URGENT: Export Market and Development Grant (EMDG) undergoes a strategic refocus

EMDG is facing an unprecedented change after 51 years, undergoing a non-payment year (‘Gap Year’) in 2024/2025, with the exception of a small subset of Round 3 Applicants. Due to past budget misallocations, the funding for EMDG in fiscal year 2024 is now earmarked for addressing deficiencies in the current EMDG policy framework. 

While Austrade is yet to issue an official announcement for Round 4, industry experts anticipate that the grant agreements for clients in Rounds 1, 2, and the majority of Round 3 will expire on June 30th, 2024. Round 4 applicants are expected to commence lodging claims from November 2024, and they will receive expense coverage from July 2025 to June 2026. 

Considering this, it is recommended that applicants from Rounds 1, 2, and 3 allocate funds for overseas marketing activities in the current financial year to optimise their EMDG benefits.

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The Export Market and Development Grant (EMDG) Senate Estimates:

On October 26, 2023, during the Senate Estimates, Senator Ross Cadell (Nationals) directed questions related to the EMDG program to Senator Don Farrell and other representatives from the Agency. These inquiries covered the following:

• Austrade has indicated a strong likelihood of focusing on Southeast Asia for EMDG Round 4, encompassing countries such as Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, Thailand, Brunei, and Malaysia.
• The Agency has stated that Round 4 is slated to commence in November 2024, with payments expected to be disbursed in July 2025, approximately 18 months from the present.
• In response to the status of the EMDG program, the Agency reported that Milestone reports submitted by October 31, 2023, are currently under assessment, and payments are in the process of being released.
• Regarding the current status of EMDG Guidelines for Round 4, the Agency stated that they are currently under development, with no specific timeframe provided for their completion.