Aid to publishing houses for the publication of books (CNL)
The CNL supports a publisher’s economic risk-taking in favour of quality publishing accessible to as many people as possible, by allowing it to lower the retail price and/or increase the print run of the book concerned.
Aid to publishing houses for the publication of books: the CNL (national book centre) supports a publisher’s economic risk-taking in favour of quality publishing that is accessible to as many people as possible, by allowing it to lower the retail price and/or increase the print run of the book concerned. The 2026 application session ran from 17 September to 29 October and has now closed. Eligible applicants: organisations whose corporate purpose and articles include publishing, whatever their country and legal form. Geographic coverage indicated: national aid.
Funded by Centre National du Livre (CNL)
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Who can apply
Eligible beneficiaries: organisations whose corporate purpose and articles include publishing, whatever their country and legal form.
Eligibility conditions
Conditions listed: the publisher must publish books in French and/or one of the languages of France; have at least one year of activity; have at least three published books in its catalogue; add to its catalogue regularly, at a rate of at least one book a year; for print and/or digital publishing, have distribution and sales agreements for France or, failing that, distribution through a stable network of bookshops (around twenty at least) nationwide; be listed on the Electre or Dilicom platforms to evidence distribution; not be subject to insolvency proceedings; not be a public publisher; meet legal obligations on the exploitation of works.
What the scheme covers
Eligible operations listed: a book publication project in French or one of the languages of France that has never been examined by the CNL; has not been published before being examined by the committee; concerns a book with at least 50% text relative to illustrations, except for comics and children’s literature; for a translation, concerns a book translated from its original language (no relay or intermediate translation); and is covered by a publishing contract with the author that complies with the standard legal and economic provisions for exploiting works with the author of the project presented; published at the publisher’s expense (not at the author’s expense, self-published or by a public publisher); with a print run of at least 500 copies (300 for poetry and theatre). The project must never have been examined by the CNL; must not have been published before it is examined in committee; must concern a work with at least 50% text compared with illustrations, except for comics and children’s literature; and, for a translation project, must concern a work translated from its original language (no relay or intermediate translation). Not eligible: publication of contemporary novels, short stories or narratives, except children’s literature.
Amount and funding terms
For the amount of aid to publishing houses for the publication of books, refer to the official conditions.
How to apply
Consult the scheme documents and confirm the application arrangements with the funder: https://centrenationaldulivre.fr/aides-financement/subvention-aux-editeurs-pour-la-publication-d-ouvrages
Timeline
The end date recorded in the catalogue, 29 October 2026, has passed. Check the dates of the next session with the CNL.
Key facts
- Funder
- Centre National du Livre (CNL)
- Type of funding
- Grant
- Status
- Closed
- Maximum amount
- €22,800
- Automatically extracted — check the official source
- Minimum amount
- €500
- Automatically extracted — check the official source
- Closes
- 29 October 2026
- Geographic scope
- All of France
Official source
No official URL is available in our data for this grant.
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