Regional Events Promotion Fund

The fund is contestable and is available to Regional Tourism Organisations and councils representing regions that do not have an RTO. For the purposes of this fund the following RTOs are not eligible:

• Tātaki Auckland Unlimited
• Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
• WellingtonNZ
• ChristchurchNZ
• Destination Queenstown.

Applicants to the REPF must be an RTO (excluding those listed above) or local Council not represented by an RTO. 

Event organisers are not eligible to apply directly to the fund and should engage with their local RTO or council. The decision to apply for REPF funding will be made by the RTO or Council.

About the fund

The REPF is available to events which will deliver a high return on investment and increase the likelihood of encouraging visitors to explore New Zealand beyond the key tourism locations. The intention of the funding is to complement and enhance the planned promotion of the event.

Events should, where possible, align with the Destination Management plan for the region.

Applicants can apply for 1 or more events but the total co-funding for event promotion costs across all approved events for that RTO/Council, is a maximum of $237,500 per round.

Funding can be used for RTOs to promote an event or for the RTO to provide to an event organiser (via a third party contract) for promotional costs relating to an event.

There will be 2 funding rounds:

• Round 1 – for events taking place between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025
• Round 2 – for events taking place between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026

Note: Events taking place between 25 December and 7 January are excluded in both years.

Applications for Round 1 open on Monday 8 April 2024 and close on Friday 17 May 2024.

Who can apply

The REPF is open to Regional Tourism Organisations (RTOs) and councils representing regions in New Zealand that do not have an RTO.

The following RTOs in the gateway regions are not eligible:

• Tātaki Auckland Unlimited
• Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
• WellingtonNZ
• ChristchurchNZ
• Destination Queenstown 

Fund criteria

The criteria are:

• Funding is for event promotion costs only
• Events can be either new or established, recurring events (the event must be able to measure return on investment where possible)
• Events must be ticketed/paid or registration events
• Events must not occur in the period 25 December to 7 January.

Co-funding requirements

• Applicants must co-fund at least 50% of promotion costs with some flexibility for financially constrained RTOs/councils
• Up to 50% co-funding from the REPF may be available up to a maximum of $237,500 per round
• In-kind contributions are not permitted
• REPF funding should not be used to substitute existing promotional budget but to enhance the amount available for promotional purposes.

Events the fund will not support

The REPF will not provide funding for:

• Events which occur in gateway regions administered by the following RTOs:
  • Tātaki Auckland Unlimited
  • Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
  • WellingtonNZ
  • ChristchurchNZ
  • Destination Queenstown Events
• Events which are also receiving (within this Round One funding period) other central government funding including:
  • Major Events Fund or Creative and Cultural Events Incubator
  • Ministry for Culture & Heritage
  • Regional Events Fund
• Free events that do not drive out-of-region visitation e.g. annual Santa Parades, community farmers markets
• Events that take place in the New Year summer period (25 December to 7 January).