NHB Minor & Major Project Grants: Where Digitisation Fits Your 2026 Application

Singapore's National Heritage Board (NHB) runs its Heritage Grants Scheme on a biannual cycle — and the second 2026 window closes 15 September. For museums, cultural institutions, and private collectors preparing a Minor or Major Project Grant application, one of the most overlooked line items is also one of the most fundable: converting fragile physical collections into a permanent, standards-compliant digital and archival record. This guide sets out what the two grant tiers actually cover, the funding caps and cycle dates for 2026, and how heritage digitisation and archival scanning typically fit within a project budget — so institutions who miss this window can prepare properly for the next one.

What NHB's Minor and Major Project Grants Are

The Heritage Grants Scheme is NHB's core funding mechanism for community heritage work outside its larger institutional programmes. The Minor Project Grant funds up to 50% of qualifying project costs (or the project's net deficit, whichever is lower), capped at S$50,000. The Major Project Grant operates on the same 50% co-funding basis but is capped at S$150,000 for larger, more ambitious undertakings. Both are open to a broad base of applicants — non-profits, cultural groups, and individuals conducting heritage-related work — applying through the OurSG Grants Portal. Because both grants are co-funding rather than full grants, institutions need to demonstrate the balance of project financing, which is where scoping a digitisation partner's quotation early in the process matters.

The 2026 Application Cycle — and Why the Date Matters Now

NHB runs the scheme on two fixed annual windows: 4 March – 15 April, and 4 August – 15 September. As of this publication, the second 2026 window is closing within days. Institutions that already have a digitisation or collections-management project scoped should confirm their application status with NHB or the OurSG portal immediately. For anyone starting from scratch, the practical move is to use the coming months to get quotations, condition assessments, and a documented scope of work in place well ahead of the March–April 2027 cycle — grant reviewers respond far better to a costed, standards-referenced proposal than a general request for funding.

Where Digitisation and Archival Scanning Typically Fit a Grant Application

Heritage Grants Scheme funding is intended for community heritage projects broadly, and NHB's own Heritage Grants Scheme Guidelines set out the definitive list of qualifying costs for each application — applicants should always confirm current eligible-cost categories directly with NHB before finalising a budget. In practice, institutions preparing collections for public access, conservation, or long-term preservation commonly need to budget for the underlying digitisation or archival-scanning work as part of that project: converting glass-plate negatives, 35mm film strips, fragile bound volumes, or paper archives into a stable digital record, alongside proper archival storage of the originals. Micrographics Data's heritage-sector clients typically scope this work using book2net overhead scanners for bound and fragile material, and Qi Collections Management System (Qi CMS) for organising the resulting digital assets to Spectrum 5.1 standards — both of which slot into a grant-supported project as concrete, quotable line items rather than vague "digital transformation" costs.

Building a Grant-Ready Digitisation Scope

A strong application pairs the funding ask with a clear preservation rationale. For Singapore heritage institutions, that typically means referencing recognised standards — FADGI star ratings or Metamorfoze guidelines for image capture quality, and ISO 11799 for the physical storage environment of anything not being digitised in full. A scoped proposal should state: what is being digitised and why (access, conservation risk, or both), the capture method and resolution, where the digital assets will live (a DAM platform such as Qi, or simple structured file storage), and how originals will be stored afterward. Institutions that have already worked with Micrographics Data on heritage film scanning or Qi CMS deployments have used exactly this structure in NHB submissions. Browse museum-quality archival supplies or review the Qi digital asset management platform when scoping your budget.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between NHB's Minor and Major Project Grants?

Both co-fund up to 50% of qualifying project costs on the same basis; the difference is scale. The Minor Project Grant caps at S$50,000, while the Major Project Grant caps at S$150,000 for larger heritage projects.

When can heritage organisations apply in 2026?

NHB runs two fixed windows each year: 4 March – 15 April, and 4 August – 15 September. The second 2026 cycle closes 15 September; institutions that miss it should prepare for the March–April 2027 window.

Does archival digitisation or scanning qualify as a project cost under the Heritage Grants Scheme?

Qualifying cost categories are set out in NHB's own Heritage Grants Scheme Guidelines, and applicants should confirm current eligibility directly with NHB. In practice, institutions commonly include digitisation and archival-scanning work as a costed component of a broader access, conservation, or collections-management project.

How does Micrographics Data support an NHB grant application?

We provide scoped, itemised quotations for heritage film scanning, book2net overhead digitisation, and Qi CMS deployment that institutions can attach directly to a grant budget, along with guidance on referencing FADGI, Metamorfoze, and ISO 11799 standards in the proposal narrative.

What happens to the original physical items after digitisation?

Digitisation does not replace proper physical conservation. Micrographics Data supplies acid-free, ISO 11799-compliant archival storage materials so originals remain correctly housed after scanning, satisfying both the access and preservation goals a grant reviewer looks for.

Scope Your Next Heritage Grant Application With Us

Whether you're finalising a submission before 15 September or building toward the March–April 2027 cycle, Micrographics Data can turn your collection into a costed, standards-referenced digitisation scope ready to attach to an NHB application.

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