MALTA ENTERPRISE MEASURES

The Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, provides seed and growth funding for small start-ups.

The measure is intended to support small start-up undertakings that are in the process of establishing and/or consolidating a business operation that has been deemed as economically viable and innovative by the Corporation.

To be eligible for the Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, the applicant must be registered as a recognised business entity such as a self-employed, co-operative or limited liability company.

To be eligible for the Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, recipients must carry out at least one of the following activities:

- manufacturing;

- software development;

- manufacturing-like industrial services;

- health, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences;

- other innovative economic activities that are enabled by knowledge and technology that provide services or products that are not currently readily available in the relevant market or are provided through a novel process.

To be eligible for assistance under this incentive, applicants must fulfill at least one of the following criteria to be considered for Pre-Business Plan Support and two of the following criteria to be considered for Post-Business Plan Support:

- proposed products and/or services that have the potential to generate revenue from various geographic markets;

- the applicant produces or intends to produce products that are new or substantially improved over existing products in the market or provides or intends to provide services that are new or substantially improved over existing services in the market;

- the applicant must use processes that are new or substantially improved from those used in current complementary activities.

To be eligible the applicants must be classified in activities which fall under the following NACE codes:

- mining and quarrying;

- manufacturing;

- electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply;

- water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities;

- wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles;

- transportation and storage;

- accommodation and food service activities;

- information and communication;

- financial and insurance activities;

- professional, scientific and technical activities;

- administrative and support service activities;

- education;

- human health and social work activities;

- creative, arts and entertainment activities;

- libraries, archives, museums and other cultural activities;

- sports activities and amusement and recreation activities;

- other service activities.

The call for the Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, expires on 2023-12-31.

The costs eligible for the Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, are:

- consultancy and other services required for product validation, desk and field research service, patent searches, data collection, prototyping, certification, market research and business planning;

- access to digital platform providing software as a service solution, access to software development platforms, software licences and other similar costs;

- rent of office space (including co-working space), industrial facilities, and other real estate as may be required for the Start-up activity (excluding any premise used for residential and/or accommodation purposes);

- procurement or rental of machinery and tools;

- access fees to research infrastructures and online research platforms;

- materials and other similar costs.

The maximum amount of aid that may be provided by the Business Start 2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, to an undertaking shall not exceed €200,000.

The type of financing provided by the Business Start  2021 initiative, financed by Malta Enterprise, is a grant and/or reimbursement.

The funding body for the Business Start 2021 initiative is Malta Enterprise.