European funds are financial instruments created by the EU for private and public sector, in order to help sustain and develop certain areas and to help member states achieve certain standards of economic, social and cultural development.
Recipients of grant funds are SMEs, large companies, public authorities, NGOs, associations and PFAs. Depending on the funding program and the beneficiary, provided non-refundable aid can reach 100% of the total eligible project funding.
The advantages of accessing a grant:
- obtaining grant funds for the development and modernization of current activity;
- increasing the competitiveness of the beneficiary undertakings.
Difficulties arising in the process of accessing and implementing projects with grant funding:
- long period of evaluation of submitted documentation (project financing, reimbursement requests, addendums);
- delays in repayment of expenditures incurred;
It is good to know:
- financial aid covers only a certain percentage of the investments and only certain types of expenditures (the eligible expenses are program-specific);
- before the start of each financing project preparation, the applicant's eligibility must be verified and the investment that is intended to achieve. Eligibility requirements are specific to each program;
- projects should be designed before the closing date of the financing line, so there is the risk of not submiting the complete documentation in time.
