Benefit from business support for carrying out a research project – Win4Company

Enterprises established in the form of commercial companies under the Companies Code:

• active in any sector;
• of any size: small, medium and large enterprises.

The maximum share of the eligible expenditure covered by the Walloon Region depends on the classification of the research and the size of the enterprise (small, medium-sized, large enterprise): industrial research, experimental development.

For research that qualifies as industrial research, support is awarded in the form of a grant:

• 50% in the case of a large enterprise;
• 60% in the case of a medium-sized enterprise;
• 70% in the case of a small enterprise.

For research qualifying as experimental development, support is granted in the form of a recoverable advance:

• 35% in the case of a large enterprise;
• 45% in the case of a medium-sized enterprise;
• 55% in the case of a small enterprise.

Under certain conditions, these rates may be increased in the case of effective cooperation between a Walloon SME and at least one other Walloon enterprise, on the one hand, and a Walloon enterprise and an enterprise located outside Wallonia, on the other hand. The increase is 10% for grant financing and 15% for recoverable advance financing.

Eligible expenses include:

• Personnel expenses for researchers and technicians;
• Operating expenses (cost of materials, supplies, etc.);
• Overheads;
• The cost of the equipment used (acquisition or depreciation);
• Subcontracting expenses.

Win4Company aid applications submitted by enterprises are processed individually and throughout the year (an approach also called ‘counter aid’ or ‘rolling application’). The project evaluation and monitoring process comprises the following stages:

• (A) The beneficiary’s declaration of intent.

It is advisable to request an appointment with a technical agent directly (if you have already had prior contact with them) or via win4company.recherche@spw.wallonie.be

Following this meeting, the technical manager will contact you to organise a presentation of your project to discuss the relevance of the funding requested.

• (B) Submission of the final proposal

Project applications are submitted as a form to be completed together with various budget appendices on the ONTIME platform (PROJECT axis – Win4Company measure).

• (C) Examination of the application

This is a technical analysis of the proposal by a technical officer and the analysis of the enterprise’s financial capacity by a financial officer. Any additional information is sent to the beneficiary. The officers may inquire in the enterprise if further details are required to complete the examination.

• (D) Decision

The decision is made by a selection committee comprising representatives from the administration and the supervisory authority. The committee meetings are organised at fixed intervals.

• (E) Execution of the agreement

If the decision is positive, this stage involves drafting the grant agreement that will enable the release of initial working capital to finance the project.

• (F) Monitoring

The project is then monitored by the authorities throughout its term. Claims and technical reports are drawn up by the beneficiary to obtain the payment of the various instalments of grants or recoverable advances in accordance with budget spending, PE, ME, GE, small enterprise, large enterprise, medium-sized enterprise

Remedies

How do I contact the department that made the decision?

In addition to the appeal procedures set out below, you may contact the administrative department that made the decision at any time, in particular to:

• obtain further explanations regarding the decision;
• supplement your initial application with information not known to the authorities;
• communicate your arguments.

 The department you need to contact is as follows:

SPW Économie, Emploi, Recherche

Département de la Recherche et du Développement technologique (Research and Technological Development Department)

Place de la Wallonie, 1 (building No. III), 5100 NAMUR (JAMBES)

Tel.: +32 (0)81 33 45 32

There are no special formal requisites to be completed in order to benefit from such free approach to the authorities, and it does not suspend the time limits for lodging an appeal. The absence of a response from the authorities does not constitute acceptance of your request.

How do I lodge an appeal?

Except for cases in which the dispute could be interpreted as relating to a right, for which only the courts and tribunals of the judicial system have jurisdiction, an appeal may be lodged with the Council of State, in accordance with the procedures described below.

Application for annulment

Annulment of a decision may be requested by applying to the Council of State either:

• by electronic means at the following address https://eproadmin.raadvst-consetat.be;
• by registered mail, dated and signed, to:

Council of State

Greffe

Section du Contentieux administratif (Administrative Litigation Section)

Rue de la Science, 33

1040 Brussels

You must submit your request within 60 calendar days of the date of delivery of the contested decision.

It is up to you to set out in your application the ‘grounds’ for your appeal, i.e. the rules of law that have been infringed by the decision and the way in which they have been infringed.

Request for suspension

Sending an application for annulment does not suspend the effects of the decision.

Therefore, if there is an urgency incompatible with the processing of the case for annulment and if there is a serious argument that is clearly likely to lead to annulment, you may apply to the Council of State for the decision to be suspended.

The request for suspension may be submitted before, at the same time or after the application for annulment is sent.

In exceptional cases and under special conditions, you may also request suspension of the decision on grounds of extreme urgency.

Practical information

The application for annulment and the request for suspension are valid only if they contain certain annexes and information. For details, please refer to the coordinated laws and decrees mentioned below and available at http://www.raadvst-consetat.be (the ‘Procedure’ section).

Each appellant must pay a fee of EUR 200 (amount as of 9 January 2017) by means of a bank transfer form which will be sent to them after receipt of the appeal. There is currently no time limit for payment, and the sum may therefore be paid any time before the close of the proceedings.

For further information: laws on the Council of State, coordinated on 12 January 1973, Decree of the Regent of 23 August 1948 determining the procedure before the Administrative Litigation Section of the Council of State, Royal Decree of 5 December 1991 determining the summary procedure before the Council of State, available at http://www.raadvst-consetat.be (the ‘Procedure’ section).

SME definition

• An SME is a company that employs fewer than 250 people and has an annual turnover of less than EUR 50 million or an annual balance sheet total not exceeding EUR 43 million.
• The SME must be a legal entity carrying on an economic activity, registered with the Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises (BCE) and established in commercial form within the meaning of the Companies Code.

Eligibility criteria:

A project application is eligible if it meets all of the following criteria:

• The enterprise is established as a commercial company under the Companies Code;
• The enterprise has its registered office in Wallonia;
• The enterprise must not be in financial difficulty;
• The enterprise is in good standing with respect to VAT, the National Social Security Office (ONSS), and the Region;
• The project has not received public funding yet.

Evaluation criteria and project selection

Projects are assessed according to the legal basis defined below:

• The innovative nature of the project;
• The quality of the project, its technical feasibility and its relevance to the Region’s technical and economic needs;
• The enterprise must be able to promote the expected results of the project;
• The project must contribute to sustainable development;
• The enterprise must be in a position to meet the current and foreseeable financial requirements of the project or be able to find additional financing to meet these requirements;
• The project must involve a clear degree of risk.