Funding for companies for the preparation of Horizon, EDF and Innovation Fund projects

FUNDING FOR COMPANIES FOR THE PREPARATION OF HORIZON AND EDF PROJECTS

Preparation funding is intended for companies preparing a large consortium project in which the Finnish partner(s) will play a significant role. The application must describe the consortium required for the EU project, which means that the applicant must usually have secured partners from at least three EU states or Associated Countries.

1. The total cost of the EU project must be at least EUR 3 million.
2. Business Finland accepts a maximum of 5% of the total cost to be paid by the participant for the targeted project as the cost of the preparatory project (e.g., EUR 1 million = EUR 50,000).
3. Business Finland’s contribution is 75% of the costs up to a maximum of EUR 60,000.
4. The costs of preparing the EU application may be accepted as preparation costs.

PAYMENT OF FUNDING

1. No advance is paid in this funding service.
2. You can declare the costs of the Business Finland preparatory project after the EU application has been assessed. The EU application must meet the threshold values defined in each EU program for the preparation funding to be paid:
   1. The Horizon Europe application must achieve at least 3 points for each three assessed sections (excellence, impact, implementation).
   2. EDF application must achieve at least 30 points for research projects and at least 37 points for development projects.
3. The report submitted to Business Finland only has to contain a brief description of the prepared EU project, a cost statement, and the EU evaluation report.
4.  An auditor’s report is not necessary.

What is expected from your company?

1. The minimum team in Finland is at least 2 person-years, of which at least one must be a full-time employee.
2. The company’s net financial assets in its balance sheet must be at least equal to the total cost of the preparatory project.
3. This funding is de minimis support. Your company can receive de minimis support of up to 300,000 euros over a three-year period. The de minimis financing of companies belonging to the same group or control (e.g., based on majority ownership or agreements) is added together.

FUNDING FOR COMPANIES FOR THE PREPARATION OF INNOVATION FUND PROJECTS

The EU Innovation Fund aims to bring solutions to the market that reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of European industry. The fund offers companies support for the commercialization and scaling up of innovative low-carbon technologies. Business Finland offers funding for the preparation of projects:

1. Business Finland accepts a maximum of 5% of the total cost to be paid by the participant for the targeted project as the cost of the preparatory project (e.g., EUR 1 million = EUR 50,000).
2. Business Finland’s contribution is 50% of the costs up to a maximum of EUR 200,000.
3. The costs of preparing the EU application may be accepted as preparation costs.

PAYMENT OF FUNDING

1. No advance is paid in this funding service.
2. You can declare the costs of the Business Finland preparatory project after the EU application has been assessed. The EU application must meet the threshold values defined in each EU program for the preparation funding to be paid. Costs incurred before the application submission date will not be accepted.
3. You can declare the costs of the Business Finland preparatory project after the EU application has been assessed. The EU application must be evaluated in all respects: the GHG emission avoidance, degree of innovation, project maturity, replicability, and cost efficiency sections must all be evaluated. If the applicant receives information that the Innovation Fund project will not be evaluated in all aspects, the information must be submitted to Business Finland without delay.
4. The report submitted to Business Finland only must contain a brief description of the prepared EU project, a cost statement, and the EU evaluation report.
5. An auditor’s report is usually not necessary. The need is assessed when processing the application.

What is expected from your company?

1. The company must have credible conditions for the implementation of the Innovation Fund project.
2. To be financed by the Innovation Fund, project must be sufficiently mature in terms of planning, business model and financial and legal model.
3. The company's board of directors must not have made a final investment decision yet.
4. The company can raise funding for its own share outside of the funding gap defined for the project.
5. This funding is de minimis support. Your company can receive de minimis support of up to 300,000 euros over a three-year period. The de minimis financing of companies belonging to the same group or control (e.g., based on majority ownership or agreements) is added together.

PREPARATION OF A HORIZON, EDF- AND INNOVATION FUND PROJECT AS PART OF A RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND PILOTING PROJECT FUNDED BY BUSINESS FINLAND

The preparation of the Horizon Europe, European Defence Fund (EDF) and Innovation Fund project may also be funded as part of another project funded by Business Finland, if the aim is to expand or continue the project into an international cooperation project, for example.

1. The preparation of the EU project must be described as a work package of its own in the project plan of the corresponding Business Finland project.
2. The project plan must also describe how the targeted EU project would expand or continue the Business Finland project.
3. You can also apply for a change in the project plan and cost estimate for ongoing projects funded by Business Finland if the project is expanded into an EU project. However, the inclusion of an EU project’s preparation costs in an ongoing Business Finland project will not increase the funding originally granted by Business Finland.
4. The accepted preparation costs must be reasonable in relation to the desired EU funding.
5. For example, the costs of identifying and preparing partners and cooperation opportunities are accepted as preparation costs. The preparation of an EU funding application is not funded.

