Export Market Development Grant

To be eligible, you must: be an Australian legal entity (including companies, trusts, partnerships, and sole traders with ABN), have total income of less than $50 million in the grant year, have spent at least $15,000 on eligible export promotion activities, and be promoting Australian goods, services, or tourism.

The EMDG has three tiers based on experience level: Tier 1 for new-to-export businesses (up to $40,000 grant), Tier 2 for developing exporters (up to $80,000), and Tier 3 for established exporters (up to $150,000).

Eligible activities include: overseas marketing trips and trade shows, developing marketing materials for overseas markets, hiring an export marketing consultant, digital marketing targeting overseas customers, IP registration in overseas markets, and costs of obtaining business/regulatory approvals in overseas markets.

Each tier has specific eligible activity types. Austrade provides an online eligibility checker to help identify what qualifies for your situation.

Applications are submitted through Austrade's EMDG portal after your financial year ends (July–September each year for June year-end businesses). You'll need to document all eligible expenditure with invoices and receipts, and demonstrate that activities were directed at overseas markets.

Unlike competitive grants, EMDG is entitlement-based — if you meet the eligibility criteria and have sufficient eligible expenditure, you receive the grant. It's not competitive.