at any time during the year.

You will receive initial feedback within 2–6 weeks. Processing times may be longer during summer and Christmas holidays.

You can apply for between 20,000 and 60,000 SEK.

The project must be fully or primarily (i.e., more than 50%) funded by the Neighborhood Initiative. If funding is granted, the project must be able to proceed regardless of outside funding sources. You are not required to contribute your own funding.

Projects can run for 1–9 months. You can apply for funding for a one-time activity, but the project period must be at least one month to include planning, purchasing, and evaluation. We cannot cover costs incurred before the project’s official start date or after its end date.

No, extensions are not possible once the project has started.

A neighborhood can be a village, rural area, small town, or a district in a larger city. Activities must take place within the target group’s neighborhood. We do not support travel outside the target neighborhood.

Projects should promote social interaction, community, and well-being. You can apply for support for new activities in the neighborhood that foster these goals as well as projects that create new encounters and shared experiences. Activities should be accessible to the general public — preferably free of charge.

We do not support projects with activities limited to association members — except for target groups with special needs, such as seniors living care home facilities.

You can apply for costs directly related to the project’s activities — such as refreshments, venue rentals, fees, materials, and marketing. All costs must include taxes.

We do not support costs for alcohol, permits, rent or heating of your regular buildings, café or restaurant visits, entrance fees, membership fees, discounts, or estimated value of volunteer work.

Purchases, construction or renovations alone are not considered activities that promote community and well-being — unless they are carried out together amongst people in the neighborhood. However, you can receive support for purchases or construction that enable project activities. For example:

• You want to host a public event but in order to make it happen, you need to buy materials to refurbish the meeting space.
• You want to offer new public activities but to do so you need to build a new meeting place.

Construction projects can be eligible for funding if they include new public activities and we are the sole or main funder (i.e., funding more than 50%). The total budget for construction plus activities must not exceed 119,000 SEK if you apply for 60,000 SEK.

Funds are paid at the project’s start date.

No. If your organization has ongoing project funding from us, you must wait until the final report is approved before applying for funding for a new project. An organization can receive a maximum of one grant per calendar year (based on the agreement date) within the Neighborhood Initiative.

Yes, you can apply again once the final report for the previous project is approved. You can also apply to further develop the same activity, and in that case we will assess the results of the previous project. You can receive a maximum of one additional grant for continuing the same activity.

Yes, if your project includes a new element. We only provide project support — not for regular or recurring operations. The project must include something new, such as a new or developed activity, or offering an existing activity to a new target group or neighborhood.

Yes, if you clearly develop the event to attract new participants and foster more community interaction.

Yes, if you organize new events that clearly promote community and interaction in the neighborhood. These should allow the public to try out activities your organization already offers — free of charge.

After the project ends, you have one month to complete a short online survey summarizing how the project went and listing costs by budget category. You don’t need to report every individual expense or attach receipts, but we may request random receipt checks.

Yes, you are welcome to answer the questions in English.

At this time, the application form for The Neighborhood Initiative is only available in Swedish. However, you are welcome to respond to the questions and send an application using English.

To be eligible to apply for support within the Neighborhood Initiative, your organization must have had a Swedish organization number for at least one year and a completed a financial statement.

No, your organization must have a bank account to receive funding.

Since the funds we receive come from the Swedish Postcode Lottery, we must comply with Swedish gambling legislation. This legislation states that the funds must be used for purposes that serve a public interest. By public interest, we mean that the project or activity addresses a significant societal issue, falls outside the responsibilities of the state and municipalities, and benefits a broad public — either directly or indirectly.

Email us at grannskap@postkodlotterietsstiftelse.se or call +46 (0)8-509 270 80.