The Fund for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), a not-for-profit organisation based in the United States that provides grants and other support to independent journalists and news organisations, is now accepting proposals from freelance journalists, staff reporters, and media outlets to enable them to produce high-quality, unbiased, nonpartisan investigative stories that create an impact.
Eligible projects must be investigative, uncovering previously hidden wrongdoing or systemic failures.
The funds provided include Regular grants, Seed grants, Follow-up grants, Regular grants for those who have previously received Seed funding, and Diversity Fellowship.
The Regular Grants cover the expenses of investigative stories on any topic, in any media in the U.S. These grants are up to $10,000. Seed Grants are for preliminary reporting that can help shape investigative stories. These are also on any topic and for U.S. stories. These grants are up to $2,500 for initial reporting expenses. Journalists who receive seed grants can come back to the Fund to apply for a regular grant after their preliminary reporting is finished. The Follow-Up Grants are for journalists who received a regular grant and now need funding to do shorter follow-up stories after the initial investigation. These grants are up to $2,500.
Meanwhile, information about the Diversity Fellowship will be posted on FIJ’s website when applications are open.
The FIJ’s grants are for specific investigative projects. They cover expenses such as travel, records fees, research, equipment rental, and reporting time. While most applicants should be freelancers, some applicants from news outlets seeking assistance to cover the expenses of investigations are welcome. The Fund encourages proposals from journalists of colour. It provides grants for print and online articles, television and radio stories, documentary films, podcasts, and books.
To be considered, foreign-based story proposals must come from U.S.-based reporters or have a strong U.S. angle involving American citizens, government or business; all stories must be published in English, in a media outlet in the United States.
Proposals must include: a project summary and a detailed narrative, a proposed budget (excluding office rent/supplies or equipment purchases), a resume, two work samples, two references, and a letter of commitment from a media outlet for publication.
Resubmissions of proposals that have previously been declined are not accepted unless applicants are specifically invited to resubmit.
Multiple proposals from the same applicant in one grant cycle are not accepted, except in rare cases. To seek an exception to these guidelines, please send an email to grants@fij.org.
The maximum grant is $10,000. Grants cover out-of-pocket expenses such as travel, document collection, and equipment rental. The Fund also considers requests for small stipends, as part of the budget.
Reporters who have already published an investigation with a grant from the Fund can request up to $2,500 for timely follow-up coverage of the original story.
Reporters who do not yet have a full investigative proposal but need support to do initial reporting to develop a story can apply for seed funding to help cover the expenses of preliminary reporting. These grants range from $1,000 to $2,500.
Regular Grants, Winter, January 26, 2026, at 11:59 pm ET, Spring, April 27, 2026 at 11:59 pm ET, Summer, September 8, 2026, at 11:59 pm ET; Seed Grants, Winter, January 29, 2026, at 11:59 pm ET, Spring, May 1, 2026 at 11:59 pm ET, and Summer, September 11, 2026, at 11:59 pm ET.
Please visit: https://investigate.submittable.com/submit to submit proposals. Diversity Fellowships are submitted through their own application form, which will be posted when it is opened.
If you have questions about how to apply for a grant, please check FIF’s FAQ page or email grants@fij.org
