(a)  For individuals, the applicant should be a Hong Kong permanent resident with Hong Kong 3-star ID cards;  (b) For design companies or design-applying enterprises, it must be incorporated in Hong Kong and hold a valid Business Registration Certificate. No age-limit is imposed and it is not only limited to design practitioners only.

Applications are open from 25 February 2025 to 11 March 2026. The specified awards in scheme A and B are eligible for application throughout the claim period, from 1 July 2023 to 11 March 2026. Award fees will be reimbursed from 25 February 2025 to 11 March 2026, and the reimbursement claim for award fees for specified awards will be allowed once after award announcement is released within the eligible period. There will be no retrospective approval for reimbursement claim in respect of awards obtained before the project entries period (i.e. 1 July 2023). Applications will be processed on a "first-come-first-served” basis, in the order they are received, based on the submission date of the application form. If the required information for the application is missing, eg. flight ticket details, a 1-month period will be allowed for participants to supplement the missing information. Reimbursement will continue until the fund has run out. The eligible reimbursement items, specific awards, maximum reimbursement amounts, and the number of applications and claims allowed differ between Scheme A and Scheme B. Applicants are advised to review the specific guidance and details provided under each scheme for accurate reference.

Amendment to any information after submission of the application form should be submitted to the Hong Kong Designers Association in writing. The applicant will be notified in writing or by email if additional information is required to process the applications. Applicants who do not hear from the Hong Kong Designers Association three months after the closing date for application may consider their applications unsuccessful.

Reimbursement will be processed within 3 months after the application is considered successful.  Since  the  project  is  government-funded  under  CreateSmart  Initiative  (“CSI”)  governance,  an applicant understands that this project is operating under   the   supervision of   HKSAR Government, and agrees the reimbursement schedule will be followed by the actual payment schedule of CSI funding issued by the HKSAR Government. A successful applicant will receive 70% of the reimbursement in the preliminary round of examination. The last phase of payment will be settled within 6 - 9 months once the project funds from CSI are received.

All past applicants of the Sponsorship for International Design Award (SIDA) Scheme are eligible to apply for sponsorship under the 4th SIDA program again. However, applicants who have received sponsorship in both the 2nd SIDA (2020) and 3rd SIDA (2021/22) editions will have their sponsorship/funding level reduced from 100% to 50% of the claim amount under this 4th SIDA edition if they submit the same product/design work for sponsorship for a third time.

Information, details and materials submitted will not be returned.

Applicants who receive support from the scheme are required to showcase their works at the SIDA exhibition as part of the program's obligations.

Reimbursement will be processed within 3 months after the application is considered successful.  Since  the  project  is  government-funded  under  CreateSmart  Initiative  (“CSI”)  governance,  an applicant understands that this project is operating under   the   supervision of   HKSAR Government, and agrees the reimbursement schedule will be followed by the actual payment schedule of CSI funding issued by the HKSAR Government. A successful applicant will receive 70% of the reimbursement in the preliminary round of examination. The last phase of payment will be settled within 6 - 9 months once the project funds from CSI are received.

 The Hong Kong Designers Association reserves the right to withdraw the application if an applicant is found to have provided any false or misleading information or withheld any material information.

All data collected from the applications for the purpose of the 4th edition of Sponsorship for International Design Award Scheme will be used by the Hong Kong Designers Association for processing applications, project promotion and other related purposes. Provision of personal data by the applicant is voluntary.

The applicant has the right to request access to and/or correction of personal data provided, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486).

By submitting an application for the scheme, applicants automatically agree to receive updates, news, and promotional materials from the Sponsorship for International Design Award Scheme (SIDA) and the Hong Kong Designers Association (HKDA).

The Hong Kong Designers Association (HKDA), as the organizer of the Sponsorship for International Design Award Scheme, reserves the final right and authority to interpret, amend, and make all decisions regarding the project, including but not limited to application eligibility, sponsorship allocation, and related matters. All decisions made by HKDA shall be final and binding on all applicants.

In case of any discrepancy or inconsistency between the English and Chinese version of the guidance notes and the English version shall prevail.