Keeping up to date: Malta Enterprise and other support measures

August 2022

A number of legal notices relating to Malta Enterprise and other schemes have recently been published. A short summary of salient updates below:

A. New Incentive Schemes

1. Innovate - Innovation Aid for SMEs

S.L. 463.44
MALTA ENTERPRISE ACT (CAP. 463)
Innovation Aid for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) Regulations

The Innovate Scheme aims to facilitate the creation of Business Research Partnerships through collaboration between Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Research and Knowledge-Dissemination Organisations to engage in projects leading to product, process and organisational innovation. This will facilitate access to expertise and the generating of new knowledge and aims to accelerate innovation, enhance business performance and drive competitive advantage.

The supported activities should lead to new or improved products, services and/or processes with supported projects commencing within 12 months from the date the funding is approved. Such projects must be implemented and completed within 36 months from the commencement date.

The aid awarded under this measure is capped at 50% of the eligible costs up to a maximum of €100,000 per Business Research Partnership, which can be increased to 100% of eligible costs up to a maximum of €200,000 in specific cases and subject to criteria.

Eligible costs include:

costs covering the secondment period of highly qualified personnel seconded from a Research and Knowledge-Dissemination Organization;
cost of consultancy, assistance and training in the fields of knowledge transfer, acquisition, protection and exploitation of intangible assets relating to the innovation projects;
cost of access to data banks, libraries, market research, laboratories, quality labeling, testing and certification for the purpose of developing more effective products, processes or services.

Applications should reach Malta Enterprise Corporation (MEC) at least 12 weeks prior to the commencement of the project and in any case not later than 31 August 2023.

2. Recovery and Resilience Plan for Malta Grant Schemes

Delivering on Malta’s commitment to be climate neutral by 2050 will require substantial investment from the private and public sector alike. As a result, green incentives are proliferating as the European Commission and Member State governments look to reach their environmental goals in an effective and cost-efficient manner. In this respect, Malta’s Recovery and Resilience Plan seeks to make the country future-ready through investments that will facilitate the green and digital transitions. In this regard, Government, through the Measures and Support Division (MSD) has launched new grant schemes targeting the renovation of private sector buildings and the digitalisation of the private sector.

Further information on these schemes may be found here.

B. Important Reminders

Micro Invest
Business Enhance European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Grant Schemes
Invest
Change to Grow
Skills Development

Micro Invest

Assistance under this Scheme is provided to self-employed persons or undertakings employing less than 50 full-time employees and having an annual turnover of less than €10 million. Aid is granted in the form of a tax credit amounting to 45% of eligible expenditure (65% for undertakings operating in Gozo (unless these are start-up undertakings) and in other specific circumstances) and should be utilised within the period prescribed on the incentive entitlement certificate. The maximum amount of aid awarded under this Scheme is capped at €50,000 over a three-year period on a group basis (may be increased to €70,000 in certain circumstances).

Companies wishing to apply for this scheme in relation to capital expenditure and wage costs incurred in 2021 should submit the online application by 14 December 2022. For such applications, the tax credits awarded in the Incentive Entitlement Certificate may then be utilised as from the year of assessment 2023.

Business Enhance European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Grant Schemes

Under Operational Programme I for Malta’s EU Cohesion Policy programme (2014-2020), €51m had been earmarked for ERDF Grant Schemes in aid of SMEs. These grant Schemes are broadly aimed at supporting investments made by SMEs, and which provide for assistance in the following areas:

e-Commerce (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022)
Start up Investment (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022)
SME Diversification and Innovation (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022)
SME Internationalisation (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022)
SME Consultancy Services (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022) (business plans, feasibility studies)
SME Growth (latest cut-off date being Friday 30 September 2022)

The aid provided depends on the particular Scheme, however, in all cases, no expenditure should be incurred by an enterprise before approval of the project first having been issued by the relevant intermediary body.

These schemes are administered through an open rolling call with scheduled cut-off dates and are currently available till the dates indicated above.

Any investment projects for which assistance is applied for under these ERDF Grant Schemes should be concluded by the end of June 2023.

Invest

Application forms for aid under the Invest Scheme in respect of eligible investment projects commencing between 1 May 2022 and 31 December 2026 (or later if the start of works are delayed due to factors beyond the beneficiary’s control) should be submitted electronically to the Corporation by no later than 30 September 2023.

Further information may be found here

Change to Grow

The Change to Grow Scheme supports business re-engineering and transformation projects undertaken by self-employed persons and SMEs in order to strengthen their business activities, create new products or diversify existing services, or use more sustainable practices including in technology.

Application forms for aid under this scheme should reach MEC by 31 October 2022.

Further information may be found here

Skills Development

The Skills Development Scheme supports training and upskilling initiatives taken by employers in specific industries and subject to prescribed conditions. Aid is granted in the form of tax credits amounting to between 50% and 70% of eligible costs, up to a maximum of €2m per project.

Applications should reach MEC by 30 November 2022.

Further information may be found here.