Greece to Announce New Funding for SMEs in Tourism

Small hotel in Greece.

A total of 160 million euros in funding will be allocated to eligible parties in Greece wishing to set up and operate small and medium-sized tourism enterprises after the official announcement next month.

According to reports, a new round of funding for 2023 is set to open in November for tourism sector investments from the NSRF (National Strategic Reference Framework) 2021-2027 program. Subsidized sums start at 80,000 euros and can reach 400,000 euros for eligible tourism business investments, which include the creation of hotels, campgrounds, and accommodation facilities. Funding does not apply to Mykonos or Santorini.

Eligible for funding are investment projects that concern the creation of hotel units (at least 4 stars and over 12 beds); tourist accommodation facilities inside traditional buildings; organized campgrounds (at least 3 stars and above); accommodation facilities (at least three units) or furnished vacation homes: furnished rooms for rent or apartments (at least 4 keys and above with a minimum capacity of 12 beds); tourism agencies and other tourism-related activities.

Tourists at the Leonidas statue. Photo source: Flickr.

Funding can cover up to 45 percent of the approved budget, depending on the size of the business and the location of the investment, and increase by 10 percent if the investment is carried out in fire-hit areas or on small remote islands, and by 5 percent if the business employs more than two people all year round.

Eligible expenses include construction, facilities, and environment-related actions, machinery, digital equipment and software, supplies, business start-up support, advertising and outreach, technical studies, consulting services, means of transport, and indirect costs of up to 7 percent of the eligible direct costs of the investment plan.

Investment requirements include:

– investments should be exclusively in one region

– should offer specialized services in a specific listed activity (KAD)

– should hold an approved building permit

The following will not be eligible for funding:

-the purchase of a vessel of any kind

-the participation of a natural/legal person as a partner if they already have a business offering the same listed KAD activity in the same or in another region

–listed services offered cannot change

– the corporate/shareholder status of the investment project should remain the same until the completion of project and repayment of the investment

– the participation of a natural/legal person as a partner in more than one approved for funding projects is not allowed.

Further information on the funding should be available soon on websites: www.antagonistikotita.gr, www.espa.gr and www.efepae.gr.