If you have a technology company with innovation as part of its DNA, you can access one of the best ways to obtain funding: grants and subsidies.

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The Center for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI), under the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, has its Innovation Hotline (LIC). This line of aid is aimed at projects that involve investment or expenditure in innovative techniques or technologies or the substantial improvement of processes, products or services, regardless of the sector of activity in which they operate or size.

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‍This is not a grant, but rather an aid that must be returned. The CDTI offers subsidized credit that can be returned through two options: a 6-year amortization period including a grace period at the fixed rate of Euribor + 1.50% or a repayment period of 4 years including a grace period at the rate of Euribor + 0.75%.

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Companies or projects must submit their plans and only 85% of the budget will be funded. It includes a grant of up to 7%. Companies must cover the remaining 15% through their own resources or external funding.

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For the CDTI line, it is required as a condition that candidate projects have a minimum amount of 175,000 euros, which would be linked to investments in equipment and expenditure on personnel costs, external industrial collaborations (suppliers) and R&D (research centers). An advance of 35% of the aid is offered with a limit of 400,000 euros, without requiring additional guarantees to the financial conditions valid by the Board of Directors.

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The projects must be executed at a maximum interval of 18 months and the expenses must not have started prior to the request for the aid.

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Those interested can ask for help at any time of the year, since the call is permanent and there is no deadline of any kind.

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To be eligible for assistance, projects must be categorized in one of the following three points:

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• ‍Incorporation and active adaptation of emerging technologies in the company, as well as the processes of adaptation and improvement of technologies to new markets.‍
• Application of industrial design and product and process engineering for their improvement.‍
• Application of a new or significantly improved method of supply or production, including significant changes in techniques, equipment and/or computer programs.

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On the other hand, eligible concepts will be: Acquisition of new assets (both tangible and intangible), personnel, material and consumable costs, external collaborations, and auditing costs.

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For large companies, the costs of intangible assets will only be bankable up to a limit of 50 percent of the total eligible investment costs. In addition, aid should have an incentive effect. P

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Therefore, the application must be submitted before starting work on the submitted project. It is understood as starting work on the project, the beginning of construction work on the investment or, the first firm commitment for the request of equipment, materials or other commitments. In short, LIC finances future projects, not started before your request.

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Is LIC the same as LIC A? What is the Direct Line to Expansion?

Do not confuse the LIC program with the LIC A program, also from CDTI. This is a variant of the first of the Direct Line to Expansion.

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‍Beyond the name and the fact that it is a continuous call all year round, the two programs have few more similarities. LIC A also seeks to promote innovation, but in a more localized way. Thus, its purpose is to promote it in certain Spanish regions, improving the capacities of companies. Since last April, this line has been extended to the entire regional aid map, not focusing only on some specific autonomous communities.

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It is a partially reimbursable aid that covers up to 75% of the approved budget (the LIC reached 85%) and can be returned in 7 years, with a 1-year grace period from the end of the project. In this regard, the advantage is that the interval for repaying the aid is somewhat longer.

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‍The LIC A program finances eligible expenses on tangible assets, consisting of facilities, machinery and equipment, and also intangible assets, such as patents, licenses, technical knowledge and other intellectual and industrial property rights. Something that it does share with the LIC line is the execution period (at most 18 months) and the minimum budget (175.00 euros). The CDTI has set a maximum of 30 million euros for projects that aim to obtain LIC A.

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LIC A: Investment grants in assisted areas.

Projects eligible for funding.

• ‍Initial investment grants: tangible and intangible assets related to the creation of a new establishment, the expansion of the capacity of an existing establishment, the diversification of the production of an establishment into products that were not previously produced there, or a fundamental transformation of the overall production process of an existing establishment.
• ‍Grants for initial investment in favor of a new economic activity: investment in tangible and intangible assets related to the creation of a new establishment or the diversification of the activity of an establishment, as long as the new activity is not an identical or similar activity to that carried out previously in the establishment. Projects that promote activities in the steel, coal, shipbuilding or synthetic fibers sectors cannot be eligible for aid. Aid to the transport sector and related infrastructure is also excluded. And to energy production, distribution and infrastructure, as well as the fishery and aquaculture products sector, the primary agricultural production sector and aid aimed at facilitating the closure of uncompetitive coal mines.

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‍Application Deadline: Open call throughout the year, with no competitive form of competition.

‍Entity/body convening the aid: Center for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI)

‍Regions benefiting from the LIC A modality of the CDTI LIC aid:-Aragón, with the exception of Zaragoza capital. -Asturias-Balearic Islands-Cantabria-Castile and Leon-Catalonia (not all regions) -Autonomous City of Ceuta-Community of Madrid (not all regions) -Galicia-Navarra (not all regions) -La Rioja (not all regions) -Basque Country (not all regions) LIC A aid requires that once the creation of the new economic activity is completed, investment must be kept in the place where the project is developed by an SME.