March 28, 2024 5 min read
Sixth amendment to the Action: relaunching tourism

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The sixth (6th) amendment to the Decision approving the funding applications under the Action has been published, Working Capital Subsidy for Hospitality Tourism Enterprises Affected by the Pandemic - Restarting Tourism of the ERDF, concerning the additional integration of fifty-five (55) applications for funding, with a total public expenditure of EUR 5.816.846,84. You can see more information about the Action here.

particularly:

  • Forty-one (41) applications concern small and medium-sized enterprises with a total Public Expenditure of 1.323.414,10 euros. They are co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Union's response to COVID-19. With this amendment, the total integrated / co-financed projects in the Action amount to five thousand three hundred and twenty-seven (5,327). The total Public Expenditure amounts to 143.311.983,60 euros.
  • The ten (10) applications concern small and medium-sized enterprises with funding of more than 200,000 euros, per enterprise, with a total Public Expenditure of 3,512,804.26 euros. They are co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Union's response to COVID-19. With this amendment, the total integrated / co-funded projects in the Action amount to two hundred and fifteen (215). The total Public Expenditure of these should amount to 70.083.050,93 euros.
  • The Four (4) applications concern Large Companies total Public Expenditure 980.628,48 euro. With this amendment, the total projects included in the Action amount to sixty-seven (67). The ineligible for co-financing (based on paragraph 2 of article 33 of Law 4314/2014) total Public Expenditure, for Large Enterprises, amounts to the amount of19.210.206,03 EUR.

With the amendment, the total projects included in the Action amount to 5,609. The total public expenditure amounts to 232.605.240,60 euros.

Objective of the Tourism Restart Action

The Action aims to support the operation of businesses in the tourism sector after the restart of their operation and in view of the official start of tourism activity for 2021 under the covid-19 pandemic. The support to businesses will be provided by providing sufficient liquidity to restart their economic activity, through the non-repayable support of part of the working capital.

Budget of the Tourism Restart Action

The budget amounts to 350 million euros for all the regions of the country, which are divided into:

  • 300 million euros for Small and Medium Enterprises
  • 50 million euros for Large Enterprises

This amount may be increased to cover all positively assessed applications for funding.

React EU - Action funded as part of the Union's response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Beneficiaries of the Tourism Restart Action

Tourism businesses regardless of their legal form and in particular hospitality businesses of all kinds, tourist agencies, as well as tourist bus companies, whose Nace Codes are included in the Detailed Invitation.

Grant

Up to 400,000 euros per business with a distinct VAT number.

Each company will be awarded a total non-repayable grant in the form of working capital, which may amount to a maximum of 5% for enterprises with an eligible SMR in category 55. And 2.5% for companies with another eligible SMR of the annual Turnover of the year 2019.

For companies that have started operations in 2019 or 2020, the non-repayable aid may reach a maximum of 5% or 2.5%. This depends on the eligible activity of the opened turnover of the year of commencement of operations (2019 or 2020).

Businesses that in the year 2019 were in the construction stage and demonstrably did not have income from business activity of any kind, are awarded a total non-repayable grant that may amount to a percentage of 5% or 2.5%. The percentage is given depending on the eligible activity, on the total or the opened Turnover of the year 2020.

Basic Conditions for Participation

Businesses should, inter alia, meet the following conditions:

  • Have started work by 31.12.2020.
  • Have completed at least 1 SRM of paid employment in the year 2019. The condition is presumed to be fulfilled in the case of enterprises established in 2020 and for enterprises that in the year 2019 were demonstrably at the construction stage and had no income from business activity of any kind.
  • Have until 31.12.2020 as their main activity code or activity code with the highest revenues one of the eligible Nace codes of Chapter 6: "ELIGIBLE AREAS OF ACTIVITY". Specifically, for businesses that start operations before 01.01.2020, the audit is based on the CAR with the largest revenues, as indicated in the relevant Field of the E3 Tax Year 2019 Form submitted in the year 2020. For companies that started work in 2020, as well as for companies that were in the construction stage in the year 2019, the audit is based on the main Nace code of activity.
  • Keep haplographic or duplicative books of n. 4308/2014.
  • Be liable to submit VAT returns.
  • Show a decrease in their turnover in the year 2020, of at least 30% compared to the turnover of 2019.
  • Submit one Funding Application per VAT number and only for one eligible Activity Code Number, for all their tourist accommodation facilities or other tourist activities.

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It should be noted that the requirement to complete at least 1 SRM of paid employment, which is a prerequisite for participation in the Action, should not be confused with the way of calculating / determining the size of an enterprise based on the number of employees. The self-employment of owners-entrepreneurs cannot be taken into account for the fulfillment of the condition of participation of at least 1 SRM of paid employment.

Working capital cannot be used for the establishment of a new tourist facility. The working capital grant is given only as a measure to deal with the consequences of the health crisis.

Undertakings which have entered into franchise agreements, in their capacity as licensor or franchisee, shall declare this in their application for funding. They shall be checked at the verification stage as to whether they are linked undertakings in order to determine the aid to be counted towards the control of cumulation.

Eligible expenditure

The starting date for eligibility of expenditure is 1 April 2021.

The paid working capital advance should have been consumed from the start date of eligibility of expenditure until 31.12.2021. This will be demonstrated on the basis of the Codes:

  • 361 Purchases and expenditure within the country
  • 363 Other Imports other than capital goods (fixed assets)
  • 364 Intra-Community acquisitions of goods
  • 365 Intra-Community downloads of services No. 14.2.a

the forms of the relevant periodic VAT returns for period 1/4/2021 – 31/12/2021.

The amount of working capital corresponding to this Action must not exceed 70% of the sum of the amounts of the four (4) codes.

Financing covers up to 70% of the value of the purchased goods.

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