From time to time there is an online debate as to whether grant writers can charge their clients for services on a commission or percentage basis.

The basic argument for charging clients a commission / percentage is that the consultant can make more money. For example, in a grant with an award amount of $ 100,000, at a commission of 10%, the grant author would receive $ 10,000. If the grant were $ 1 million, the grant author would have to pay $ 100,000. The higher the value of the grant, the more the consultant can earn, without any increase in the amount of work performed.

The reasons for not charging a commission or percentage are based more on business and accounting principles.

The grant writing and grant application process is a fundraising expense, not a program expense. Most grants are for program and program expenses. Therefore, it would be unethical for the accountant to take funds from program allocations to pay for fundraising expenses.

The act of writing the grant is a pre-purchase cost. It is logical that the applicant needs to draft the grant proposal before submitting it before the grant proposal is reviewed and awarded. The grant period, or the time that grant money can be spent, is typically for cost that occurs after the grant is received or as a post-acquisition cost (with some exceptions). Grant funding rarely covers costs that occur before the grant award is approved.

Part of this problem stems in part from government budgets that state that a certain percentage of the budget can be allowed for consultant fees. The apparent logic is that since the grant maker is a consultant, they should be entitled to that percentage of the budget.

All personnel, IP, staffing and consulting fees must be calculated on an annual salary or hourly rate basis. None of these items can be calculated on the basis of a direct percentage of the total grant.

The sponsors themselves do not like to award grant funds for grant applications that pay a percentage to the grant author. This is because donors want most of their money to go toward fulfilling the mission and priorities of their funding purpose.

Lastly, certified grant writers put philanthropic interest before personal gain.

All professional fundraising associations in general, and grant writing specifically, hold that charging a commission or a percentage of the grant awarded is an unethical practice.