Alternative tourism

The programme

The Alternative Tourism Act concerns the implementation of investments in the tourism sector from existing enterprises which are active or intend to become active in the development of alternative forms of tourism and operate within the Greek territory.

Alternative Tourism includes all tourism services, which are distinguished according to the specific needs, preferences and motivations of tourists, are addressed to a specialized audience, respect the principles of sustainable development and contribute to the mitigation of seasonality of tourism demand.

This Act aims to:

• The diversification and enrichment of the Greek tourism product through the business exploitation of alternative forms of tourism.
• The promotion and tourist exploitation of the natural and cultural heritage.
• To mitigate the seasonality of tourism demand.

In this direction, through the Alternative Tourism Act, investment projects will be supported which will contribute to the development of one or more specific and/or alternative forms of tourism.

Who it concerns

Δικαιούχοι των ενισχύσεων μπορούν να είναι:

Natural persons or Legal persons (Limited Liability Company, Limited Liability Company, General Partnership, Limited Partnership, Civil Law Partnership) which:

• They have at least one Activity Code Number (ACN) from those included in Table 2 of this Guide (hereinafter referred to as the eligible ACN).
• They operate legally in accordance with the applicable provisions,
• They have started the activity of the eligible K.A.D. before 01/01/2010.

Program budget

The total budget to be allocated through the Alternative Tourism Act and coming from Public Expenditure amounts to € 20.000.000,00. The Public Expenditure of the Act is co-financed by the European Union and in particular by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and from national resources.

Amount of subsidy

The minimum budget per submitted investment project is €10.000 and the maximum budget can be up to the amount of €400.000 as indicated in paragraph 4.3.5 which defines the aid rates and private participation.

Expenses subsidized

The following costs are subsidised:

• Supply of equipment.
• Buildings - Site layout - Special and ancillary facilities.
• Promotion - Promotion.
• Consultancy fees (preparation of the investment plan, monitoring and consultancy, etc.).
• Other costs (transfer of know-how, purchase of rights, incorporation of standards, etc.).

Important dates

The deadline for submitting proposals is from  4January 2012 to 31 January 2012.

Necessary supporting documents for submission

The necessary documents for the programme are the following:

1. Photocopies of balance sheets and profit and loss accounts of the last financial year (2010), only for companies that keep C' category books.
2. Photocopies of tax returns E1, E5 and F01 and detailed tax information E3, depending on the form of the business and whether or not it is subject to the obligation to keep books for the 2010 fiscal year.
3. A photocopy of the last articles of association of the company with its amendments and the official representative's certificate for those companies or another equivalent document (e.g. a certificate of commencement of business) for cases where the above are not provided for.
4. A photocopy of the staff list and working hours certified by the Labour Inspectorate, in accordance with the provisions of Law No. 2874/2000 (Government Gazette 286/A/29.12.2000), as well as form E7, for the 2010 financial year.
5. Declaration of change from an IOY, which will include the mapping of the old Activity Codes to the new ones (i.e. from ID 97 to ID 08), as well as their changes since 1/1/2010.
6. Licence/licences issued by the competent authorities, as appropriate.
7. Photocopies of the special licenses and licenses for exercising a profession in force, where this is required according to the applicable provisions (e.g. license for operators of high-speed boats, license for operators of Superlight Flying Aeroplanes, license for leasing marine recreational equipment, license for the establishment and operation of sports schools, licenses for guides, instructors, etc.).
8. A detailed report documenting the investment plan, which will include, among other things, the objectives of the investment plan, the relevance of the proposed actions to the alternative tourism activities, the link between the proposed actions and the development planning of the business, the expected results - indicators.
9. Detailed offers for equipment with reference to its technical characteristics, the design, planning and implementation of all actions for the promotion and promotion of alternative tourism activities implemented through the investment project, the services of consultants, the preparation of the study and certification of the system for the acquisition of quality management systems, the acquisition, transfer and use of the required know-how (e.g. purchase, license, royalties, etc.) for the implementation of the proposed projects and for a period of five (5) years.
10. A private cooperation agreement in the case of partnerships based on the model set out in Annex 12 (this agreement may be presented before the signing of the Ministerial Decision on integration).
11. Two (2) Declaration of Responsibility N. 1599/86 with a certificate of authenticity of the signature of the legal representative of the undertaking