12.1. If You are successful, You must enter into a legally binding grant agreement with the Commonwealth represented by the ARC.
12.2. We use the ARC Linkage Program Linkage Projects grant agreement which contains standard terms and conditions that cannot be changed. A sample grant agreement is available on GrantConnect. Any additional conditions attached to the grant will be identified in the grant offer.
12.3. You will have 28 calendar days from the date of the grant offer to execute this grant agreement with the Commonwealth.
12.4. We must execute a grant agreement with You before We can make any payments. We are not responsible for any of Your project expenditure until a grant agreement is executed. You must not start any activities until all third party agreements are executed.
12.5. You must list the contributions of each organisation in the ensuing contractual agreements between Your organisation and the other organisations.
12.6. If the ARC approves grant funding varying from the amount requested, pro rata adjustments may be made to the Partner Organisation contributions.
12.7. If You enter an agreement for a Linkage Program grant, You cannot receive other grants for the same budgeted grant activities from other Commonwealth grant programs.
12.8. You will be required to conduct the project substantially in accordance with the ‘Project Description’ contained in the application for that project. Your application forms part of the grant agreement.
12.9. We will recover grant funds and terminate the project if You fail to meet the obligations of the grant agreement.
Specific research policies and practices
12.10. You and each project research participant are required to be compliant with all relevant laws and regulations. In particular, You must certify in Your application that You comply with the following requirements.
Ethics and Research Practices
12.11. All applications and ARC-funded research projects must comply with the requirements specified in the following and successor documents:
the ARC Research Integrity and Research Misconduct Policy (2016);
b. the National Principles of Intellectual Property Management for Publicly Funded Research (2017);
c. the ARC Open Access Policy (2017);
d. the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2018);
e. as applicable, the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2015);
f. as applicable, Ethical conduct in research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Communities: Guidelines for researchers and stakeholders (2018);
g. as applicable, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Guidelines for Ethical Research in Australian Indigenous Studies (2012);
h. as applicable, Australia Council for the Arts Protocols for Producing Indigenous Australian Music; Writing; Visual Arts; Media Arts; and Performing Arts (2007); and
i. as applicable, the Australian Code for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes (2013).
12.12. If there is any conflict between a successor document and its predecessor, then the successor document prevails to the extent of any inconsistency. These documents are all available on the ARC website.
Misconduct, incomplete or misleading information
12.13. All research projects funded by Us must comply with the ARC Research Integrity and Research Misconduct Policy.
12.14. If We consider that an application is incomplete We may in Our absolute discretion decide to recommend that the application not be approved for a grant.
12.15. If We consider that an application is inaccurate or contains false or misleading information, or involves misconduct, We will in Our absolute discretion decide to recommend that the application not be approved for a grant.
12.16. Examples of misleading information and misconduct include:
providing fictitious Research Opportunity and Performance Evidence (ROPE);
b. plagiarism;
c. making false claims in relation to the authorship of the application;
d. failing to make adequate acknowledgement of intellectual, design or other significant contributions to the application;
e. making false claims in publications records (such as describing a paper as accepted for publication when it has only been submitted);
f. making false claims in relation to qualifications and/or appointments;
g. making false certifications; and
h. failing to disclose the existence, and nature, of actual or potential Conflicts of Interest of any of the parties involved in the application/project (such as any affiliations or financial interest in any organisation that has a direct interest in the matter or outputs of the project).
Intellectual Property
12.17. We do not claim ownership of any intellectual property in an application or in any research arising from a project.
12.18. You must adhere to an intellectual property policy, approved by Your governing body, which has as one of its aims the maximisation of benefits to Australia arising from publicly funded research. You should ensure that individuals applying for ARC grants are familiar with the current intellectual property and patent landscape for the research areas included in the application. Unless otherwise approved by the Commonwealth, Your intellectual property policy must comply with the National Principles of Intellectual Property Management for Publicly Funded Research and/or any successor document(s). These document(s) are available on the ARC website.
Publication and dissemination of research outputs and research data
12.19. All research projects funded by Us must comply with the ARC Open Access Policy on the dissemination of research findings, which is on the ARC website.
12.20. Participants and institutions have an obligation to collect and maintain research data in accordance with the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2018). We strongly encourage the depositing of data arising from a project in an appropriate publicly accessible discipline and/or institutional repository. Participants must outline briefly in their application how they plan to manage research data arising from a project.
12.21. We strongly encourage all participants applying for grants to have an Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) in their RMS Profile.
How We pay the grant
12.22. Payments will be made as set out in the grant agreement.
12.23. The grant offer will specify the approved amount for that project, or as otherwise varied by Us in accordance with the grant agreement.
12.24. Any project expenditure incurred by You for a project additional to the approved amount for that project specified in the grant offer, or as otherwise varied by Us, is Your responsibility. We will not reimburse You for such costs under any circumstances.
12.25. You are responsible for any and all financial and taxation implications associated with receiving funds. Grant funding may be indexed. Grant funding will typically be paid monthly through Our payment system.
12.26. Once the grant agreement is signed by the Commonwealth, payment will be made on the next available date for grant payments after the grant commencement date.
12.27. Any grant awarded will be subject to sufficient funds being available for the project, the provisions of the ARC Act and continued satisfactory progress of the project.
12.28. All amounts referred to in these grant guidelines are to be read as exclusive of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), unless expressly stated otherwise.
Grant agreement variations
12.29. We recognise that unexpected events may affect the progress of a project. In these circumstances, You can request a variation to Your grant agreement, including:
changing a project’s internal budget or research plan;
b. extending the timeframe for completing the project; and/or
c. changing participants or organisations named on the project.
12.30. You cannot request an increase to the agreed amount of grant funds.
12.31. If You want to propose changes to the grant agreement, You must submit a Variation of grant agreement (Variation) to Us in RMS.
12.32. If a CI is at any time no longer able to work as proposed on the project, the project may be continued, provided any replacement CI meets the CI eligibility criteria. We must approve these changes via a Variation.
12.33. If a PI is at any time no longer able to work as proposed on the project, the project may be continued, provided any replacement PI meets the PI eligibility criteria. We must approve these changes via a Variation.
12.34. A Variation must be approved by Us to be a valid part of the grant agreement. We will consider Your request based on factors such as:
how it affects the project outcome; and
b. consistency with the grant opportunity objectives, the project’s aim and objectives and any relevant ARC policies.
12.35. We will notify You of the outcome of a Variation.
Keeping Us informed
12.36. You should let Us know if anything is likely to affect Your project.
12.37. You must also inform Us of any changes to Your:
name;
b. address(es);
c. nominated contact details; and
d. bank account details.
12.38. If You become aware of a breach of terms and conditions under the grant agreement, You must contact Us immediately.