Co-financed grants for start-ups and spin-offs

Goals

The instrument aims to boost the level of innovation by providing the necessary financial support for research and development activities of start-ups and spin-off companies. Additionally, this instrument is expected to encourage a culture of risk-taking and innovation, and to provide support to companies that want to develop a new or improved product, process or service.

Through this instrument, the Fund for Innovation and Technological Development provides funding up to 85% (eighty five percent) of the total project budget, in a maximum amount of 30,000.00 (thirty thousand) euros. The remaining amount of the total project budget should be provided by the applicant. Funds received from the Fund on any other basis or any other form of state aid are not eligible as co-financing by the applicant.

Eligibility criterion

Eligible for funding under this instrument are applicants who meet the following criteria:

• legal entity established in accordance with the Law on Trade Companies and registered in the Central Register of RSM;
• not to have passed more than 6 (six) years from the day of establishment of the applicant until the day of application;
• start-up, micro, small or medium enterprise (up to 250 employees);
• to be with majority Macedonian ownership (50.1% or more);
• be owned by a natural person and / or a micro, small or medium enterprise (with majority Macedonian ownership of 50.1% or more) and / or an institution performing higher education, ie scientific research activity (with ownership share in the applicant until 20%);
• the annual income of the enterprise should not exceed 1,000,000.00 (one million) euros according to the financial statements for the previous two fiscal years;
• not be fully capitalized (according to the Law on Trade Companies) with another enterprise where the cumulative annual revenues of the two enterprises exceed 1,000,000.00 (one million) euros in the previous two years, except in the case of capital connection with higher education, ie scientific research institution;
• not to have accumulated more than 200,000.00 (two hundred thousand) euros of minor assistance for a period of three fiscal years, including the amount requested from the Fund in accordance with the Law on State Aid Control and the Regulation on the conditions and procedure for granting assistance of minimal importance (de minimis);
• not to have accumulated more than 100,000.00 (one hundred thousand) Euros of minor assistance for a period of three fiscal years, including the requested amount of funds from the Fund, if it is active in the road transport sector, in accordance with the Law on State Aid Control and the Decree on the conditions and procedure for granting minor assistance (de minimis);
• is not an enterprise in difficulty (an enterprise in difficulty is an enterprise that is unable to meet its obligations from its own resources or with funds it may receive from its owner / shareholders or creditors to stop losses, which without external intervention by providers will certainly lead to short-term and long-term cessation of operation of the enterprise); and
• not to be engaged in coal production