The Australian Research Council (ARC) has been making essential updates to the ARC due diligence process. These updates are required to meet new legislative requirements under amendments to the Australian Research Council Act 2001, which introduce obligations where matters of national security, defence or international relations arise.
To meet our legislative requirements, the ARC has been working closely with government agencies and institutions to strengthen our research security framework.
Key changes include:
These reforms are aligned with the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security’s Inquiry into national security risks affecting the Australian higher education and research sector (2022), and the University Foreign Interference Taskforce’s Guidelines to Counter Foreign Interference in the Australian University Sector (2021). Research security continues to be a shared responsibility. The ARC appreciates the ongoing efforts of universities to identify and manage risks appropriately.
These strengthened processes mean that announcements for LP24R2 and FL25 will now be released by the end of June 2025.
The closing date for LP25R2 has been extended from 25 June 2025 to COB 23 July 2025. This is reflected in the updated National Competitive Grants Program scheme calendar: https://www.arc.gov.au/funding-research/ARC_grants-calendar.
The ARC thanks our university and research sector partners for your patience and continued engagement as we implement these important changes.