Queensland Music Grants & Opportunities

Last updated: October 8, 2026

Deadlines move and eligibility rules can be painfully specific. Use this page to find the right door, then read the official guidelines before building your budget or booking anything.

Closing soon: Touring Queensland Fund closes Monday, October 12 at 2pm AEST. Creative Australia’s Contemporary Music Touring Program, Playing Australia Project Investment, International Engagement Fund and Music Australia Export Development Fund close Tuesday, October 13 at 3pm AEDT, which is 2pm Brisbane time. If you’re applying this round, this is the week to finish budgets, support material and portal registration. The Regional Arts Fund Quick Response October round remains open until October 31. New applicants: Creative Australia registrations take up to two business days to process; the export fund requires registration at least two business days before closing. Start registration now. Official links and eligibility details are below.

Open now or opening soon

Touring Queensland Fund

• Closes: October 12, 2026 at 2pm AEST
• Funding: up to $100,000
• Best for: a single tour or a program of touring that gives regional communities access to arts and cultural work, including music gigs

This is for touring activity across Queensland, not a general recording or release grant. Build the route, partners, audience case and costs before you start writing.

Contemporary Music Touring Program

• Closes: Tuesday, October 13, 2026 at 3pm AEDT — 2pm Queensland time
• Funding: $5,000 to $50,000
• Best for: Australian musicians touring original Australian contemporary music nationally
• Tour requirement: at least three venues or locations outside the performer’s hometown, with regional and remote touring prioritised

Creative Australia’s Contemporary Music Touring Program supports national touring by Australian musicians performing original contemporary music. Funding levels depend on the tour route, with higher caps available for regional and remote touring.

New applicants must register in Creative Australia’s application system to apply. Registrations take up to two business days to process, so start now rather than waiting until closing day. Read the eligibility and itinerary rules carefully before building the application.

Music Australia Export Development Fund

Closes: Tuesday, October 13, 2026 at 3pm AEDT — 2pm Queensland time. This matched-funding round has three separate categories for export-ready Australian contemporary music artists:

• Category 1, international performance and touring: $5,000–$75,000 for confirmed overseas tours, festivals and showcase activity.
• Category 2, international professional and artistic development: $3,000–$15,000 for overseas professional or artistic development.
• Category 3, international market and audience development: $2,000–$10,000 for international promotion, audience building and content aimed at overseas markets.

Eligible activity must start between January 1 and March 31, 2027 and finish within 12 months. Applicants need evidence of matched funding, and registration in Creative Australia’s application system at least two business days before the deadline. You can apply once to each category in a round, with an application tailored to that category.

• Category 1 guidelines
• Category 2 guidelines
• Category 3 guidelines

Regional Arts Fund Quick Response Grants

• Current round: October 1, 2026 at 9am to October 31, 2026 at 11.59pm
• Funding: up to $3,000 for individuals and $5,000 for organisations
• Best for: time-sensitive regional projects and professional development
• Location: eligible regional and remote Queensland areas classified MM2 to MM7

Quick Response rounds run monthly from February to November. The project start window matters, so check the timetable before applying.

EQUALIZE Brisbane songwriting and recording workshop

When: Saturday, October 31, 2026, 9.45am–4.30pm at QUT Kelvin Grove. APRA AMCOS’s free one-day workshop is for women and gender diverse music makers, with songwriting, collaboration and recording sessions. Places are limited; APRA AMCOS membership is not required.

See the Brisbane workshop and register via APRA AMCOS.

Playing Australia Project Investment

• Closes: October 13, 2026 at 3pm AEDT
• Funding: no set maximum request
• Best for: performing arts tours reaching regional and remote communities across Australia

Playing Australia supports touring costs for performing arts projects travelling to regional and remote areas. Music projects should compare its criteria with the Contemporary Music Touring Program before applying.

International Engagement Fund

• Closes: October 13, 2026 at 3pm AEDT
• Funding: $5,000 to $30,000
• Best for: Australian artists and creative workers undertaking reciprocal international exchange with confirmed international partners

This Creative Australia fund supports international exchange rather than a standard tour or export campaign. Applicants must have confirmed international partners, and supported activity must take place between January 15, 2027 and January 15, 2029.

New applicants should allow time to register in Creative Australia’s application system before the deadline.

Brisbane Creative Sparks

• Opens: September 28, 2026
• Closes: November 9, 2026 at 3pm
• Funding: up to $15,000
• Best for: professional Brisbane artists, creative workers and eligible not-for-profit organisations creating a new public outcome in Brisbane

Applicants need a Brisbane-linked ABN or eligible auspice, a co-contribution and a balanced budget. The program does not fund individual professional development or projects without a public creative outcome.

Application help: Brisbane City Council’s current grant guidelines and applicant information are available online. See the council guidelines and applicant information.

Lord Mayor’s Creative Fellowships

• Opens: September 28, 2026
• Closes: November 16, 2026 at 3pm
• Funding: up to $10,000
• Best for: emerging and early-career Brisbane artists undertaking structured professional development

Applicants must live in the Brisbane local government area and propose structured development delivered by a recognised organisation or industry professional. You cannot apply for this fellowship and Creative Sparks in the same financial year.

Support Act Crisis Relief

• Status: ongoing
• Best for: music workers facing financial hardship because of illness, injury, a mental health issue or another crisis affecting their ability to work

This is not project funding. It is confidential, practical support for people who make their living in music and need help through a crisis.

Queensland opportunities worth watching

These programs are annual, periodic or currently between rounds. Bookmark the official pages and join the relevant mailing lists.

• QMusic scholarships: the Billy Thorpe Scholarship, Carol Lloyd Award, Dennis ‘Mop’ Conlon Scholarship and Grant McLennan Fellowship have each offered $15,000 to Queensland musicians.
• BIGSOUND artist applications: an important annual showcase pathway for Australian artists ready to meet national and international industry delegates.
• Queensland Music Awards: annual song and release nominations across genres and career stages.
• Creative Australia Arts Projects: national project grants for individuals, groups and organisations, with music eligible.
• PPCA and Creative Australia recording grants: periodic $15,000 grants supporting new Australian recordings.
• Regional Arts Fund Project Grants: up to $30,000, with two Queensland rounds each year for eligible regional and remote activity.
• Local council arts funding: RADF and council-specific programs differ across Queensland. Check your own council, plus any council area where the activity will happen.

Check QMusic programs, search Creative Australia opportunities, and browse APRA AMCOS funding and opportunities.

Before you apply

1. Check that you, your location and your activity are eligible.
2. Check the eligible start date. Spending money too early can make a project ineligible.
3. Write the project in plain English: what is happening, who is doing it, where, when and for whom.
4. Build the budget from quotes and real fees, not wishful numbers.
5. Collect support material early, including music links, biographies, confirmations and letters.
6. Ask the funding body a specific question before the deadline if a rule is unclear.
7. Leave time for portals, uploads and account registration.

For the longer version, use YELO’s music funding guide for Queensland artists.

More music resources

Visit Music Resources, browse festival and showcase application help, or get your public-facing material sorted with the EPK and release guide.

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Know about a Queensland music grant or artist opportunity YELO should add? Send the official link through the YELO contact page. Listings are selected and checked by YELO, and inclusion is not guaranteed.