Presentation of the device
What is the local radio expression support fund?
Created in 1982, the Support Fund for Local Radio Expression (FSER) aims to enable local associative radio stations (which represent nearly 700 structures in France) to ensure their outreach social communications mission to the territories, by means of legal aid. The mission of social communication of proximity is understood as fostering exchanges between social and cultural groups, the expression of different socio-cultural currents, support for local development, the protection of the environment or the fight against exclusion.
The different types of grants
Community radio stations are eligible for four types of subsidy under the FSER:
- Three of them are automatic:
- the installation subsidy
- equipment subsidy (initial or supplementary, 1er or 2e remittance)
- the operating subsidy
- The fourth is selective:
- selective subsidy for radio action
What the law says
The Support Fund for Local Radio Expression is responsible for managing the public support for local associative radio stations provided for by the Decree no. 2006-1067 of 25 August 2006 (consolidated version as of October 25, 2014) amended for the application of Article 80 of Law No. 86-1067 of 30 September 1986 on freedom of communication.
Am I concerned by this approach?
The subsidy is granted to radio stations that:
- are permanently authorized by the CSA (Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel)
- are published by an association
- carry out a mission of social communication of proximity
The commercial resources of the radio must be less than 20% of their total turnover.
The operating subsidy and the selective subsidy may be applied for jointly.
Temporary radios and web radios cannot benefit from the FSER.
Proceeding
Amount of subsidy
€16,000 maximum, in view of the funding plan provided by the radio.
Procedures for granting the grant
The application must be made within 6 months of the date of issue set by ARCOM or, failing that, according to the date of issue of the operating authorisation. This is start-up aid, which cannot exceed €16,000 and can only be granted once.
Radio Services Recipients have one year from the date of payment of the aid, in order to report on its use and to send to the FSER the supporting documents of the installation expenses incurred for the actual start-up of the radio activity, in line with the financing plan that enabled the grant of the aid. The supporting documents (invoices, general ledger extract, DADS, etc.) are accompanied by a bank statement extract attesting to the payment.
The absence of relevant supporting documents within the time limit has the effect of forcing the radio station to refund all the sums collected. Failure to repay results in the suspension of any ISP subsidy.
Calendar
- Filing of files: all year
- File review: files are reviewed year-round
Decisions are made by the Minister of Culture. The decision to grant or reject the application shall be notified to the president of the association.
Payments are made within 6 to 8 weeks of notification. Attention: the files examined in December will only be the subject of a notification and a payment from January of the following year.
Eligibility criteria
The application for the initial equipment grant may be made at any time, after the five-year period following the granting of an installation grant or a previous equipment grant.
Attention You are not eligible if you received an installation grant or an equipment grant less than 5 years ago.
Amount of subsidy
A maximum of €18,000 per 5-year period, corresponding to 50% of the TTC invested in the radio equipment project.
Procedures for granting the grant
Provided for in Article 4 of Decree No. 2006-1067 of 25 August 2006 as amended, the equipment subsidy may be the subject of a supplementary application, which must take place within a period of at least two years after the filing of the initial application. The supplementary request relates to a minimum investment of €4,000.
This grant is being paid in two instalments:
- the 1st corresponds to 60% of the forecast aid calculated on the basis of the estimates submitted
- the second payment, or 40 %, is made within one year of notification, on presentation of the invoices attesting to the completion of the investment
The supporting documents are accompanied by a bank statement statement attesting to the payment.
- If the investment is less than the project, the amount of the aid is revised and the second payment is adjusted accordingly.
- If the investment is less than the first instalment, if the applicant voluntarily abandons the project, or if the use of the grant has not been justified within one year of the first instalment, the applicant must repay the sums received. Failure to repay results in the suspension of any ISP subsidy.
Attention: the request for assistance must take place before the project is carried out. It is imperative to wait for notification of the aid before starting the investments. Any purchase made before notification will not be taken into account for the calculation of the amount of aid, which will lead, if necessary, to a decrease in the aid granted. If all investments have been made before the notification date, repayment of the aid already paid will be requested.
Calendar
- Filing of files: all year
- File review: files are reviewed year-round
Decisions are made by the Minister of Culture. The decision to grant or reject the application shall be notified to the president of the association.
Payments are made within 6 to 8 weeks of notification. Attention: the files examined in December will only be the subject of a notification and a payment from January of the following year.
Eligibility criteria
Since the 2014 reform, the operating subsidy has been reserved for radio stations that meet the following two conditions:
- offer local interest programming specific to the geographic area of broadcast with a daily duration of at least 4 hours between 6:00 a.m. and midnight, excluding music programs without animation or provided by a third party
- justify that this programming is carried out by antenna personnel and in premises located in this broadcast area
Amount of subsidy
From 4,000 to 40,000 € by radio.
