Grantmaking Guidelines

The philanthropic endeavors of Qualcomm Foundation and Qualcomm Incorporated develop and strengthen communities worldwide. We invest our human and financial resources in inspirational, innovative programs that serve diverse populations.

Specifically, we aim to create educated, healthy, sustainable, culturally vibrant communities. We also support employees’ commitment to our global communities through various programs such as our volunteerism and Matching Grant and Community Service Grant programs.

We focus our philanthropy primarily in geographic regions where we have a business presence.

• Educated communities: We are committed to improving science, technology, engineering and math education for students during their primary, secondary, and higher education years, and to expanding educational opportunities for under-represented students.
• Healthy, sustainable communities: We strive to better the lives of underserved populations by providing basic human needs, with a focus on enhancing the welfare of children. We are also committed to protecting and enhancing our global environment.
• Culturally vibrant communities: Through our support of arts education and outreach programs, we help young people develop innovative minds and expand cultural enrichment opportunities to in-need populations.

Qualcomm Foundation and Qualcomm Incorporated are restricted from providing charitable grants to:

• US-based organizations without Internal Revenue Service 501(c)(3) nonprofit status
• Individuals
• Sporting events without a charitable beneficiary
• Sectarian or denominational religious groups
• Faith-based schools unless the school accepts students from all religious and non-religious backgrounds and the students are not required to adhere to or convert to any religious doctrine.
• Faith-based organizations unless the programs are broadly promoted and the program's beneficiaries are not encouraged or required to learn about, adhere, or convert to any religious doctrine.
• Organizations that advocate, support, or practice activities inconsistent with Qualcomm’s non-discrimination policies, whether based on race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, mental or physical disability, age, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, veteran status, pregnancy, medical condition, marital status, or other basis protected by law.
• Primary and secondary schools. Note, these entities may be eligible for employee matching grants as long as they are not deemed ineligible by other exclusions and restrictions
• Political contributions

Step 1

Review our grantmaking focus areas, guidelines, schedule/deadlines, and FAQs to ensure your grant request fits the criteria outlined for our philanthropy. We focus our philanthropy primarily in geographic regions where we have a business presence.

Step 2

Complete the Letter of Inquiry Form, which applies to both the Qualcomm Foundation and Qualcomm Incorporated, to provide basic information about your organization and the funding request. There are no deadlines for our Letter of Inquiry Form. This Form can be submitted at any point in time.

Step 3

Complete our Proposal Form if your organization is invited to apply for a grant. You will be notified whether funding would come from the Qualcomm Foundation or Qualcomm Incorporated and will receive instructions for completing and submitting the proposal before your organization’s proposal deadline (please refer to the timeline on the following page).

Step 4

Qualcomm Foundation

If requested, complete and return our Grant Agreement as directed. All organizations are notified of funding decisions in writing. Funds will not be released until a signed Grant Agreement is received by the Qualcomm Foundation.

Qualcomm Incorporated

If you receive a grant from Qualcomm Incorporated, you will need to complete and return a tax receipt within three (3) months of receiving our donation. The tax receipt must include the following:

• Name of your organization
• Organization address
• Date funds were received
• Amount of donation
• Whether any goods or services provided by your organization to Qualcomm in consideration, in whole or in part, for this funding
• If goods or services were provided, what are they? Please be sure to include a description and good faith estimate of value of their worth
• Type of nonprofit organization (Ex: 501(c)3)
• Name, title, and signature of the recipient
• Contact email and phone number

Step 5

Complete the Evaluation Form within twelve months of the grant date. This form is required for grants of $10,000 or more.

NOTE

Our grant review schedule is based upon our grantmaking focus areas and organizations have two opportunities for proposal review during the year. Our online Letter of Inquiry is accepted year round.

There are no deadlines for our Letter of Inquiry Form. This Form can be submitted at any point in time.

Proposals are reviewed by the Qualcomm Foundation Board of Directors every other month based upon our grantmaking focus areas. Please refer to our Timeline for the full schedule.

Please email philanthropy@qualcomm.com if your organizations is unclear about which grantmaking focus area applies.

When invited, organizations can submit our Proposal Form and should adhere to the proposal deadlines by grantmaking focus area (see Timeline).

Organizations will be notified by mail with a funding decision. Organizations are limited to one proposal per calendar year.

If you are invited to submit a proposal, we will provide your organization with specific proposal submission instructions and deadlines. We will review the proposal upon receiving all elements.

Organizations will be notified by mail with the funding decision.

• Organizations that are not invited to submit a proposal may resubmit a letter of inquiry twelve months after the initial letter of inquiry was submitted.
• Organizations that were invited to submit a proposal, but who did not receive funds, may resubmit a letter of inquiry twelve months after receiving a funding decision.

• Qualcomm Foundation Logo: Please direct requests for use of the Qualcomm Foundation logo or ads to: philanthropy@qualcomm.com
• Qualcomm Incorporated Logo: For Qualcomm Incorporated logo requests, please fill out the Logo Request Form.