The amount of the subsidy depends on the overall costs of the project. The basic support amounts to 25% of all costs.

Funding for a development project is decided on the basis of the project budget. This includes all costs necessary to carry out the project:

• the personnel costs of the business partners (based on staffing and actual wage costs);
• overhead costs and operating costs of the business partners (e.g. cloud infrastructure, the use (rent and maintenance) of buildings and parking lots, office space and meeting rooms, administrative & management costs, etc.); 
• third-party costs such as the payment of invoices submitted by self-employed professionals and the costs of outsourcing work to research partners and subcontractors;
• investment costs that can directly be linked to the execution of the project and are specifically necessary for the implementation of the project or subsidized activities.

You submit the project budget in the form of a spreadsheet prepared by VLAIO. Please find further explanation in the guidelines for the budget preparation.

After the budget template has been submitted, VLAIO will verify which costs are eligible for funding. On this basis, VLAIO will establish an accepted budget, on which the grant will be calculated.

The basic funding rate for a development project is 25%. This percentage can be supplemented with additional premiums.

Additional premiums for regular projects:

• A 10% increase in the funding rate may be granted if it concerns a relevant and substantial cooperation between at least two independent companies, of which at least one is an SME. In a cooperation, each business partners bears risk and neither contributes more than 70% budget share to the project budget.
• A 10% increase in the funding rate for medium-sized enterprises (mo)
• A 20% increase in the funding rate for small enterprises (ko)

The overall funding rate is capped at a maximum of 50%.

Additional premiums for projects submitted in an interregional or international network for interregional or international R&D&I cooperation recognised by VLAIO:

• A 10% increase in the funding rate for medium-sized enterprises (mo)
• A 20% increase in the funding rate for small enterprises (ko)
• A 15% increase of the aid rate for effective cooperation between at least 2 independent enterprises, of which at least one is an SME in an interregional context or effective cooperation between at least 2 independent enterprises in an international context. In a cooperation, each business partners bears risk and neither contributes more than 70% budget share to the project budget.

The overall funding rate is capped at a maximum of 60%.

The support for activities such as demonstrators, pilot studies and upscaling the production is limited to 1 million euro.