Applicant FAQs

Registration and log in

How do I reset my password?

From the funder’s application portal (site ending in .smartygrants.com.au), select Log In.

On the login screen, select Forgotten your password?.

Enter in the email address (username) you registered with, then select the Reset Password button.

An automatic email will be sent to that email address if the email address belongs to an existing SmartyGrants account.

In that email, you will receive steps on how to reset your password. Follow the instructions and select the link provided. This will take you to a page where you can create your new password.

Enter in your new password twice, then select the Submit button.

When deciding on your password, ensure that it meets the password complexity requirements mentioned on the screen:

• include at least 8 characters,

• include uppercase letters,

• include lowercase letters,

• include non-alphabetical characters (numbers or symbols).

You can now login in using your email address and new password.

I tried to follow the reset password steps, and....

… I did not get the reset password email.

You may not receive a password reset email in your inbox for any of the reasons below:

• Reason #1: The email was flagged as junk/spam.

  • If you don’t see the email in your email inbox, please check your junk and spam mail – occasionally these emails are (incorrectly) flagged as junk. Alternatively, your organisation’s firewall or spam filter is blocking the email. If this is the case, ask your IT department to whitelist the email domain @smartygrants.com.au.

• Reason #2: The email address is not registered.

  • Make sure you entered in a registered email address. It is quite common to misremember the email that was used to initially register - especially if you have changed or updated your email address in the past.

  • If you have already applied for a grant, the funder will be able to check which email you used; alternatively, you can contact the SmartyGrants Support Team for assistance.

• Reason #3: The email address was not entered in correctly.

  • It is possible that your email was entered incorrectly during the password reset steps. Try following the steps again, ensuring the correct email address is entered.

  • You may have also registered your account with a typo in your email address.

    • If this is the case, we recommend registering a new account with the correct email address.

… I reset my password successfully, but I was asked to update my details.

If you are being asked to update your details, it is because you have selected the Update Details link. In this page you can update your name, organisation, and password. If you do not wish to update your details, simply select the My Submissions link to exit this page.

How do I change my account details?

Once logged into the application portal (site ending in .smartygrants.com.au), you can update your account details by:

1. Go to the My Submissions page,

2. Select Update Details.

If you’re looking to change the email address associated with your account, please email the SmartyGrants Support Team.

• In order for your email address to be updated, we need to receive this request directly from the originally registered email address (username).

• If you’re unable to access the originally registered email account, please contact the funder directly. The funder is able to edit the owner (email address) for an application at their discretion.

Why can’t I see my application after I’ve logged in?

To find applications that you’ve lodged to a specific funder, you will need to make sure you’ve lodged into that funder’s application portal directly (site ending in .smartygrants.com.au). Your submissions can be found under the My Submissions page (also linked at the top of the screen). 

If your submission is not in your My Submissions page, it could be because:

• Reason #1: The application was archived.

  • To check if your application was archived, under the My Submissions header, select the Archived tab. If your application is there, and you’d like to restore that application to the Current tab, select the three-lines (hamburger) icon on the right hand side of the application, and then select Unarchive.

• Reason #2: The application belongs to a different user.

  • To see if the application belongs to a different email address, you could search across your inbox(s) for any emails you’ve received from service@smartygrants.com.au regarding that specific application ID. If you can’t locate any emails mentioning that application ID, you can contact the funder directly and ask them to check which email address owns the application.

• Reason #3: The application was lodged with a different funder.

  • You may be logged into a different funder’s application portal. Make sure to log in to the same application portal that your application was submitted through.

If you still have any issues seeing your application, you can contact the SmartyGrants support team and quote your application ID.

Fill out help

Why is the date I am trying to enter in not being accepted?

If you’re not able to select or enter in a date, it could be because:

Reason #1: Incorrect date format.

• The date must be in the format of dd/mm/yyyy. You can use the date picker to choose a date, or manually type it in. If you have manually typed in the date, make sure the format is dd/mm/yyyy.

