National community-association grants get a corrected 25-point scoring ceiling

Lithuania has corrected the maximum application score for Measure B of its 2026 institutional-strengthening competition for associations uniting community organisations to 25 pointsE TAR. The mandatory minimum remains 14 pointsE TAR, and projects whose applications score below that minimum cannot receive fundingE TAR. The correction changes the published ceiling, not the minimum qualifying score.

The original competition rules gave Measure B a maximum of 28 pointsE TAR. The replacement paragraph states 25E TAR, while repeating the same 14-point minimum and exclusion below it. Measure B covers national associations uniting community associations, rather than the municipal associations applying under Measure AE TAR. The defined national applicant, Nacionalinė BOVA, is an association uniting at least 10 bendruomenines organizacijas vienijančios asociacijos and carrying a registered NGO designation in the Register of Legal Entities.

The scoring criteria award up to 10 points for the clarity of the project’s objective and idea and their fit with the competition’s purpose. A further 10 points assess whether the planned activities are coherent, justified and suitable for achieving the project objective. The budget can earn up to five points for accuracy, clarity, consistency with planned activities and proportionality. The first three criteria therefore offer 25 points in total.

The separate priorities for membership size and joint applications apply to Measure A applicants. Measure A retains its own maximum of 32 points and minimum of 14. Evaluated projects are ranked separately for the two measures. Experts assess applications under the rules’ evaluation criteria and complete an assessment form.

The rules also provide for competition when applicants tie and funds are insufficient. Where applications within the same measure have equal average scores and the available budget is insufficient, the commission may favour projects of applicants uniting more community organisations. If membership numbers also tie, it may favour the applications submitted earlier.

The existing competition budget allocates €30,000 to Measure B. A national association’s project can receive at most €15,000, while the minimum funding per project is €3,000. Projects must select and implement between one and three of the listed institutional-strengthening activities. Implementation runs from 1 October 2026 until the date in the funding contract, no later than 31 December 2026.

The operative correction is Order A1-548 of 8 September 2026E TAR, replacing paragraph 36.2 of the Bendruomenines organizacijas vienijančių asociacijų institucinio stiprinimo projektų atrankos 2026 metų konkurso organizavimo nuostatai adopted in the minister’s 25 August 2026 Order A1-506.