The Lottery Grants Board (LGB) is one of New Zealand's most significant community funders — distributing profits from Lotto, Powerball, and other lottery products to community organisations. The LGB distributes around $400 million per year across multiple funding streams. This guide covers how the LGB works and how to access its funding.
The Lottery Grants Board:
- Receives lottery profits from the New Zealand Lotteries Commission
- Distributes grants to community, sport, arts, and environment organisations
- Uses regional committees to make most grant decisions
- Is administered by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA)
Lottery Community Wellbeing is the main general fund:
- Community development, social services, and wellbeing projects
- Health, disability, elderly care, and community infrastructure
- Cultural and heritage projects
- Eligible: Incorporated societies, charitable trusts, and registered charities
The community wellbeing fund is the largest and most broadly accessible stream.
Lottery Sport funds community sport organisations:
- Eligible: Incorporated sport clubs affiliated to recognised national sport bodies
- Equipment grants
- Facility development
- Development programmes
Sport clubs with formal affiliations to national bodies are typically eligible.
Lottery Arts funds arts and cultural projects:
- Creative NZ has an MOU with LGB for arts funding distribution
- Some direct LGB arts grants as well
- Cultural and heritage organisations
Lottery Environment and Heritage funds:
- Environmental projects (in partnership with Department of Conservation)
- Heritage preservation and cultural heritage
For larger projects with significant national impact:
- Infrastructure projects
- Major events with national significance
- Typically $250,000+
Most Lottery grants (under $100,000) are decided by regional committees:
- 12 regional committees across New Zealand
- Committees have local knowledge and community connections
- Applications to your regional committee (determined by your region)
- Regional grant rounds open periodically
Regional committees are your primary point of contact.
To be eligible for Lottery grants:
- Organisation type: Incorporated society or charitable trust (typically)
- Registered charity: Most streams require Charities Register registration
- Non-profit purpose: Must not distribute profits to members
- Community benefit: Must demonstrate community benefit
For-profit entities, government agencies, and political organisations are generally ineligible.
Applications are through the LGB online portal (current system managed by DIA):
1. Create an account: Register your organisation
2. Check round dates: Regional rounds open periodically — check timing
3. Complete application: Online form with project details, budget, and outcomes
4. Provide documents: Financial statements, constitution, other supporting documents
5. Submit and await decision
Processing time: typically 3–6 months for regional decisions.
Typical Lottery grant amounts by stream:
- Lottery Community Wellbeing: $10,000–$100,000 for regional; larger for national
- Lottery Sport: $5,000–$50,000
- Lottery Arts: Varies by stream and project
- Lottery Significant Projects: $250,000+
Key elements of successful Lottery applications:
- Clear community need: Why does this project matter? Who benefits and how many?
- Well-defined project: Specific activities, timeline, and deliverables
- Realistic budget: Detailed, justified budget with quotes where possible
- Organisational capability: Evidence you can deliver the project
- Evaluation plan: How you'll measure whether the project worked
- Community support: Letters of support, evidence of consultation
Lottery committees see many applications — clarity and specificity are essential.
Applications are often declined because:
- Ineligible organisation type or project purpose
- Insufficient evidence of community need
- Budget not justified or project costs too high for community benefit
- Organisation financial instability
- Project already complete or nearly complete
- Insufficient connection to Lottery's community benefit goals
Regional committees value:
- Local knowledge: Understanding of the local community need
- Track record: Previous project delivery and reporting
- Relationships: Familiarity with the committee and regional funding landscape
- Attendance at pre-application meetings: Some committees hold information sessions
After receiving a Lottery grant:
- Acquittal report required — usually 12 months after grant payment
- Financial accounting of how funds were spent
- Project outcomes and impact
- Failure to report affects future applications
Tahua's grants management platform helps community organisations manage Lottery grant applications, track project budgets, and produce the acquittal reports that the Lottery Grants Board requires.