Strengthening collaborations between Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels – BELCOO

• a company, namely:

- a ‘small company’: any company established as a commercial company, which has at least one business unit in Wallonia, unless otherwise indicated, and which satisfies the definition of a small company or micro-company in the annex to the (EU) Regulation 651/2014 of the Commission of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the interior market, in accordance with Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty;

- a ‘medium-sized company’: any company established as a company, which has at least one business unit in Wallonia, unless otherwise indicated, and which satisfies the definition of a medium-sized company in the annex to the (EU) Regulation 651/2014 of the Commission of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the interior market, in accordance with Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty;

- a ‘large company’: any company established as a commercial company, which has at least one business unit in Wallonia, unless otherwise indicated, and which is not a small or medium-sized company;

- a ‘small, non-autonomous company’: any company that would satisfy the definition of a small or medium enterprise if it was autonomous, within the meaning of Annex 1 of (EC) Regulation no. 651/2014 of the Commission of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the interior market, in accordance with Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty.

The support consists of granting subsidies or recoverable advances (depending on the type of research conducted).

The amount allocated by PSW Research is capped at €500,000 per project.

The submission procedure involves a single stage:

The detailed proposal is completed and sent to the administration using the online form found on the Walloon research portal (helpdesk-style aid), as well as a so-called ‘dome’ form that also explains the role played by the partner company.

Only the date on which the electronic submission is received on the administration’s IT server shall prevail. In the event of multiple electronic submissions of the same detailed proposal, only the last version submitted before the submission deadline will be considered.

The administration provides the sponsor with confirmation of receipt for the application for the programme. This confirmation of receipt mentions the file number, which must be used in any subsequent correspondence concerning the file.

The assessment procedure for detailed proposals comprises several stages:

Stage 1: the proposal will be assessed in accordance with several criteria (including its innovative nature, excellence and experience, the financial return for the Walloon region, etc.) by an expert from the administration

Stage 2: the same proposal is assessed by the funding agency in Brussels (Innoviris) and/or Flanders (VLAIO)

Stage 3: the assessments are compared and an agreement is reached

Stage 4 : the Minister for Research decides on the funding of the projects

Stage 5 : the relevant project leaders will be notified of the proposals selected for funding.

The research project must mobilise a company from two different regions (Wallonia and Brussels, Wallonia and Flanders or, on rarer occasions, Wallonia and Brussels and Flanders).

The maximum duration of the research is set at 36 months.

In order for the project to start, a positive agreement is required from each funding agency.