Frequently asked questions
Here you can find answers to the most common questions about submitting, carrying out and reporting on projects.
If you have any further questions or require further information, please contact us and we will be happy to help.
Yes. You can pause while filling out the Form, save your work and resume later. However, documents can only be attached at the time of final submission. To make the process easier, a PDF preview of the Form is available in the documentation, allowing you to see what information is required and to prepare a draft of your text if necessary.
Yes. Mandatory sections can be left blank, and you can continue filling out the Form and return to them later.
[FOR EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS ONLY]
The Otto per mille Service will NOT individually communicate the outcome of the evaluation to external organisations: only approved projects will be published on the website www.ottopermilleucebi.org in the Reporting and Approved Projects section by 30 September of the funding year.
[FOR CHURCHES, ASSOCIATIONS DIRECTLY AFFILIATED WITH CHURCHES AND INTERNAL BODIES ONLY]
The Otto per mille Service will notify churches, their associations and internal bodies of the outcome of the assessment, whether approved or rejected, by email by September of the year of submission; therefore, please do not request information before that date.
In addition, approved applications will be published in the Reporting and Approved Projects section of the website www.ottopermilleucebi.org by 30 September of the year of funding.
[FOR CHURCHES ONLY]
A project has a beginning, a middle and an end. A diaconal activity, on the other hand, is continuous in nature. Therefore, a project changes from year to year, while a diaconal activity remains essentially the same. For example, a food distribution project may develop later in a job placement project for people who were previously assisted with food aid the following year. A diaconal food distribution activity will continue to provide the same type of assistance over time.
[FOR CHURCHES ONLY]
No. The Piano di Cooperazione is a constituent element of the UCEBI. The solidarity nature of the UCEBI is manifested in its participation in the Piano di Cooperazione: without the Piano di Cooperazione, there is no UCEBI, and without the UCEBI, there would be neither the Agreement with the State nor the possibility of accessing funds from the Otto per mille scheme.
If a request for funding for a project is submitted, the church must have participated in the previous year’s Piano di Cooperazione for at least 50% of the amount requested by the UCEBI.
If a request for support for a diaconal activity is submitted, the church must have participated in the previous year’s Piano di Cooperazione for at least 70% of the amount requested by the UCEBI.
Once the application has been approved
The amount to be paid by the applicant organisation indicated at the time of submission must remain the same even if the funding received is lower than the amount requested from the OPM UCEBI. You do not need to revise the application proposal or budget, nor to specify which expenses will be covered by the funds received: the reporting phase will take precedence.
You can start the project/the diaconal activity once the funding has been approved, but not before the beginning of the funding year. The important thing is that it is completed and reported by 31 December of the year following the year of funding and submission (e.g. an application submitted and approved in 2026 can start in 2027 but must still be reported by 31 December 2027).
Yes. You can also provide valid tax receipts for expenses incurred before the application was approved and which relate to the application itself as documentation for the report, but they must not be dated before the year of funding and submission (for 2026 funds, they must not be expenses incurred before 1 January 2026). Please note that if the application is not approved, any expenses already incurred will not be reimbursed.
No. The applicant organisation must be the holder of its own bank and/or postal account.