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Project Start Date Information

When can my project commence?

  • You must start your project on or after the Grant Commencement Date.
  • For projects awarded from mid-2020 the latest date your project can start is listed in the scheme-specific section of the Grant Agreement. This date is approximately 12 months after the Grant Commencement Date.
  • In exceptional circumstances, if you can’t start before that date the Research Office can submit a ‘Project - Defer Commencement’ Variation to Grant Agreement in RMS (See the Instructions for information on how to submit a variation).

What do I need to do?

The Research Office must notify the ARC of the Project Start Date when the Project has commenced via a Variation in RMS or through the End of Year Report process.

Definitions from the Grant Guidelines/Grant Agreement

Grant Commencement Date means the date on which grant funding may commence. For scheme-specific dates see the Important Dates for ARC Grant Application Process in the Grants Calendar.

Project Start Date means the date on which the project commences research and Grant expenditure.

Project Activity Period means the period during which the project is receiving Grant funds according to the original Grant Offer, or has any carryover Grant funds approved by the ARC, or an approved variation to the Project End Date.

Project End Date means when the ARC funded project activity is completed and all Grant funds are spent.

The Project Initialisation Date (when the Project’s Funding Agreement is executed by the ARC in RMS) is no longer relevant for calculating the final start date for scheme rounds including:

  • Australian Laureate Fellowships (FL20 onwards) 
  • Future Fellowships (FT20 onwards)
  • Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards (DE21 onwards)
  • Discovery Projects (DP21 onwards)
  • Discovery Indigenous (IN21 onwards)
  • Linkage Projects (LP20 onwards)
  • Industrial Transformation Training Centres (IC20 onwards)
  • Industrial Transformation Research Hubs (IH20 onwards)
  • Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LE21 onwards)

The Project Initialisation Date remains relevant for scheme rounds prior to those listed above. For further information, refer to the relevant Grant Agreement.

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