Non-Repayable Grants for Companies

The main active or recurring programmes include CDTI Neotec (up to €325,000 for recently created technology companies, with the 2026 call published in BOE-B-2026-10827), Hazitek from the Basque Government/SPRI (up to 50% of the R&D budget, €93M in 2025), ACCIÓ Startup Capital in Catalonia (up to €75,000), Activa Startups from the Spanish Ministry of Industry (up to €9,500 at 100%), ICEX Next for international expansion (up to €24,000), Startup Madrid (€60,000–250,000) and INNOVA-CV in the Valencian Community. Calls are reopened every year, with application windows of only a few weeks.

Yes. Non-repayable grants count as income and must be included in the taxable base of Impuesto sobre Sociedades (Spanish corporate income tax). However, if the grant funds fixed assets (machinery, equipment, installations), the income is recognised in proportion to the depreciation of the asset funded, rather than 100% in the year of the award. That limits the immediate tax impact. The grant is also compatible with R&D&I tax deductions under Art. 35 LIS: the share of the cost not covered by the grant remains deductible at 25-42%. Tecnocim coordinates the tax strategy to maximise the combined return.

Yes, within limits. Support under the de minimis regime (EU Regulation 2023/2831) can be accumulated up to a maximum of €300,000 per company over three consecutive tax years (a ceiling raised from €200,000 in January 2024). Support under specific State aid frameworks (R&D, regional investment) follows its own accumulation rules. In practice, a well-advised SME can combine a regional R&D grant with a tax deduction under Art. 35 LIS and Social Security contribution reductions for research staff, covering between 50% and 80% of the total cost of the innovation project.

Eligible costs vary from one programme to another, but the most common are: direct staff (salaries of researchers and technical staff working on the project), materials and consumables, equipment and machinery (in full or depreciated over the project), subcontracted external services (technical consultancy, analysis, testing), intellectual property costs (patents, licences) and indirect overheads (usually a flat 15% of direct costs). Costs must be directly linked to the project, incurred within the eligibility period and documented with original invoices. Recoverable VAT and financial expenses are not eligible.

Timescales vary considerably. The award decision takes between 3 and 12 months after the call closes. Some programmes pay between 25% and 75% of the grant at the start of the project. The final payment is released once the costs have been reported, a process that can take a further 3 to 6 months. The full cycle from application to final payment can run from 18 months to 3 years. This is why cash-flow planning is critical: the company has to fund the costs up front and recover them later. Tecnocim supports the whole cycle to keep delays to a minimum.