What is Ex-Ante Payment?

Ex-ante is a Latin term meaning "beforehand" or "prior to the event." In the context of grants, it represents a funding mechanism where the beneficiary receives funds prior to submitting any project output or activity reports. The funding provider does not focus on what processes have already been executed; the advance payment is transferred to the bank account before expenses are documented with supporting proofs.

An ex-ante payment is generally disbursed right after signing the legal document granting the aid (under the grant agreement). Consequently, the recipient is not required to secure their own pre-financing for the project and can immediately start covering eligible expenses using the received advance.

Who is eligible for ex-ante funding?

The availability of ex-ante funding primarily depends on the legal form of the applicant. Entities typically placed in the ex-ante regime include:

• Non-governmental non-profit organizations (NGOs) – associations, foundations, institutes,
• Schools and educational institutions – primary, secondary, and tertiary schools,
• Semi-budgetary organizations established by regions or municipalities,
• Municipalities and city districts (smaller public entities lacking adequate financial reserves),
• Churches and religious organizations.

These are organizations that would find pre-financing a project independently extremely difficult or impossible.

Who cannot receive ex-ante funding?

The ex-post (reimbursement) regime standardly applies to:

• Entrepreneurs and commercial companies (LLCs, joint-stock companies, sole traders),
• Organizational units of the state,
• Entities with sufficient financial stability and internal funds available for pre-financing.

Rules vary across individual programs. Every grant call clearly defines and fixes the applicable funding method.

How must expenses be reported?

Settling an ex-ante advance payment follows strict rules:

• The recipient retroactively proves how funds were used as part of each subsequent payment request.
• Settlements are submitted in the form of financial settlement documentation (receipts, bank statements, invoices).
• The project's financial plan must specify the required advance amount, expected settlement amount, and planned date.

If the recipient fails to clear the advance properly and on time, they risk financial corrections or being required to return the funds. No new advance will be issued without a properly settled previous one. Audits of expenditure economy and purposefulness take place continuously throughout the implementation, rather than only upon project completion.