The objective of the NEOTEC 2024 Program is to support the creation and consolidation of companies in which the business strategy is based on the development of technology.

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Since the purpose of the investment is to support novice entrepreneurs, not the diversification of other existing companies or established entrepreneurs, the company must present a clear R&D plan with a high technological level. Up to 85% of the eligible budget of the action can be financed, with a maximum grant amount of 325,000 euros per beneficiary.

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Characteristics of NEOTEC 2024 grants

Through the NEOTEC 2023 Program, companies can access non-refundable grants of up to 250,000€ or 70% of the total project budget. On this occasion, those companies that incorporate the figure of doctors dedicated to innovation will be able to access grants of up to 325,000€ or 85 per cent of the total project budget. One of the main advantages of the program compared to other grants with similar characteristics is the fact that, for the granting of grants, the CDTI does not require additional guarantees of any kind, understanding that the guarantee is the justification for the project's own business plan.

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Requirements

The grants of the Neotec 2023 Program are aimed at small businesses (with less than 50 employees and 10M euros in turnover) innovative, regardless of the sector and technological field. In addition, to be eligible, the company must:

• To have the fiscal address in Spain.‍
• To have a older than 6 months and less than 3 years, to the closing date of the deadline for submitting applications.
• To have a minimum capital o share capital plus issuance or assumption premium from 20,000€ (written and disbursed).
• Submit a project with a minimum fundable budget of 175,000€. ‍
• Power demonstrate its innovative nature, through the report of an external expert who accredits the future development of new products or services (or the improvement of these) compared to the current state of the art in the sector, implying a certain risk of technological or industrial failure; or through the justification of an auditor who believes that the company's R&D costs represent at least 10% of total operating costs.

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On the other hand, the company must not:

• To have distributed benefits.
• Be listed.
• To have emerged from a corporate transaction of those contemplated in Law 3/2009, of April 3, on structural modifications of commercial companies.
• Consider carrying out an activity that involves environmental harm (an additional condition compared to the requirements of previous calls, imposed by the regulations of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism of the European Union).

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As far as the hiring of doctors is concerned, the contract must:

• To be carried out full time and indefinitely, at least until the completion of the project.
• Occur after the request for aid and no later than the third month from the start of the project.

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How does the CDTI evaluate projects?

The CDTI evaluation committee responsible for evaluating applications evaluates projects based on 4 large, well-differentiated areas: business plan, technology and degree of innovation, management capacity of the entrepreneurial team and assessment of socio-economic and environmental impact. It is important to keep in mind that although the business plan to be submitted must include 5-year estimates, the project to be financed must not have started prior to the request for aid and must last 1 or 2 years. Each of the evaluation areas has some minimum thresholds that companies must achieve to be eligible for aid, and which are defined in:

• Business plan: 15/30. The company must submit both an executive summary and a business operation plan. The committee will evaluate points such as: the business model, the revenue generation forecast, the potential market, barriers to entry, competition and differentiation. ‍
• Technology and degree of innovation: 21/35. It is the most relevant criterion and the first to be evaluated (projects that do not reach the minimum threshold of 21 points will be directly discarded without the need to evaluate the rest of the criteria). The points to be analyzed by the committee are: the proposed technology, the technological need and its differential value, innovation and the technological challenge, and the management of intellectual and industrial property (whether or not there are own patents), as well as the quality of the project itself. ‍
• Management capacity of the entrepreneurial team: 15/30. The committee will evaluate points such as: the competence, training and previous professional experience of the entrepreneurial team in relation to the project presented, the degree of commitment and dedication of the technical and project management team and their relationship with other entities or environments that support entrepreneurship.‍
• Socio-economic and environmental impact: 0/5. The committee will evaluate points such as: the creation of employment planned according to the business plan, the private investments it has been able to mobilize and the measures implemented by the company in relation to gender equality, social inclusion and sustainability.

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For an application to be eligible, it must obtain a minimum final grade of 50 points, having exceeded the minimum thresholds in each of the evaluation criteria. However, the fact that a company or project exceeds the minimum threshold of 50 points will not imply that the aid will be approved, but rather it moves to the competition phase.

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What is the company profile that can request assistance from the NEOTEC 2023 Program?

