Article: state aid scheme for investment stimulation romania 2014 2020 subventions

1. State Aid scheme
for stimulating investments
with major impact on the economy
by freddy jacobs , president cibr
www.investromania.be
State aid scheme aims regional development by making initial investments in fixed
assets of high technology to achieve products with high added value, regardless of the
size of the recipient. The total value of an investments project must be of minimum 44
million Ron. This value was determined by reference to an equivalent value of
approximately 10 million Euros (calculated at a exchange rate of 4,4 Ron/Euro).
State aid scheme is included in the Program “State Aid to finance investment projects”,
within the budget of the Ministry of Finance – General Actions.
The expenses may be included in the total investment value are those that are
capitalized in the value of tangible and intangible assets.
The expenditure on purchase / renting / leasing land not included in the total investment.
Any expenses distinctly highlighted in the company's accounting records other than
those related to tangible and intangible assets, such as expenditure on consultancy,
obtaining approvals, agreements, licenses, employee training, etc., are not included in
the total investment.
The maximum budget for the scheme is 2,700 million Ron, equivalent to 600 million
Euro, to supplement as follows:
a) Commitment to the issue of financing agreements for the period 2014 – 2020;
b) Appropriations for payment of state aid approved under agreements to financing
issued for the period 2015 – 2023.
Maximum annual budget of the scheme is 450 million Ron, equivalent to approximate
100 million Euro, as it will be determined by the annual budget laws. Financing
agreements may be issued under the scheme till December 31, 2020 respecting state
law aid.
State assistance payments shall be made between 2015 and 2023, based on
agreements for funding issued within the annual budget, allocated to the scheme.
WHO CAN APPLY FOR FUNDING UNDER THE STATE SCHEME?
Companies which may request state aid under this scheme are recently established
companies or ongoing activity companies, both SME’s and large enterprises, with
legal personality established under the Companies Act no. 31/1990, republished,
subsequent amendments.

2. WHAT ARE THE ELIGIBLE AND NON-ELIGIBLE EXPENCES RELATED
TO THE INITIAL INVESTMENT?
A. ELIGIBLE COSTS
There are considered eligible expenses, costs without VAT linked to implementing
or acquisition, where appropriate, the tangible and intangible assets and
expenses linked to renting construction related to the initial investment achievement.
Eligible expenditure on tangible assets
The tangible assets shall meet in whole the following conditions of eligibility:
• must be operated exclusively by company recipient of aid to achieve the
investment objectives for which the funding.
• must be included in the assets of the company benefiting from state aid and
must remain associated investment for which funding was granted for a period of
at least five years after completion of the investment.
• must be purchased in market conditions.
The maximum amount that can be considered eligible expenses related achievement
cannot exceed the standard construction cost. The costs of obtaining construction cost
exceeding the standard are considered ineligible.
In case of purchase of tangible assets are completed on specific chapters of the
investment plan and the period for the purchase thereof, the years in which they were
received (partial or final) and after payment (partial or final) thereof.
Eligible expenditure on intangible assets
The intangible assets shall meet in whole the following conditions of eligibility:
• must be operated exclusively by company recipient of aid to achieve the
investment objectives for which the funding.
• must be included in the assets of the company benefiting from state aid and
must remain associated investment for which funding was granted for a period of
at least five years after completion of the investment.
• must be purchased in market conditions.
In case of purchase of intangible assets or licenses, know0how or other intellectual
property rights, they complement the specific chapters of the investment plan and the
period for the purchase thereof, the years in which they were received (partial or final)
and after payment (partial or final) thereof.
To be considered eligible, costs of intangible assets cannot exceed 50% of the total
eligible costs of the investment.
B. INELIGIBLE COSTS
There are considered ineligible expenses the costs without VAT linked to
implementing or acquisition, where appropriate, the tangible and intangible

3. assets and expenses related to renting construction that do not qualify as eligible
expenses. Ineligible costs are not funded by state aid.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA OF ENTERPRISES
1. GENERAL
a) are registered under the Companies Act no. 31/1990, republished, as amended
and supplemented;
b) made an initial investment in Romania, in the areas of eligible activity;
c) proves the viability of the project investment and economic efficiency of the
company based on the Investment Plan and Business Plan;
d) registers no debts to the budgets of the general consolidated budget;
e) does not qualify as "firms in difficulty";
f) not in enforcement proceedings, insolvency, bankruptcy, reorganization,
dissolution, operational closure, liquidation or temporary suspension of activity;
g) decisions are not subject to recovery of State aid or where such decisions were
issued, they were executed according to the law in force;
h) have not benefited from other national regional aid for eligible costs of the nature
of wage costs in the same single investment project;
i) not closed an identical or similar activity in the European Economic Area in the
last 2 years prior to the filing of the financing agreement and, at the time of registration
application, no concrete plans to close such activity over a period of 2 years after
completion in the region in question, the initial investment;
2. IN ADDITIONAL FOR ENTERPRISES WITH AT LEAST ONE FINANCIAL YEAR
ENDED
j) have profitability turnover greater than zero in the last financial exercise;
k) have positive equity in the last financial exercise;
3. IN ADDITION TO START-UPS COMPANIES
l) they have paid share capital amounting to at least 100,000 Ron;
m) they do not belong to shareholders who hold or have held in the past two years
previously application registration of the financing agreement for another registered
company under Companies Act no. 31/1990, republished, as amended and
supplemented, carrying or has carried out its activity for applying for funding.
FOR MORE INFO MAIL FRJACOBS@TELENET.BE

4. METHOD FOR GRANTING THE STATE AID
STAGES OF EVALUATION PROCESS OF THE APPLICATION FOR FINANCING
Application for funding by agreement shall be submitted in continuous session.
Assessment Application for funding agreement is achieved in a single step, which
includes:
• Application Registration for funding agreement;
• Application Assessment for funding agreement in terms of submitted documents
compliance;
• Application Assessment for funding agreements in terms of the conditions and
eligibility criteria;
• Viability Assessment of the project investment and economic efficiency of the
enterprise on the information and documents submitted in the business plan;
• Information and/or documents request to complete the application for funding
agreement, if any’
• Application solving of the financing agreement;
• Sending mail with acknowledgement of receipt for funding agreement or for
rejecting letter of request for funding agreement, as applicable.
State Aid is paid to companies that have received funding agreement, after performing
partial or total eligible expenditure of initial investment under the investment plan and
approved by the agreement for funding, within the limit of the approve annual budget.