IraSME is a network that consists of R&D funding programmes from different countries and regions, and it aims to support small and medium-sized enterprises in their innovation efforts. Two calls take place each year, allowing enterprises from participating countries to undertake common transnational R&D projects. Funding decisions are made by the respective national bodies.
Countries and regions in the current call include:
- Austria
- Brazil
- Flanders (Belgium)
- Germany
- Luxembourg
- Switzerland
- Türkiye
- Wallonia (Belgium)
The minimum condition stipulates that consortium must include at least two companies from different participating countries, however specific eligibility criteria and funding rules vary slightly per country.
Luxinnovation, the national innovation agency, can support companies in the preparation of the state aid application.
In Luxembourg, the Ministry of the Economy is the national funding body. Both SMEs and larger companies are allowed to apply. Aid budgets span from 25% to 45% depending on the size of the company, with an additional 15% bonus available for effective collaboration. This is the case when no single partner bears more than 70% of the total costs, the technical challenges are met by all the partners and each of them benefits from the results in one way or another.
“Luxinnovation, the national innovation agency, can support companies in the preparation of the state aid application. Similar to other national funding rules, projects from Luxembourg must be able to demonstrate co-financing capacity, economic impact and innovation potential,” explains Elisabeth Frisch, Advisor – Corporate R&D and Innovation Support.
Applications for the current will close on 27 March 2024. Another call for projects will be launched in June and run until 25 September 2024.
Projects from Luxembourg must be able to demonstrate co-financing capacity, economic impact and innovation potential
During a recent webinar, speakers brought attention to some of the main challenges applicants face: finding partners, lack of knowledge on funding rules, and lack of time to prepare a good application.
To help interested companies find partners, IraSME and its sister funding network Cornet will offer a matchmaking event on 29 February 2024 in Stuttgart Germany. “Luxembourg companies can use this platform to identify potential partners. We can also represent interested companies that are unable to attend,” concludes Ms Frisch.
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