Tourism Kick-Start Fund applications open 1 April

New Zealand is back on the map! This is fantastic news for our tourism and hospitality sectors. Vaccinated tourists will soon be able to visit without needing to isolate, starting with Australians, from April 13, and then selected other nations from 2 May.

To help businesses scale up in preparation, a $49 million Tourism Kick-start Fund has been set up, and applications open on 1 April 2022.

Is your business eligible?

To be eligible, your business must:

• Be a tourism business that was already operating before the pandemic: “at least 50% of its operational output is purchased by tourists”

• Have had pre-Covid annual revenue of at least $60,000

• Physically based in Westland, Southland, Kaikōura, Mackenzie or Queenstown Lakes Districts

• Have seen a significant drop in revenue due to Covid-19

• Be a viable business

• Not have already received support from the Strategic Tourism Assets Protection Programme

The grant is worth between $10,000 and $50,000 for each business. The funding can be used for staff, training, overheads (including leases), marketing and other operating expenses. It cannot be used for capital expenditure or debt repayment.

You can read more about the details here.

We can help you apply

We can demonstrate your business’s pre-Covid revenue, show that it’s a viable business and produce accounts that quantify how much your revenue has dropped. The Fund is designed to get the cash flowing into each business at top speed once the paperwork has been processed.

If you’re eligible, get in touch today and we can support you in getting your kick-start funding as quickly as possible.