The Defence Innovation Hub program invests in innovative technologies, in partnership with industry and academia, for future-focussed solutions to build Defence capabilities.

See our separate post The Defence Innovation Hub program for all the details of this grant program.

The Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority Grants supports Australian businesses to build industrial capabilities that fit with Defence’s Sovereign Industrial Capability Priorities.

This program is open for applications throughout the year. The assessment panel assess batched applications regularly throughout the year.

Below are the dates:

• Batch 1 – all grant applications received up until 16 September 2022.
• Batch 2 – all grant applications received from 17 September 2022 to 31 January 2023.
• Batch 3 – all grant applications received from 1 February to 30 April 2023.

See our separate post Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority Grant for all the details of this grant program.

• Batch 1 – all grant applications received from 1 July 2022 until 30 September 2022.
• Batch 2 – all grant applications received from 1 October 2022 to 31 December 2022.
• Batch 3 – all grant applications received from 1 January 2023 to 31 March 2023.
• Batch 4 – all grant applications received from 1 April 2022 to 30 June 2023.

See our separate post Defence Global Competitiveness Grant for all the details of this grant program.

Investing in the future skills base of the defence sector is at the core of the Skilling Australia’s Defence Industry grant.

Australian defence-based Small and Medium Enterprises can reduce barriers to upskilling or retraining staff and establish training plans and human resources processes with funds from this grant.

Who is this grant for and what do you get?

Eligible SMEs in the defence industry can access grants of between $5,000–$500,000 to support skills development and training. Grants are up to 100% of eligible project expenditure.

A total of roughly $39 million will be made available across three years from 2020 to 2023, of which around $10 million has been allocated to Naval shipbuilding. You can apply for multiple grants, but there is a funding cap of $500,000 per grantee in the three-year period. The maximum project duration is 24 months, to be completed before 30 March 2023.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible you must:

1. have an ABN
2. be non-income tax exempt (unless you are a defence industry association training your own
3. staff or facilitating training to businesses you are representing).
4. and be one of the following entities:
   • an entity incorporated in Australia
   • an incorporated trustee on behalf of a trust.

Applications will only be accepted from:

SMEs with less than 200 employees that currently service, or intend to service, the defence industry sector and meet one of the following requirements:

• have a current defence contract
• be currently tendering or preparing to tender for a defence contract
• be a current subcontractor to a defence prime or contracted through the Prime’s supply chain to deliver on defence projects

Defence industry associations for training their own staff or for facilitating training to businesses they are representing.

You are not eligible to apply if you are:

• income tax exempt (unless you are a defence industry association training your own staff or
• facilitating training to businesses you are representing)
• an individual
• a partnership
• a trust (however, an incorporated trustee may apply on behalf of a trust)
• a Commonwealth, State, Territory, or local government body (including government business
• enterprises)
• a non-corporate Commonwealth entity

Learn more about the Skilling Australia’s Defence Industry grant

This research grant fosters collaboration between Australian universities and US research institutions. The US DoD administers its ​​Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program, complemented by the Australian-based AUSMURI.

The grant is focussed on a single designated research topic in each funding round, each topic being one that has high future potential for innovation in defence capabilities.

There are nine priority areas which the AUSMURI program supports. Each topic relates to one of the priority areas, which are as follows:

• integrated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance
• space capabilities
• enhanced human performance
• medical countermeasure products
• multidisciplinary material sciences
• quantum technologies
• trusted autonomous systems
• cyber
• advanced sensors, hypersonics, and directed energy capabilities.

The total program fund is $25 million over 9 years, from 2017-18 to 2025-26.

Who is this grant for and what do you get?

This grant is for the lead university in an approved MURI submission on a designated topic. The program supports partnerships between Australian and American institutions. Australian universities may be eligible for grants of 100% of eligible expenditure up to $3 million ($1m per year over three years).

The AUSMURI program assigns a designated research priority topic each year. The most recent Round 4 topic was Topic 12: Cyber Autonomy through Robust Learning and Effective Human/Bot Teaming.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible, your organisation must:

• have an ABN
• be a higher education provider listed at Table A or Table B of the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (Cth)
• be the lead Australian university in an approved MURI submission on a designated topic.

And your project must:

• be approved through MURI on a designated topic
• include eligible expenditure
• be undertaken in Australia.

Learn more about the US-Australia International Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative.

This grant opportunity supports companies designated Assigned-Product Support Providers (A-PSPs) for F-35 maintenance and repair activities in the Joint Strike Fighter program.

Grants are for US DoD-approved Australian companies who are developing a Depot Maintenance Activation Plan (DMAP), for maintenance and repair activities for existing components used in the Joint Strike Fighter.

Who is this grant for and what do you get?

This grant is only available to Australian companies that have been assigned maintenance and repair activities for existing components of the Joint Strike Fighter Program by the US Government.

Eligible companies can win grants of between $50,000–$250,000, up to 50% of eligible expenditure for phase 1 and 2 of the program. Funding for phases 3 and 4 will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the Department of Defence. The maximum project duration is four years.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible you must:

• be an A-PSP developing and/or implementing a DMAP
• have an Australian Business Number (ABN)
• be registered for the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

and be one of the following entities:

• an entity, incorporated in Australia
• an incorporated trustee on behalf of a trust.

Learn more details about the JSP-ISP Sustainment Grants

Closing date: Friday 30 June 2028 5:00pm AEST

Who is it for?

An Australian company, university, research organisation or cooperative research centre.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible you must:

• have an Australian business number (ABN)
• be registered for the goods and services tax (GST).

You must be one of the following entities:

• an entity, incorporated in Australia
• an Australian university
• a publicly funded research organisation (PFRO)
• a cooperative research centre.

You must provide:

• evidence of ownership, access to, or the beneficial use of, any intellectual property necessary to carry out the project
• evidence from your board (or chief executive officer or equivalent if there is no board) that the project is supported, and that you can complete the project and meet the costs of the project not covered by grant funding
• an Accountant Declaration that confirms you can fund your share of the project costs.

Learn more about the Joint Strike Fighter Industry Support Program – Production and Modernisation Grants

The Defence Strategic Policy Grants Program supports original, independent research and public policy engagement that broadens public debate, strengthens Defence’s partnerships, and informs Defence’s strategic policy.

See our separate post The Defence Strategic Policy Grants Program for all the details of this grant program.