Procedures for granting the grant
The amount of such aid shall be determined by applying a scale which takes into account the normal and current operating income of the service corresponding to the radio activity. Different product tranches correspond to different subsidy levels (its maximum amount is €40,000).
The request must be made no later than April 15 of the year following the year-end of the fiscal year. This deadline is mandatory.
Calendar
- Deadline for submission: 15 April 2023, 23:59 (Paris time). No file may be filed or considered after this date.
- File Review: May 2023 to February 2024
Decisions are made by the Minister of Culture. The decision to grant or reject the application shall be notified to the president of the association.
Payments are made within 6 to 8 weeks of notification. Attention: the files examined in December will only be the subject of a notification and a payment from January of the following year.
Eligibility criteria
The selective subsidy is awarded on a proposal from the FSER commission. It is designed as an incentive tool for the development of the social communication mission of community radio. To this end, the files of the requesting services are assessed on the basis of three main and four complementary criteria.
The grant is subject to cultural and educational measures for integration, the fight against discrimination, the environment and local development.
Amount of subsidy
Procedures for granting the grant
The amount of this subsidy is determined by applying a scale.
The deadline for the submission of applications for operating and selective subsidies is 15 April. This deadline is imperative.
Calendar
- Deadline for submission of applications: 15 April 2023, 23:59 (Paris time). No file may be filed or considered after this date.
- File Review: May 2023 to February 2023
Decisions are made by the Minister of Culture. The decision to grant or reject the application shall be notified to the president of the association.
Payments are made within 6 to 8 weeks of notification. Attention: the files examined in December will only be the subject of a notification and a payment from January of the following year.
How to file a file?
- To access the online form, click on the "Access form" button at the bottom of this page.
- Log in or create an account, then let yourself be guided.
Examples of projects previously supported
Every year, around 700 community radio stations benefit from FSER aid (720 in 2021), which represents an average of 40% of their resources. Local community radio stations, whose contribution to the pluralism of the radio landscape is essential, guarantee a wide and diversified radio offering throughout France. Throughout France, both in France and overseas, and in particular in the city’s political districts and in rural areas, these local media contribute, thanks to their dense territorial network and strong roots, the vitality of the territories and the strengthening of social ties.
They contribute to information, social ties, entertainment and the dissemination of culture within the territories. Moreover, they are involved in the economic, cultural and associative life of the regions to promote many initiatives. Finally, using journalists, animators and technicians, they contribute to the dynamism of the economic fabric.
A question?
For questions about the Support Fund for Local Radio Expression, please contact:
Media and Cultural Industries Branch (CMIB)
Private Media Office
Local Radio Expression Support Fund (DSCF)
fser@culture.gouv.fr
01 40 15 73 57
If there is a technical issue with the online filing platform, please contact contact-sisub@culture.gouv.fr.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. After each validated step (by clicking on "Save"), it is possible to exit the form. It is then recorded as a draft.
You will be able to find your draft from the portal home page in the “My Requests” tab.
NB. If a technical error occurs before you have saved the first step, the completed information will not be kept.
Yes.While filling out a form, you can go back to a previous step by clicking on “previous” at the bottom left of the screen or by clicking on one of the steps in the navigation menu above the form. Saved steps appear underlined.
Once your form is validated, you will receive a notification on your space (small bell to the right of the “help” field) as well as an acknowledgement of registration by email.
Yes. You can apply for each type of grant requested (for a joint application for operation and selective radio action subsidy, make sure to select “joint” in the nature of the application).
No. You must build your file only with the documents that are requested of you.
To access your account or start a form, your username is the email address you entered when creating the account. Then click on “forgot password” to reset the password.
NB. Remember to replace the current password with the one received.
No, in the case of an online application, you should not send your printed file.
Yes. You can download the file below.
The documents to be attached are downloadable in the form directly.
These documents must be completed online and integrated into the corresponding fields of the online form.
The new online portal allows you to deposit multiple documents in the same download space.
On each download space, click “Browse” to retrieve the document from your computer. If you have uploaded your documents to your account in advance, simply click on the “Choose a file from the briefcase” drop-down menu.
In PDF or Word format.
If you are using Pages (Mac):
1. Open the document and choose File > Export to > [file format] (the “File” menu is at the top of the screen).
2. To set the export settings:
• PDF: You can open and sometimes edit these files with applications like Preview or Adobe Acrobat. Click on the “Image Quality” pop-up menu and choose an option (the better the quality, the larger the exported copy).
• Word: If you need the file to be compatible with an older version of Microsoft Word (1997 – 2004), click on “Advanced Options” and select “. doc» in the local menu.