HOW TO APPLY

WHEN TO APPLY FOR FUNDING

• You can apply for funding on an ongoing basis, but you must submit your application before the deadline for the EU funding call.
• The costs of a preparatory project can be approved at the earliest from the date on which the application has been submitted to Business Finland with sufficient information. Mandatory information includes, for example, a brief project plan and the deadline of the call.
• The end date of the preparatory project for Horizon and EDF projects is set 6 months after the EU application deadline, and the end date for Innovation Fund preparatory projects is 8 months after the EU application deadline.
• Business Finland accepts project preparation costs also for one month of the preparation phase of the grant agreement. The latter preparation costs may include, for example, costs arising from the preparation of the consortium agreement and project management.
• Only procurements and work for which a binding written order or agreement has been made after the submission of the funding application can be accepted for the preparatory project.
• In two-stage Horizon Europe and EDF calls, costs may already be accepted from the preparation of the first-stage application, provided that the application was submitted to Business Finland before the deadline of the first-stage application. The application must qualify for the second stage of the assessment. Preparation costs may be accepted up to a maximum of six months after the deadline for the second phase of the call in question.

FUNDING CANNOT BE GRANTED

• Funding cannot be granted if the company’s de minimis quota (the applicant company and the Finnish companies belonging to the same group or under its control) is full.
• We do not grant funding to single-person businesses. Regarding Horizon Europe and EDF projects, the minimum team in Finland is at least 2 person-years, of which at least one must be a full-time employee.
• Preparation funding may not be granted to a company in difficulty as defined by the EU. The company’s net financial assets in its balance sheet must be at least equal to the total cost of the preparatory project.

APPLY FOR FUNDING

GENERAL INFO

• You can apply for the preparation funding according to the normal process in Business Finland's online service. Companies select the "Accelerators and preparations for international projects" funding.
• In possible parallel projects involving several participants, the common identifier should be the name of the EU project.
• All consortium participants are not required to apply for Business Finland’s funding, but the preparatory project must mention the participants of the EU application, their contact details and roles, as well as their planned cost estimates.
• The name of the Business Finland preparatory project you are applying for should be “HorizonEU/EDFEU/IFDU – [name of your EU project]”. This will speed up the processing of your application.
• If the public support received for the procurement (including funding from Business Finland) exceeds 50 percent, the law on public procurement (1397/2016) is followed for the procurement. Acquisitions must be tendered in accordance with the Procurement Act when the total value of the acquisition excluding VAT is 60,000 euros or more.

HOW TO FILL THE APPLICATION FORM

You can apply for a Horizon, EDF-, or Innovation Fund preparation funding according to the normal process from Business Finland's online service in Online services - Business Finland. There is a guide below.

• Companies select the "Accelerators and preparations for international projects" funding.
• Click and choose the “Preparation of Horizon, EDF and Innovation Fund applications”.

Current state of the company

• Description of the company's business: Describe the current state of the business very briefly in 1–2 sentences.
• Company ownership, structure, resources and key personnel: Important, fill in carefully. Sufficient resources are a prerequisite for granting funding.

Key business figures

• The Fiscal figures table: Not filled.
• Accounting run: Submit with the application a profit and loss statement and balance sheet from the current financial year that are no more than 2 months old.
• De minimis subsidies: Enter all the total amount of de minimis aid received by the company and other companies under the same control over the past three years.
• Growth vision: Not filled.

Project goals

• In the preparation project, the goal is only a successful EU application.
• How the project affects the targeted business + abilities/competences and their development: Not filled.

Project implementation

• Project start date: when the application has been submitted to Business Finland in application service. Costs can be approved from the date of submission of the application at the earliest.
• Project end date: In Horizon Europe and EDF preparatory applications, 6 months after the due date of the EU application, in preparatory applications for Innovation Fund projects, 8 months after the due date of the EU application
• Project plan (appendix)
  • Attach a plan of the preparation project for the EU project to the application. The project plan must state the tasks of the preparatory funding project, project resourcing, the name (identifier) of the EU application, the composition of the consortium (in case of Horizon Europa and EDF projects) and the preliminary budget. The work plan of the EU project is not needed. If you wish, you can use Business Finland's project plan template: tempo-projektisuunnitelman_mallipohja.

Budget and financing

• Other funding: Add funding source (mandatory); cash reserves, loan, etc.