• Maximising the informative potential of already-excavated archaeological material, in the context of the finite nature of the archaeological resource

• Standalone questions into which research might provide an original/innovative contribution to archaeological knowledge

This scheme is open to archaeological researchers/archaeologists, including PhD students, undergraduate students, postgraduate students, for work in Ireland (including Northern Ireland).

• Research costs including specialist’s fees and services, materials, travel and subsistence expenses.

• Salary costs of grant recipients and research team members are considered an eligible cost if, in order to participate in the project they must have their time ‘bought out’, or they must take time out from their usual employment, or would not be funded to do this work without the grant funding and are not simultaneously in receipt of another income. As the Academy can only reimburse costs which are supported by evidence of payment any request to reimburse salary costs must be supported by evidence that the salary has been paid (in the form of payslips, paid invoices etc.) from the employing body.

• Applications will be considered for further research emanating from what were originally developer-led projects, provided all licensing requirements have been met in full.

• Applicants must list any current sources of research funding and justify why additional funds are sought from the RIA.

• Costs of archaeological excavations or surveys or fieldwork.

• Applications for the funding of research as part of developer-led or commercial excavations that have not fulfilled their licensing requirements in full.

• The grant does not fund institutional overheads, and the grant cannot be used to cover any element that should be properly ascribed to institutional overheads.

• The purchase of items of equipment that researchers would normally be expected to have.

• Applications from any applicant with one or more excavation reports outstanding to the Licensing Authority unless they have agreed a submission date for outstanding licences and have an official Compliance Letter from NMS agreeing to this.

• Applications from any applicant (including project co-investigator) who has previously been funded by the Academy for projects which have not been completed to the standard required by the grant and/or licence conditions including projects where the applicant was a co-investigator.