Reason #2: Restrictions on the date allowed.

• The funder may have also put in restrictions on the earliest and/or latest date able to be selected based on their eligibility guidelines, project requirements, or similar.

How do I download or preview a copy of the form required to apply?

To view or download a preview of the form:

1. Go to the funder’s application portal (site ending in .smartygrants.com.au).

2. Under Current Rounds or Upcoming Rounds, select the name of the round.

   1. For Current Rounds, you will see Preview the form and Download preview form from the options at the top of the page.

   2. For Upcoming Rounds, you may or may not see the options to preview or download; some upcoming rounds will not allow you to see the form until the round opens.

Who should I contact for help with questions on my application?

Typically, most funders will provide guidance or instructions on how to apply, typically in the form of guidelines or eligibility criteria. This guidance can cover questions like:

• How to identify requirements,

• Accepted formats and file types,

• Approved locations/dates/timelines,

• What supporting documentation to provide,

• What to do for exceptional circumstances.

If you need further help, the contact details for a particular funder are generally found in the places below:

• The Grant Round page (where you selected either Start a submission or Fill Out Now from),

• The first page of the application form,

• The footer (bottom of the page) of the application portal (ending in .smartygrants.com.au),

• The funder’s own website.

If the funder hasn’t provided contact details in any of the aforementioned places, you can also try searching online for that organisation’s general contact information and start from there.

If you still cannot find the contact information for the funder, and you have started an application, you can email our SmartyGrants support team (quoting your application ID) and we can do our best to assist you in your search.

Submitting applications

Why can’t I submit my application?

Step by step technical guidance on how to submit an application can be found on our Help Guide for Applicants page.

There could be several reasons why you’re unable to submit an application. The most common reasons why the Submit button can’t be selected (greyed-out) include:

• Reason #1: Missing a response in a mandatory field.

• Reason #2: Invalid response to a question.

• Reason #3: Non-numerical characters in a Number/Currency field.

• Reason #4: Surpassed the word/character limit within a field.

• Reason #5: Invalid address format provided in an address question.

All of these errors will be highlighted in red on the Review and Submit page.

To navigate to this page, from the Form Navigation box, select Review and Submit. Simply scroll down this page to see which question(s) or field(s) are affected by which error(s). Once you’ve identified the affected responses, you can navigate back through the form to amend your responses accordingly.

Note: In order to submit an application, the Submit button must be selected from the Review and Submit page. Navigating to this page alone is not enough to submit your application. An application is successfully submitted after you successfully select the Submit button, upon which your application status will change from In Progress to Submitted. This Submitted status can be viewed from your My Submissions page.

Can I delete an application?

You have the ability to delete In Progress submissions only.

To delete an In Progress submission, you’ll first need to log into the funder's application portal (website ending in .smartygrants.com.au). Once logged in, select My Submissions, select the three-lines (hamburger) icon next to the relevant application, and then select the Delete option.

Applications with a Submitted status cannot be deleted. If you’d like to withdraw your application for any reason, we recommend contacting the funder directly.

I couldn’t submit my application for X reason, and now the round is closed. Can I still submit?

Unfortunately, SmartyGrants technical support cannot help you submit an application after a round has been closed.

The funder is the only party able to grant you an extension for an application. You’ll need to contact them directly for help.

I can't complete the online form for X reason. How can I provide my application?

If you already have an open application form that you’ve started, we recommend following our Help Guide for Applicants page, or troubleshooting any errors in our guidance here.

SmartyGrants technical support cannot help you submit an alternative application outside of the applicant portal. In this situation, you’ll need to contact the funder directly for help.

When I tried to submit my application form, SmartyGrants said the round is now closed, but there is still time until the deadline has expired.

Funders are able to set up a funding target when creating rounds. When that funding target has been reached, the round is then automatically closed, regardless of the initial deadline set.

The scenario above is most likely what you have experienced. In this case, we recommend contacting the funder to confirm.