The grants from the Neotec Program are intended to finance new business projects, whatever their technological field and sector, in which the business strategy is based on the development of its own technology or where the use of technology or knowledge developed based on research activity is required (the CDTI is committed to technology and innovation as competitive factors that contribute to company differentiation). Those projects in which the business model is based on the provision of services to third parties and which, therefore, do not involve the development of their own technology will not be eligible for the grants of this call.

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In the same way, those projects in which the business plan presented does not show continuity in the development of technology, as well as those companies that carry out some type of activity that involves environmental harm, cannot be beneficiaries of the grants. In recent years (between 2015 and 2020), the CDTI has financed through the NEOTEC Program a total of 575 projects with a total budget of 223 M euros, belonging to all the autonomous communities of the country and up to 11 different sectors (health, biotechnology, food, transport and infrastructure...). Although it is true that in recent calls, projects in areas such as information and communication technologies or industrial sectors, including those dedicated to the development of medical devices.

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When to apply for assistance from the NEOTEC 2024 Program?

Companies receiving a NEOTEC Program grant should keep in mind that the aid is disbursed in two different tranches. In the first tranche, 15 days after signing the contract, the company will receive a transfer for 40, 50 or 60% of the total amount of the approved aid (depending on the result of the evaluation). The company will receive the remaining amount when the project is completed, once the final amount of the expenses and investments allocated to the project has been justified. Although the beneficiary companies will receive the first tranche of funding before starting to develop the project, it will not be until 1 or 2 years later (depending on whether the actions are annual or multiannual) when they receive the remaining amount of the aid.

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Thus, since the NEOTEC Program requires projects to consume cash before receiving all the funding, it is important that the companies receiving the aid have previously analyzed their treasury data. It should be noted that in cases where the project eligible by the company exceeds the maximum limit of 325,000€, all expenses and investments of the project must be justified and not just up to that limit.

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In addition, Intelectium recommends assess, as well, the degree of maturity of the company: having a well-established project with some traction and a human team highly linked to the project will increase the chances of being beneficiaries of one of the grants offered by the NEOTEC Program.

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Substitute or complementary funding

El CDTI has established itself as one of the main agents for the financing of Spanish innovation, with the mission of ensuring that the Spanish business fabric generates and transforms scientific-technical knowledge into sustainable and globally competitive growth.

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To this end, it offers different lines of financing that are adapted to all stages and phases of a company's development. With regard to grants from the NEOTEC Program, aimed at financing the costs necessary for the start-up of new business projects of innovative companies, may be compatible with the receipt of other aid from other public or private administrations or entities, both national and international.

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‍El Cervera Program, also promoted by the CDTI, offers funding to strengthen R+D+i projects with the collaboration of technology centers. Sometimes, if the company has a certain financial solvency, an attempt can be made to convert the Neotec project into a CDTI Cervera project.

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Tips for applying for NEOTEC 2024 Program aid

The first essential point that the applicant company must take into account is the compliance with minimum requirements required to participate in the program (small companies that have an electronic certificate to process the application and the innovative company certificate).

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Another important point to increase the chances of succeeding in the call for the NEOTEC Program is the fact that present a report and a clear business plan based on realistic and objective metrics and estimates. Having previously defined the scope of the project and the technology will help to prioritize essential information and draft the 40 pages of the report based on the evaluation criteria set by the committee. The CDTI will highly value the proactive approach to knowledge transfer, therefore, it is important to value the collaboration between the company itself and other universities or research organizations, if it existed.

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To prepare a good report to submit to the call for the NEOTEC Program, it is important that the company has time available and involvement of different members of the team (technology, commercial, business development, etc.), which can sometimes mean no longer dedicating resources to the daily activities and operations of the organization.

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Presenting a project to NEOTEC requires time and resources, so having the support of an expert consultant involves a significant burden of work for the company's team. In addition, choosing to outsource memory development means having the review of a figure external to the company and therefore with a criterion closer to what will be the final criteria of the evaluation committee.

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‍From Intelectium, we are experts in applying for and managing the NEOTEC call. We help you assess your startup's eligibility for the call. Once analyzed, we prepare a detailed report through which we can request and manage NEOTEC help. We operate under a completely success-oriented model, in which we don't charge initial set up fees to start working, but we are at risk and only get paid if we get funding for the company. Get in touch with us hither for expert advice.