Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27: general guidance notes

Key information

This section of these General Guidance notes sets out key information that is relevant to all potential applicants to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27. All potential applicants should read this section in full before starting their application.

• you cannot apply for funding for a project that has already started, is part-way through, or has completed.
• projects should only begin after the applicant has received an email confirmation from us that we have received the application to the Marine Fund Scotland for funding for the project. However, please note that any costs incurred between receiving a confirmation from us that we have received the application and (if an application is successful) receiving a formal grant offer letter are incurred at an applicant’s (or their organisation’s) own risk. This is because applying to the Marine Fund Scotland does not guarantee approval of funding even if the project may meet the Fund’s eligibility criteria and outcomes. While costs incurred by an applicant (or their organisation) during this period are potentially eligible for funding if an application is successful, the eligibility of such costs is not guaranteed. The decision on the eligibility of such costs is entirely at our discretion.
• you can employ an agent or consultant to help you complete your application but you must sign the application. You will be responsible for ensuring that all of the terms and conditions of grant are fulfilled. Responsibility for the content of the application and any supporting information and documentation rests with you and cannot be transferred to your agents or consultants. In particular, this means that you will be expected to retain ownership of the project which is being grant funded.
• if your application is successful, you will receive a grant offer letter which will set out the conditions attached to your grant offer, a schedule for claims, and other relevant information. You will not receive the funding at that stage. You must actively submit a claim(s) to us for the grant funds after you have incurred the expenditure.
• grant funds are paid in arrears, on receipt of a completed claim for grant. This means that you/your project will only be able to claim for, and be paid, the grant funding after you have received and paid for the item or service, etc., for which you have applied for the grant.

This means grant payments cannot be made in advance of expenditure. However, you can submit multiple claims throughout your project in phases, as your project progresses. For example, you could submit a claim for the first half of your grant funding a quarter of the way through your project if you have incurred the expenditure for half of your total eligible costs at that stage. We encourage claims to be made in this way if possible (i.e. grant claims for payments of grant in instalments), instead of projects submitting one single claim at the end of the project or the financial year for the full grant amount. This can improve your cashflow but also makes it easier for us to manage the volume of claims throughout the year and also means we have a better idea of how projects are progressing.

Requirements for claims will be issued to you when you receive an award letter. These will confirm what evidence we require, how to provide it and what we need in order to process your claim. You will be expected to follow these requirements. If you cannot provide the evidence or information requested, we may not be able to pay your claim.

• all grant-funded work and all expenditure relating to the grant-funded work must be completed in line with the agreed dates set out in the grant offer letter. If you do not submit your claim(s) within the timeframes within the grant offer letter, then Scottish Ministers will be under no obligation to pay unclaimed grant amounts to a grant recipient, unless this has otherwise been agreed in writing by the Scottish Ministers. If you think you may be in exceptional circumstances that would affect your ability to submit your claims in full within the timescales in your grant offer letter, you must contact us at MFS@gov.scot as soon as you find out, and at least before the date the claim is scheduled to be made in terms of the grant offer letter.
• if you are offered grant funding, then submitting any required progress and end of project reports and complying with any required post-project monitoring requirements will be formal contractual conditions of your grant and will be set out in your grant offer letter. It will be your responsibility as a grant recipient to ensure that the reporting and monitoring requirements for your project are met. More information on this is provided in the ‘Monitoring and reporting’ section of these Guidance notes.
• failure to meet any of the grant conditions in the grant offer letter could lead to Scottish Ministers taking action under the contractual grant Agreement, which could include (but is not limited to) varying the amount of grant offered, making a deduction from the amount of grant offered, withholding any unclaimed grant amount, or requiring immediate repayment of all or part of the grant.
• all projects applying to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27, where relevant, are expected to include information in their application that shows they understand the impact of their project on biodiversity and/or natural capital^[5], and are taking appropriate steps to monitor, and reduce, mitigate or eliminate any negative impacts and enhance any positive impacts relative to their current position. This reflects the requirement to meet the targets under the Convention on Biological Diversity, which include eliminating incentives harmful for biodiversity, in a just and equitable way, ensuring that public and private economic and regulatory incentives are positive for biodiversity.
• if your project is seeking to invest in natural capital, you should show in your application that you are aligned to the Principles for Responsible Investment in Natural Capital – as far as possible, as some of the principles are focused on land use.
• tackling child poverty is a key national mission for the Scottish Government and for Scotland. Applicants to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 are encouraged to consider including information in their application on how their project supports or aligns to the mission in the Scottish Government’s Best Start, Bright Futures: tackling child poverty delivery plan 2022 to 2026 which is: “to create a fairer, more equal country where all children and families are supported to flourish”.
• as will be set out in the grant offer letter if you are offered grant funding, all Intellectual Property (IP) Rights (whether or not registered) in any materials or works in whatever form which are created, produced or generated as part of a grant-funded project by or on behalf of a recipient of Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 grant funding will be assigned to and shall vest in the Crown or its assignees.
• projects that are awarded a grant from the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 may be asked to sign up to pilots or studies as a condition of their grant. These will be detailed after the grant application is received and assessed, but before a grant offer letter containing the contractual conditions of the grant is issued. Depending on pilot and study dates over the course of the year, different pilots or studies may be relevant to applications made at different times of the year or to projects which are carried out at different times of the year. We also welcome any proactive suggestions within applications for participation in pilots or studies.

