Nonprofit Grant Readiness Checklist
Evaluate whether your organization can pursue and administer a grant before investing time in an application.
1. Eligibility and fit
Confirm geographic, tax-status, history, program, and applicant eligibility from the funder guidance.
2. Financial and governance readiness
Gather approved budget, financial statements, board approvals, internal controls, and responsible signatories.
3. Program evidence
Define the community need, intended participants, delivery capacity, outcomes, and evidence behind the proposed approach.
4. Budget and compliance
Check match requirements, allowable expenses, reporting burden, documentation, cash flow, and restrictions.
5. Go or no-go decision
Record the effort estimate, opportunity cost, missing documents, accountable owner, and application deadline.
Illustrative completed example
Example: A small nonprofit declines a short-deadline award when a required audit is unavailable, but creates a 60-day financial-readiness plan for the next cycle.
Adapt this framework to your organization’s size, governance requirements, and local context. Review consequential decisions with your team.
Related practical resources
Explore another framework, adapt the example, and use AskTQ to turn your next decision into usable work.