What is the awards application fee?
The current fee is posted on the Awards web page of our website. There are no additional fees, no hidden fees, no credit card fees, no processing fees, no winner fees, and no licensing fees. Everything is included!
How is a payment made?
Payment is made online securely at the time you submit your application. All major credit and debit cards are accepted. We can also accept payments by bank transfer. If you pay by bank transfer and one of the correspondent banks charges a fee, you are required to also pay that bank's fee so please plan ahead to avoid having to send a second wire transfer. We do not charge any additional fees to receive money.
Regardless of your payment method, you will most likely be billed in Euros, so you should be prepared that your bank might charge you a processing fee or foreign exchange conversion fee. This is their fee, not ours.
If you do not yet have a reliable or affordable way to make a foreign currency transfer, we highly recommend Wise. Use this link and your first transfer is free (Wise terms apply).
Why is there a fee?
We are a small non-profit organization and 100% of our operating income comes from revenue from programs like this that we manageSince. We keep the application fee as low as possible to make it as easy as possible for more businesses and individuals to be able to apply. Still, we have operating and program expenses that need to be paid. Since there are currently no sponsors for the Awards program, we must charge an application fee to help offset the costs of producing the Awards. Your application fee covers the following expenses related to hosting the Awards:
A small stipend for each judge who reviews your individual application (this can be 1, 2, or 3 judges, depending on the complexity of your application and other issues that arise during the judging process)
Cost of the awards processing software
Cost of website design, hosting, and content maintenance
Cost to produce the physical awards and postage to ship them to winners
Expenses for marketing and promotions;
and for project management.
Interested in becoming a sponsor? If your business, organization, or destination is interested in sponsoring the Awards to help offset program costs and reduce the fee for applicants, please get in touch by submitting a support ticket. We offer generous sponsorship visibility options and would be happy to custom-design a sponsorship package that meets your specific needs.