Grants paid to associations

A grant may be awarded by the following administrations and organizations:

• Status
• Local authorities
• Public administrative institutions
• Social security bodies
• Public establishments of an industrial and commercial nature
• Company foundations
• Foundations and endowment fund
• Other bodies responsible for the management of an administrative public service.

Any association declared and registered in the Sirene directory may apply for a grant for:

• carry out an investment action or project,
• contribute to the development of activities,
• or contribute to the overall financing of its activity.

Some grants are awarded within specific frameworks (targeted public policies, territorial allocations, European programs, etc.). In these cases, the association must comply with the criteria and procedures specific to each device.

For certain specific grants, the association must hold a ministerial accreditation or special recognition (e.g. youth and popular education association).

Procedures vary depending on the granting agency and the type of grant.

In general, the grant application shall include the following elements:

• Administrative file (statutes, declaration receipt, SIRENE, RIB, etc.)
• Description of the project or action funded
• Detailed provisional budget
• Sometimes a funding plan that incorporates other resources.

Depending on the context, specific forms may be used, for example:

• Politics of the city
• Youth and sports
• Protection of the environment
• Professional and social integration.

Where the grant is to be used for a specific action, the association must provide the granting body with a financial report.

This document must demonstrate that the expenditures made are consistent with the purpose of the grant. It must be transmitted in the 6 months following the end of the exercise for which the grant was awarded.

To prepare the financial report, you must use the following form:

Association: grant financial report

The organization that awarded the grant must communicate, to any person who requests it, the budget, the accounts of the association, the grant application, the agreement and the financial report.

The use of subsidies awarded by the State, a local authority or a public institution may be subject to controls:

• by the granting authority,
• and by the senior accountants ­ the Treasury, the Inspectorate-General for Finance, certain inspection bodies and the Court of Auditors.

Fiscal or budgetary control may also be carried out by control bodies internal to the community or public service delegates.

The purpose of these financial controls is to verify that the grants have been used to achieve the stated objective.

An association must prepare annual accounts if it receives one or more grants in cash the overall amount of which exceeds €153,000.

These accounts must contain:

• a balance sheet,
• an income statement,
• and an annex.

The association must appoint at least one external auditor and an alternate. It must also publish its annual accounts and the report of the External Auditor to the JOAFE: titleContent.

These publications shall be carried out in the 3 months following approval of the accounts by the deliberative meeting.

You must do this online:

Publication of the annual accounts of associations, foundations and endowment funds

These documents shall be published in electronic form and shall be searchable free of charge.