Can I get an extension on my application due date?

Unfortunately, SmartyGrants technical support cannot grant you an extension on an application.

The funder is the only party able to do this for you. You’ll need to contact them directly for help.

Sharing applications

Can I change the owner or the application over to another person?

If you are a part of an organisation:

To update the owner of an application, you will need a SmartyFile organisation profile. If you do not already have an organisation profile, you can create one and add team members by heading to app.smartyfile.com.au. Once you have added team members to your organisation profile (or your organisation’s administrator has), you may have access to change the owner of a submission.

Navigate to My Submissions and click on the hamburger icon on the relevant submission, you will see a Change owner option. This will then give you a list of team members of your organisation whom you can assign the submission to.

For further information and help on SmartyFile, visit SmartyFile help.

If you are an individual applicant:

You’ll need to contact the funder directly to request a change.

Can I share my application with someone else?

If you want access to share submissions, you will need a SmartyFile organisation profile.

If you do not already have an organisation profile, you can create one and add team members by heading to http://app.smartyfile.com.au. Once you have added team members to your organisation profile (or your organisation’s administrator has), you may have access to share the submission with team members who have been given the appropriate permission within your SmartyFile organisation.

Navigate to My Submissions and click on the hamburger icon on the relevant submission, you will see a Share option. This will then give you a list of team members of your organisation that you can share the submission with.

For further information and help on SmartyFile, visit SmartyFile help.

Technical specifications

How often should I save my application form? Is there a timeout limit?

When you log into SmartyGrants, you are on a timed session. This timer is 20 minutes.

While filling out a form, you can reset the timer with any of the following actions:

1. Selecting the Save Progress button (save and continue working on the form),

2. Selecting the Save and Close button (save and then close the form),

3. Selecting on either the Previous Page or Next Page button (navigate through the form, automatically saves your progress).

What happens if the session timer reaches 0?

If the timer reaches 0, you will be shown a login prompt. If you successfully re-enter in your login details, you will be returned to the page you were viewing.

To avoid losing your work we recommend that you save regularly - at least once every 10-15 minutes.

What file types can I upload into my application or acquittal forms?

Below is a full listed of supported file types that can be uploaded into a form in SmartyGrants.

Please note: A funder can additionally restrict which file types they accept. If there are file restrictions imposed by the funder, these should be made clear within the form.

How does browser spellcheck work? 

All browsers will display spelling mistakes of the last word you typed in upon pushing the space bar or hitting enter.

However, different browsers behave differently when you paste words into a text box.

• Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox – If spell-check is enabled, checks the spelling of all words you have pasted in immediately.

• Safari – Does not check the spelling of what is pasted; however pushing Command+; will cause it to recheck the spelling of the contents of the text box.

For more information, you can reference each browser’s relevant help articles.

• Chrome – https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/12027911?sjid=3637775672735693753-NC (Note that Chrome settings are different in a Mac versus Windows and Linux).

• Firefox – https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-do-i-use-firefox-spell-checker#fir

• Edge – https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/learning-center/improve-writing-and-grammar?form=MA13I2

What browsers are supported?

For a full list of supported browsers, please see Supported browsers & handling timeouts.

Can I setup multi-factor authentication (MFA)?

If you are part of a SmartyFile organisation, an organisation administrator has the ability to enable MFA for all users who are part of that organisation. See SmartyFile help for more information.

How do I download a PDF copy of my application?  

Once you submit an application form, you will receive a confirmation of submission email. This email will contain a PDF copy of your submission.

You download a PDF copy of the form before submission. While logged into SmartyGrants:

1. Open your application form from the My Submissions page.

2. From the Form Navigation box, select Review and Submit.

3. From the top of the form, select the Download PDF button.

4. Depending on your browser’s download preferences, this will either save the PDF file to your designated downloads folder, or it will open the PDF file directly.

To download a copy after submission, see our guidance here.