Development Law

The purpose of Development Law 4887/2022 is to promote the country's economic growth by providing incentives for specific activities and sectors, in order to achieve the digital and technological transformation of businesses, the green transition, the creation of economies of scale, support for innovative investments and those seeking to introduce new technologies of "Industry 4.0", robotics and artificial intelligence, strengthening employment with specialised personnel, support for new entrepreneurship, strengthening less favoured regions of the country and regions included in the Just Development Transition Plan (JDTP), further boosting tourism and improving competitiveness in high value-added sectors. To achieve these goals, regulations are introduced to accelerate all evaluation, approval, monitoring and certification processes of investment plans falling under the regimes of this law. The introduction of thirteen new aid regimes is envisaged, enabling the business community to design, develop and implement its initiatives with significant and modern forms of investments across all sectors of the Greek economy. The objective of Law 4887/2022 is to provide a comprehensive incentive framework with the primary goal of creating business initiatives in enterprises intending to make an initial investment in one of the law's eligible sectors. The law establishes state aid regimes for investment plans that may fall under the following categories:

• Digital and Technological Transformation of Businesses
• Green Transition – Environmental Upgrading of Businesses
• New Entrepreneurship
• Just Development Transition
• Research and Applied Innovation
• Agri-food – Primary Production and Processing of Agricultural Products – Fisheries and Aquaculture
• Manufacturing – Supply Chain
• Business Extroversion
• Strengthening Tourist Investments
• Alternative Forms of Tourism
• Large Investments
• European Value Chains
• Entrepreneurship 360

Investment Plan Content – Nature of Initial Investment

• Establishment of a new unit
• Expansion of the capacity of an existing unit
• Diversification of a unit's production into products not previously produced or services not previously provided, provided that the aided expenditure exceeds by at least two hundred percent (200%) the book value of the assets reused, as recorded in the tax year preceding the application for inclusion of the investment plan
• Fundamental change of the entire production process of an existing unit. For large enterprises, the aided investment expenditure must also exceed the depreciation of assets linked to the activity to be modernised over the previous three (3) tax years. If the depreciation linked to the activity is not clearly recorded, the above condition is considered not to be met

Types of Aid

• Tax exemption
• Grant
• Leasing subsidy
• Employment cost subsidy
• Business risk financing (applicable to the "New Entrepreneurship" regime)

Eligible Forms of Enterprise Eligible enterprises are those established or with a branch in Greek territory at the time of commencement of the investment plan works, in one of the following forms:

• Sole trader
• Commercial company
• Cooperative
• Social Cooperative Enterprises (Koin.S.Ep.) under Law 4430/2016, Agricultural Cooperatives (AS), Producer Groups (OP), Agricultural Corporate Partnerships (AES) under Law 4384/2016, companies under establishment or merger, provided they have completed the publicity procedures before the start of the investment plan works
• Enterprises operating as a joint venture, provided they are registered with the General Commercial Registry (GEMI)
• Public and municipal enterprises and their subsidiaries, provided that:
  • they have not been assigned a public service obligation,
  • the state has not exclusively assigned to them the provision of services,
  • their operation is not subsidised with public funds for the period of compliance with the long-term obligations of Article 21.

Visit espa.io for detailed information and news on all funding and subsidy tools provided under Development Law 4887/2022.