Deadline: 15-Dec-2025
The Capability Development Grant encourages and supports the continuous professional development of the people that work in Singapore’s arts and culture sector and can support your organisation.
Priority Areas: Digital technology for art-making, audience development and outreach, and business development (e.g. data analytics, digital marketing). Audience engagement facilitation and engagement in the arts; teaching artistry, arts education and pedagogy; working with communities and/or youth. Entrepreneurship and organisation capabilities arts management, including business management and leadership; fundraising and financial management; branding and marketing; governance; intellectual property and legal. Art-form specific capabilities arts practice with a focus in traditional art forms that reflect the Chinese, Malay and Indian heritage of Singapore; curating for visual arts; literary publishing, editing, translation and creative writing; technical design and stage / production management. Arts research, critique and documentation.
The grant supports a variety of training activities, including workshops, master classes, seminars, conferences, and certified or accredited courses. Residencies, competitions, and structured mentorships are also supported. On-the-job training, such as work attachments, internships, traineeships, and apprenticeships, is also eligible. For individuals, this means participating in these activities. For organisations, it means sending employees or members to participate or organising activities for them. Supported programmes must be relevant to the work of the individual or the role of employees and members in their organisations. Online courses are eligible if they are at least three hours long. The maximum supportable duration for any activity is twelve consecutive months.
The grant is open to Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents who contribute to the local arts scene, with priority given to Self-employed Persons. Organisations registered with ACRA or as a society, and informal groups or collectives with a majority of Singapore Citizen or PR members, are also eligible. The grant will not support organisations constituted for non-secular purposes, or those with outstanding debts or evaluation reports from previous NAC grants. Organisations receiving ongoing operating grants from the Government or MCCY are also not eligible, with the exception of those under NAC’s Major Company Scheme. Individuals who are employees of companies requiring or organising their training are not eligible to apply themselves.
The grant will not fund activities that have already started or do not benefit arts professionals. It also excludes activities at religious venues, those promoting religious causes, or those that are part of a school or tertiary institution’s curriculum or for academic purposes. Tertiary education programmes subsidised by the Ministry of Education, or full-time degree programmes, are not supportable. The grant also does not fund activities already supported by other NAC schemes or cost components subsidised by other government agencies.
Supportable expenses for individuals and organisations include participation fees, mentor honorariums, required training materials, and venue or equipment rental for mentorships or apprenticeships. For Self-employed Persons, a training allowance of up to $7.50 per hour is available for local programmes. Organisations can receive an absentee payroll of up to $4.50 per hour for employees participating in training. For organisations organising in-house training, supportable costs include trainer fees, logistics, and marketing if the training is open to external participants. For overseas activities, supportable costs can include economy airfare, freight, visas, travel insurance, accommodation, and a subsistence allowance.
The grant does not support the cost of assets such as computer hardware or musical instruments. It also does not fund costs already subsidised by NAC or other government agencies. Individuals can receive up to 70% of supportable expenses, capped at $20,000 per financial year. Non-profit organisations and collectives can also receive up to 70%, while for-profit organisations can receive up to 50%, with an overall cap of $75,000 per financial year for organisations.
Assessment Criteria: Ability to Meet Industry Gap. Quality and Relevance of Programme. Track Record and Potential of Applicant. The deadline for application is 15 December 2025.
For more information, visit National Arts Council.
