Annual Club Membership Fees
The Bowls Victoria Board has the responsibility to set the affiliation fees payable to Bowls Victoria by each member via their club.
The affiliation fee is payable by all members who have playing rights and is paid on a per-head basis. For the full definition of who has playing rights, please see the Bowls Victoria Regulations for the definition of an individual member here.
In a recent review of the Bowls Victoria affiliation model, the Bowls Victoria Board listened to Clubs and Regions, who provided strong feedback regarding their preference for a ‘per-head’ affiliation model.
Clubs and Regions also asked for a model that helps smaller clubs.
Many clubs wrote to BV believing the previous model, the ‘Club Fixed Fee Model’, was unfair and that some clubs were being charged for members they no longer had. The Board listened and acted on that feedback.
Clubs and Regions also asked that BV make the model simple, striving for transparency and removal of the problematic Hardship Relief Program and the often-confusing Clearance Rebates. The Board were pleased to be able to satisfy these requests.
The current per-head model is built on a sliding scale to enable lesser fees for smaller clubs, as per the table below:
| Membership range | Amount per head* (inc GST) 06/2023 |
| 0-25 | $64* |
| 26-50 | $65* |
| 51-75 | $66* |
| 76-100 | $67* |
| 101-125 | $68* |
| 126-150 | $69* |
| 151-175 | $70* |
| 176-200 | $71* |
| 200+ | $72* |
* This amount includes the compulsory 25.4% collected on behalf of Bowls Australia and World Bowls which is transferred directly to Bowls Australia ensuring each member is also an individual member of Bowls Australia and World Bowls.
Looking after our smaller clubs
As raised earlier, a clear message from the feedback from Clubs and Regions was to take into consideration smaller clubs and their difficulties in raising revenue. The premise of looking after smaller clubs is simple:
| Example: Take two clubs as an example, raising revenue by running a raffle after social bowls: Club A, has 20 members and runs a raffle each week where they typically sell 40 tickets. Club B, has 80 members and also runs a raffle each week, but they sell 160 tickets. Both clubs buy raffle books, coordinate prizes, need volunteers to sell tickets, but one club makes 4 times the income due to their larger membership. |
This sliding scale results in the two smallest categories of clubs (0-25 and 26-50 members) collectively paying $23,000 less than the previous model.
Annual Invoicing
The amount for each club will be calculated from the members in BowlsLink with playing rights, taken during the season, which will occur some time after the close of the clearance window (1 January) and before the end of the season (typically March annually). It is the club’s responsibility to accurately maintain their BowlsLink database.
Invoices will be sent out to clubs during the first week of July annually. Bowls Victoria’s Accounts Relievable Policy can be found here. Importantly, membership figures are calculated in arrears, meaning the number of members in one year form the basis of the fees for the following year.
Any changes to the number of members will be reflected in the following year’s affiliation invoice, ensuring that clubs are not disadvantaged by fluctuations in membership, which was the strong feedback from Clubs and Regions.
Thank you
We understand an affiliation model isn’t ever going to be met with joy, but we have committed to listening to what Clubs and Regions want and acted accordingly.
Enquiries
If you have any questions regarding fees and the Club Based Affiliation Fee Model, please contact the finance team at accounts@bowlsvic.org.au.