Popular subsidies and schemes for business owners

Choose your subsidy or scheme

• Research & Development tax credit (WBSO)
• Environmental investment allowance (MIA) and the Random depreciation of environmental investments (Vamil)
• Sustainable energy investment subsidy scheme (ISDE)
• SME credit guarantee scheme (BMKB)
• Innovation credit 
• Proof of concept funding (VFF)

Research & Development  tax credit (WBSO)

The WBSO encourages innovation at companies doing research and development (R&D). For example, the development of a technologically new product for your company.

The WBSO covers part of the (wage) costs and expenses you make for the R&D activities. Would you like to know whether you are eligible for the WBSO, or how much tax benefit you can receive? The WBSO tool (in Dutch) will help you.

3 important conditions for the WBSO

• Your business aims to develop a technically new and physical product or production process. Software and technical-scientific research also qualify.
• The R&D work has yet to take place or is in progress.
• You carry out the work in parts according to a plan.

Read more about the conditions for the WBSO and how to apply.

Environmental investment allowance (MIA) and the Random depreciation of environmental investments (Vamil)

Apply for tax benefits via the MIA and Vamil schemes. These 2 schemes are often combined for environmentally friendly investments. You can deduct part of the investment from the profit on which you pay tax. With the Vamil scheme, you decide when this happens. Together, the 2 schemes yield a net benefit of up to 14% of the investment amount.

3 important conditions for the MIA/Vamil

• The investment is on the Environment List and meets all the requirements of this list. The Environment List is updated every year.
• It concerns a new product costing at least €2,500.
• You submit the application within 3 months after the investment.

On the RVO website, you can find all the conditions and submit an application. After the application, you can immediately apply the deductions in your tax return.

Sustainable energy investment subsidy scheme (ISDE)

You can save energy and work on sustainability in many ways within your company. Are you installing a heat pump or solar boiler? With the ISDE, you get part of the investment amount back. 

The amount of the subsidy depends on the type of appliance and its energy performance. For a heat pump, for example, the subsidy is at least €500.

3 important conditions for the ISDE

• You apply for the subsidy before you buy the device.
• You start using the device within 2 years after the decision on the subsidy application. The device remains your property and in use for at least 1 year
• You have not previously made use of the ISDE. Nor have you used any other subsidy or scheme for the device, such as the Energy Investment Allowance (EIA).

SME credit guarantee scheme (BMKB)

Do you want to borrow money, but do you not have enough collateral to secure the loan? Through the BMKB, the government guarantees up to three quarters of your loan. This gives the lender more security and you can borrow more. You pay a one-off commission on the BMKB credit granted. This is a minimum of 3.9% and a maximum of 8.35%.

3 important conditions for the BMKB

• You have a business with up to 250 employees.
• Your company is not active in the following sectors: real estate exploitation, insurance and finance, agriculture and horticulture, fishery.
• You cannot apply for the BMKB yopurself. The lender does this on your behalf.

Are you applying for a loan as a starter or is the loan intended for innovation or sustainability? Then there are extra favourable conditions (in Dutch).

Innovation credit

The innovation credit is a loan of up to €10 million. You can apply for it if you are developing an innovative product or service with positive market prospects and substantial technical risks. The Innovation Credit is available for technical and clinical development projects. The loan can finance up to 45% of your project. For a partnership, this is up to 50%.

You pay an annual interest rate of 3% on the innovation credit. At the end of the project, you repay the borrowed amount plus a surcharge. For technical projects, the surcharge is 15%, and for clinical projects, it is 25%.

3 important conditions for the innovation credit

• You are developing a technically new product, process, or service with a chance that the project may fail due to a technical risk. You must describe this clearly in your plans.The project may not involve any other risks, such as financial or commercial risks.
• The project must deliver a market-ready product, process, or service within 5 years.
• You must provide all kinds of documents, which require a lot of preparation. For example, proof that your product or service will involve fewer technical and medical risks in the future. After the application, you will have an intake interview with an RVO adviser. After this, RVO, together with an external advisory committee, assesses the application.

Read more about the Innovation credit. 

Early stage financing (VFF)

Banks often only give loans when you have a proof- of-concept (a simplified description of your idea that demonstrates that it can be used in practice). If you do not yet have a proof-of-concept, VFF (Vroegefasefinanciering) offers a solution. The maximum loan is €450,000, the interest rate is 7.21%

3 important conditions for VFF

• You must prove that you are an SME using the European Commission’s SME test. 
• You must draw up a business plan (for existing SMEs, a renewal plan) which shows that you are going to grow considerably. 
• You must have a letter of intent from a prospective investor who will fund the next stage. They must be willing to invest at least as much as the government. 

Are you an ambitious starter or SME in Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe or Flevoland? And have you been in business for fewer than 5 years? Do you have an idea for a product or service but need budget to develop your idea? Then apply for VFF directly. Are you an entrepreneur in one of the other Dutch provinces? Then you can apply for this loan through your Regional Development Agency. 

Check the conditions

Some of the important conditions attached to the subsidies and schemes are mentioned in this article. But if you want to apply for a subsidy or scheme, always check the full and current conditions with the administrator of the subsidy or scheme. The amounts and percentages mentioned above are subject to change.

More subsidies for business owners

There are more business subsidies and tax schemes for entrepreneurs. On Business.gov.nl you will find a complete overview of financing options. Using the filters, you can easily find out whether you are eligible for a subsidy and when you can apply for the subsidy.