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Technology-oriented business start-ups; applying for funding

The Free State of Bavaria supports research and development (R&D) projects by founders in the field of general technologies, provided they can be assigned to industrial research or experimental development.

Online services

Online services

  • Elektronische Antragstellung (ELAN)
    The funding proposal can be entered electronically on the platform and released for review and further processing. The application must then be printed out, signed and sent to the named recipient. Access data is provided by Projektträger Bayern.

Responsible for you

Bayern Innovativ GmbH - Projektträger Bayern

Street address

Am Tullnaupark 8
90402 Nürnberg

Postal address

Am Tullnaupark 8

90402 Nürnberg

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Procedure details

Purpose

The funding is intended to stimulate company start-ups in promising areas of technology and to support newly founded companies. Funding can be provided for technologically and economically risky development projects that are related to the establishment of technology-oriented companies and aim to build up or strengthen the technological basis of newly founded and small companies.

Object

Funding is available for projects involving the development of technologically new or significantly improved products, production processes and knowledge-based services, from the initial idea to a fully functional prototype. If there is not yet a viable technological concept ready for assessment for the establishment of the company, concept projects for its creation can be funded (pre-development). A product or production process is considered new if it is not yet on the market in the European Economic Area. Existing industrial property rights must not be infringed.

Recipients of funding

Eligible applicants are persons who intend to set up a technology-oriented company and have the technical expertise required to carry out the project, or technology-oriented companies in the commercial sector that have been in existence for less than six years and have fewer than ten employees and meet the requirements for a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME).

Eligible costs

The following can be funded

  • Personnel costs (lump sums),
  • Costs for instruments and equipment,
  • Costs for contract research, technical knowledge and patents acquired directly or under license from third parties as well as costs for consulting and equivalent services used exclusively for the research and development project,
  • other operating costs (materials, consumables, etc.) incurred directly as a result of research and development activities

Type and scope

The grant is provided as partial funding in the form of subsidies as part of project funding.

The aid intensity is up to 45% of the eligible costs of the R&D project, and up to 35% for concept projects.

  • The implementation of the project must be associated with a considerable technical and economic risk, but must nevertheless appear to be technically feasible on the basis of the proposed solution.
  • The project must be characterized by a high degree of innovation, i.e. the technologies, products and services to be developed must go beyond the state of the art in science and technology.
  • The applicant must carry out the essential parts of the project in Bavaria.
  • Projects that have already been started before the project management organization receives a verifiable application or are being carried out on behalf of third parties are not eligible for funding.
  • The applicant company must have specific research and development capacities.
  • Applicants must provide evidence that they are using an appropriate amount of their own or external funds to finance the project, which are not financed or subsidized by other public funds.
  • Cumulation with European Union funds or other state aid is generally not possible.
  • Companies in difficulty will not be supported. This applies in particular to applicants for whom insolvency proceedings have been applied for or opened.

  • detailed project description including exploitation plan

  • Outlines and applications for grants must be submitted to the Bavarian Project Management Agency.
  • Applications must be submitted in a specific form and must be submitted electronically. The access data for this can be obtained from the project management organization. Further information is available on the Internet platform for electronic applications (ELAN) of the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy (see "Online procedure").
  • The Bavarian Project Management Agency will review the outlines and applications in the name of and on behalf of the Free State of Bavaria, will make a recommendation for the funding decision, if necessary with the involvement of experts, and will process the funding, process the payment requests, review the interim reports, the proof of use and the utilization reports as well as handle the correspondence with the applicants. The project management organization is entitled to obtain explanations from the applicants regarding the applications and the processing of the funding. The project management organization is obliged to maintain confidentiality.
  • The granting authority is the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy. The approval authority issues the grant notification and disburses the funding. The calls for funds and the proof of use must be submitted to the project management organization, which forwards them to the granting authority.

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The processing time from the first application to the funding decision is around 6 months or 3 months for concept projects. Once the first verifiable application has been submitted, the project can be started at the applicant's own risk.

Early contact with the project sponsor is recommended. Funding is provided without legal entitlement within the scope of available budget funds.

Administrative court action

Status: 26.05.2025
Editorially responsible for prodecure description: Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Landesentwicklung und Energie
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