To reduce the size of a PDF file, you can:
• before converting it to PDF or when scanning by selecting low resolution settings (150 dpi for example) and compression options when saving.
• with an online service such as smallpdf.com
If you have a question, please write to contact-sisub@culture.gouv.fr specifying the nature of your problem.
No, only radio stations holding a non temporary frequency authorization issued by the Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique may benefit from the FSER’s aid.
No, the Freedom of Communication Act of 30 September 1986 reserved FSER support for radio broadcasts over the air, holders of temporary spectrum licences issued by the Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique.
The April 15 deadline is not for the installation grant. It may be requested during the six months following the start date of the broadcast set by the Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique at the time of the radio service’s first authorization.
Thereafter, in order to be eligible for annual operating aid, the application must be made before 15 April and must be accompanied by the accounts (balance sheet, profit and loss account) relating to the previous financial year.
The processing times differ according to the type of request:
• if it is an application for an operating subsidy and/or a selective radio action subsidy: the files are reviewed from May to February. Decisions are made by the minister responsible for communication. The decision to grant or reject the application shall be notified to the president of the association. Payments are made within 6 to 8 weeks of notification. Please note that the files examined in December will not be subject to notification and payment until January of the following year.
• in the case of an application for an installation or equipment grant, the average processing time is two months. Please note that the files examined in December will not be subject to notification and payment until January of the following year.
The FSER will not be able to grant you any assistance until you have regularized your situation.
The deadlines for sending applications are mandatory; applications for aid must be submitted no later than the date stipulated by the decree and recalled in the file, the postmark is authentic in accordance with the provisions of Article 16 of Law No. 2000-321 of 12 April 2000 on the rights of citizens in their relations with the administrations.
• For operating and selective radio action grants, the deadline is April 15.
• For equipment and installation grants, there is no set deadline.
• The deadline for equipment grant applications is based on the last equipment grant or the installation grant granted.
• In the case of installation subsidies, the application must be filed within 6 months of the start date of the broadcast set by the Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique in the service’s first authorisation, or failing that, following the date of issue of the operating authorisation.
Decisions of the Minister responsible for communication may be appealed to the Tribunal Administratif de Paris (7, rue de Jouy - 75004 PARIS) within two months of notification. They may also be the subject of a free appeal, within the same period, to the Minister responsible for disclosure. This procedure prolongs the time limit for legal action, which must then be introduced within two months of the administration’s reply. Failure to reply at the end of the two months shall be deemed to be an implied rejection.
The time limit for a graceful appeal shall be increased by one month for associations whose registered office is in the French overseas communities, from the date of notification of the decision.
No, any application for operating subsidy or selective aid sent after 15 April will be rejected as late. Similarly, any application for operating subsidy or selective aid sent within the time limits, but which does not include on 15 April the product summary sheet, the balance sheet and the income statement will be rejected on the ground that it is incomplete. That is why it is up to you to take the necessary steps to collect as many accounting documents as possible and send them before 15 April.
The deadline of 15 April only concerns operating subsidies and selective subsidies to radio action. There is no deadline for equipment grants that can be applied for year-round.
Where an equipment subsidy is granted, it shall be estimated on the basis of the estimates provided in support of the application. It may be recalculated downwards if the planned investments have not been made. A first payment of 60 % of the aid is made.
The second instalment, corresponding to the balance of the aid (40 %), should only be requested when the equipment project is completed, up to a maximum of one year after notification.
The second payment is calculated on the basis of the investments actually made (evidenced by invoices paid).
The application must be made before the project is carried out. It is imperative to wait for notification of the aid before starting the investments. Any purchases made before notification will not be taken into account in the calculation of the amount of aid, which will lead, where appropriate, to a decrease in the aid granted. If all investments have been made before the notification date, repayment of the aid already paid will be requested.
If you abandon your entire project, you must give up your assistance by mail addressed to the FSER. You will then receive a collection voucher issued by the Ministry of Culture and it will be up to you to transfer the amount due within three months. Your right to receive this subsidy is reopened as of the repayment of the amount.
If you have completed only part of the project, you can send the corresponding paid invoices, the amount of your aid will then be recalculated downwards (50% of the sums actually invested) and this aid will be taken into account for the assessment of the five-year period. When you request a second payment, you agree not to complete your purchases later.
If you do not give up the aid or if you do not ask for the second instalment by providing the invoices paid, the total reimbursement of the aid paid may be requested.
If your radio service broadcasts its program in frequency modulation (FM) and digital mode (DAB+) on 31 December 2022, you can benefit from the mark-up applied to your operating subsidy. To benefit from it, you must provide the authorizations to broadcast in FM and DAB+ in force (copy of publication in the Official Journal and a copy of the agreement concluded with Arcom signed with the appendices.
Partager la page