How do I apply to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27?

Applications to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 should be completed in the dedicated Marine Scotland Funding Portal.

Please register on the Marine Scotland Funding Portal, complete the online application form, and ensure that all relevant documentation is attached before submitting your application.

If the application you submit is incomplete, it will be put on hold and will not be

progressed until you have provided us with all of the information that is required. We will send you an email to let you know we have had to put your application on hold, and what further information we need to process your application. When you have provided the further information and we consider your application complete, we will confirm by email that your application has been take off hold and will be processed.

The ‘Key information’ section of these General Guidance notes sets out that any costs incurred between receiving a confirmation from us that we have received an application and (if an application is successful) receiving a formal grant offer letter are incurred at an applicant’s (or their organisation’s) own risk.

If you have any problems with, or questions about, the Marine Scotland Funding Portal, feel free to contact the team at MFS@gov.scot.

What documentation will I need to complete my application?

This section sets out what documentation you will need to complete and/or provide to submit your application to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 on the Marine Scotland Funding Portal. We may ask you for additional information or documentation that is not listed here, if this is necessary for assessing your application. This may vary depending on your/your organisation’s status, the type of project/work for which you are applying for funding, and the size of grant you are applying for.

Financial documentation

We need to carry out a series of checks on all grant applicants to confirm they are suitable to receive a grant award. This is called due diligence. To enable these checks to be completed, certain documents and/or information must be included in the application.

The following documents must be submitted as part of each application (where applicable):

• last two years of signed (and preferably audited) financial statements, including:
  • profit and loss account o balance sheet o Directors’ report
• details of:
  • internal/external audit function o policies on fraud, bribery and corruption o cash flow forecast

Depending on your/your organisation’s status and the type of project/work for which you are applying for funding, you may also need to provide:

• confirmation you have contacted the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) regarding changes to your vessel, such as engine replacements, structural modifications or additions (vessels only). Responsibility for any work undertaken which renders a vessel unstable or unsafe remains entirely with the owner/skipper of the vessel. See further details in the ‘Additional rules and obligations’ section of these General Guidance notes.
• MCA Fishing Vessel Safety Certificate (vessels and young fishers).
• valid form of identification (ID) such as a current driver’s licence or passport (we accept scanned copies). This is a requirement for sole traders and each partner in a partnership. Unincorporated associations or community groups must provide ID to verify the nominated person submitting the application on behalf of the group or association.
• evidence of engagement with impacted or affected persons, bodies or organisations, including those who may be negatively impacted.
• letter(s) of support from relevant bodies, individuals, or organisations supporting your application and the benefits you say it will deliver. For young fishers, a letter of support may include an employment reference supporting the applicant in their required level of experience to apply for funding.
• quotes for costs to be incurred:
  • for public law bodies, applicants must follow the relevant procurement rules that apply to them and the value of the work for which they are applying for funding.
  • for private applicants:
    • if the eligible quote is up to £1,500 (inclusive) – at least one quote must be provided.
    • if the eligible quote is from £1,500.01 up to £5,000 (inclusive) – at least two quotes must be provided or a comment must be entered into the e-system application explaining why at least two quotes have not been provided.
    • if the eligible quote is from £5,000.01 up to £50,000 – at least three quotes must be provided or a comment must be entered explaining why at least three quotes have not been provided.
    • if the eligible quote is equal to or over £50,000.01 – three quotes or evidence of tender including evidence of the evaluation system used, details of the chosen tender and scoring, is required.
• company/charity and Value Added Tax (VAT) registration numbers.
• organisation headcount and details of anonymised equality diversity monitoring information, including relating to the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010.

How will applications to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 be assessed?

Eligibility checks (stage one)

All applications submitted to the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 will first go through technical, due diligence, and eligibility checks. These include checking that all of the applications are fully completed and all of the required supporting information and/or documentation has been provided.

If an application is complete, meets all of the eligibility criteria, all relevant documentation has been included, and is not in breach of the rules and obligations listed in the ‘Additional rules and obligations’ section of these General Guidance notes, the application will move onto the second stage of the assessment process.

This second stage is the outcomes assessment.

Outcomes assessment (stage two)

In the outcomes assessment, each application will be evaluated for how well it meets the outcomes for the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27 (as listed in the

‘Outcomes for the Marine Fund Scotland 2026-27’ section of these Guidance notes), which support Scotland’s Blue Economy Vision. Each outcome is made up of a series of criteria.

Projects do not have to meet all criteria to be successful. However, all projects must meet all of the criteria under Outcome 5 – “Delivering quality projects” – in order to be considered for an offer of grant .

Projects that meet more criteria are more likely to be offered grant funding.

The outcomes assessment will be carried out by officials from the Scottish

Government’s Marine Directorate. The final decisions on which applications will receive an offer of grant will be based on the outcomes assessment and alignment of applications with Scottish Government policy priorities which include, but are not limited to:

• Future fisheries: management strategy - 2020 to 2030
• Vision for sustainable aquaculture
• Good Food Nation policy
• Marine Litter Strategy
• Scottish wild salmon strategy
• Marine and freshwater: areas of research interest