Who provides the grant?
The Ideas Powered for Business SME Fund is a grant scheme for the registration of trademarks, designs and patents aimed at helping small and medium-sized enterprises in the European Union to protect their intellectual property (IP) rights.
Who can benefit from financial assistance?
The Fund offers financial support in the form of Vouchers to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises as well as self-employed persons established in the European Union.
To apply you need to prepare:
- VAT registration certificate;
- The bank account statement of the trading company.
What is the financial assistance?
The Fund offers financial support in the form of Vouchers:
VACHER 1-IP Scan – reimbursement of 90% of the government fees for the Intellectual Property Preliminary Diagnostic (IP Scan) services – up to €450, which provide an overall assessment of the intellectualpropertyneeds of the applying SME, taking into account the innovative potential of its intangible assets.
– IP Scan Enforcement – Intellectual Property Enforcement Diagnostics. The new service is aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that suspect that another country has infringed their intellectual property rights, or SMEs accused of infringing another country’s intellectual property rights.
VAUCHER 2 – trademark and design protection – reimbursement of 75% of the state fees collected for the registration of European and Bulgarian trademarks and designs – up to 1 000 euro; reimbursement of 50% of the fees collected by the World Intellectual Property Organization for obtaining international protection of trademarks and designs;
Voucher 3 – for national and European patents – reimbursement of 75% of the state fees for filing national and European patents and prior art searches in 2023 – up to €3,500; In 2024, for the first time, the possibility of reimbursement of 50% of the legal costs for preparing and filing a new European patent application, up to a maximum of €2,000.
VAUCHER 4 – for plant varieties – reimbursement of 75% of the fees for electronic filing of plant variety applications at European Union level and a fee for the examination of Community plant varieties at the Community Plant Variety Office – up to €1 500.
When does the application process start?
Submission of applications for approval began on January 22, 2024 and will continue until December 6, 2024.
The vouchers have a limited period of use, being valid for 2 months from the time of receipt of the grant. This validity period can be extended by a further 2 months.
What is the process?
It consists of the following steps:
- Applying for a grant
Registration with the Fund, completion and application of the necessary application documents is required.
- Receipt of grants and vouchers awarded
Once the application is approved, the enterprise will receive the allocated funds and vouchers (within 15 working days). You must then activate them by requesting a refund within 2 months (extension possible).
- Requesting and paying for IP services
In order to be reimbursed for the intellectual property services you requested, you must submit reimbursement paperwork after you have paid for the services.
- Reimbursement of costs
Once you have requested and paid for the services, the necessary paperwork for reimbursement should be completed. Payment from EUIPO will be made within 1 month.
- Period of implementation
Once you have activated the voucher(s), a “performance period” begins during which you can request additional activities and claim additional reimbursement within the scope of the voucher(s). This period lasts for:
- 6 months for vouchers and vouchers for brands and designs
- 12 months vouchers for Community patents and plant varieties
Read more about intellectual property protection here.
The lawyers of Concordia Law Firm are available to respond to inquiries by phone +359 878583010, e-mail, or through the contact form, as well as for comprehensive assistance in connection with applying for financial assistance and registration of a trademark, design or patent.
