Le Gouvernement du Grand-Duché du Luxembourg
FAQs
Find answers to your questions

On the eligibility requirements

  • No.  It can however not be older than 5 years at the opening date of the respective Fit 4 Start call. For non-autonomous entities, the assessment is performed at the applicant group level.
  • Yes, the Fit 4 Start aid is only accessible to small sized companies. For the purpose of assigning the Fit 4 Start aid, the small sized enterprise definition, as stipulated in annex I in the Commission regulation (EU) N° 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty, applies.
  • Single undertakings that already benefitted from a ‘de minimis’ aid and that with the Fit 4 Start aid would surpass the ceiling of EUR 200.000 over any period of three fiscal years are not eligible, as stipulated in article 3 of the law of 20 December 2019 having as objective the implementation of a de minimis aid scheme.
  • Yes, but the applicant team must be composed of a minimum of two people, with at least one person working full time on the realisation of the project, attending all coaching sessions and Steering Committees during the Coaching Phase of the Programme and being responsible to develop the start-up’s substance & operations in Luxembourg
  • Although it is not a requirement to have a minimum viable product (‘MVP’) when applying, start-ups that have already developed one are strongly preferred.

  • There is no prerequisite for applicants to have incorporated a company at the application stage. It is however not an issue if your company is already incorporated outside of Luxembourg.

    Once selected as participant to the programme and in order to be eligible for the grant (2 instalments and the final balance) from the Ministry of the Economy, you will need to create a company in Luxembourg and obtain your business permit. For further information on the grant, please consult the chapter ‘On the public grant’.  

  • You can submit one application per edition only and it is not possible to be selected for the programme with multiple projects. However, if you are not selected for participation, it is possible to re-apply to another Fit 4 Start edition.
  • No. The Fit 4 Start programme targets for-profit start-ups/projects.

On the initial 6 months of the programme (The "Coaching Phase")

  • It is mandatory to be physically present in Luxembourg for the coaching sessions and steering committee meetings. We also highly recommend you staying here during the Coaching Phase of the programme in order to benefit from additional opportunities, networking and events in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and to get acquainted with the local life. Some programme activities may be organised digitally. You will receive an invitation for each activity a few weeks beforehand.
  • Start-ups that participate in the Fit 4 Start programme can generally choose among the Technoport S.A., the Luxembourg-City Incubator, and the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology. They are official partners of the programme and offer the possibility to register your start-up on the address of their premises.
  • The coaching sessions can take place in the premises of Luxinnovation, the Technoport S.A., the Luxembourg-City Incubator, and the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology . Please note that this indication is preliminary, and the final coaching location is subject to individual planning.
  • Yes, all sessions organised during the Fit 4 Start programme are mandatory and physical attendance is required. Commitment to the programme and attendance to all sessions is a key criterion to a successful completion of the programme.
  • Any failure by a participant to meet any of the guidelines and/or commitments of the programme will lead, by decision of the Organiser, to his/her exclusion, implying the loss of all rights and benefits related to the Fit 4 Start programme.
  • The Fit 4 Start coaching phase is a 6-month acceleration opportunity with 4 coaching blocks & steering committee meetings respectively – makes 4 building blocks in total. While common expert sessions are organised for all Fit 4 Start participants, the individual coaching sessions will be tailored to the specific needs and requirements of your start-up.

  • You can expect 3 to 4 full days of coaching as well as 2 to 3 days of reporting duties per building block (i.e. coaching report, a progress report between 2 steering committees and a one-month review presentation before each steering committee). This includes both expert sessions and individual coaching sessions. Furthermore, you should reserve 1 additional full day per month for steering committee meetings.

    You should also take into account the time required to set and develop your business in Luxembourg.

    Please note that this is an indication only and the final amount of time to reserve is subject to individual planning.

  • Non-compliance with any of the programme guidelines, requirements and/or commitments as well as any use of fraudulent methods or false/misleading information or behaviour circumventing the programme guidelines will lead, by decision of the Organiser, to the participant’s immediate exclusion from the programme.
     
    Any participant who engages in immoral / non-ethical / illegal activities including attempts to tamper with the entry process will be immediately disqualified.
     
    Non-compliant participants will first receive two written warnings by e-mail from the organiser before being officially excluded from the programme.
    A compulsory programme exclusion has immediate effect and will lead automatically for the participant to:
    • the immediate termination of the programme;
    • the immediate loss of all rights, benefits and advantages related to the programme;
    • impacts on the grant.
    Any compulsory Programme exclusion will be promptly and duly notified in writing and via registered mail by the organiser to the participant.
  • Any voluntary early exit from or abandon by a participant of the programme, including the relevant coaching phase, has to be duly notified in writing by the exiting participant to the organiser. Any such voluntary early exit or abandon will entail the relevant participant’s immediate termination of the programme and as such result in:
    • the immediate loss of all rights, benefits and advantages related to the programme;
    • impacts on the grant.
    Any voluntary early programme exit or abandon will be promptly and duly acknowledged in writing by the organiser.

On the pitching sessions

  • The Pitching Sessions will take place in person in Luxembourg. However, the Organiser reserves the right to change at any time to remote sessions, if deemed necessary (e.g. change in the epidemiological situation). Upon receiving the Applicant’s confirmation to attend the Pitching Sessions, the exact date, time, and additional relevant information will be communicated in due course.

  • While there are no prerequisites regarding content, we kindly ask you to comply with the following:

    •  Presentation in English (the timing may be adjusted freely by the Organiser for each focus area. Time will be strictly monitored and pitches beyond the fixed time will be interrupted);
    •  Q&A session.

    Upon request, a pitch deck template can be provided.

On the public grant

  • The programme supports the participants in getting started in Luxembourg by giving access to a grant up to EUR150,000 made available by the Ministry of the Economy in accordance with the law of 20 December 2019 having as objective the implementation of a de minimis aid scheme.
  • Only a legal person, meaning a company duly established in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and having its business permit can have access to the grant. It is impossible for a natural person to access the grant.
  • No. The grant from the Ministry of the Economy is not subject to any equity participation in your start-up. Please consult the question below, for the conditions related to obtaining the 3 tranches (2 instalments and the final balance) of EUR 50.000 / EUR 80.000 / EUR 20.000.

  • The first instalment of EUR 50.000 is accessible to participants in accordance with the following conditions:

    This grant is divided into 3 tranches (2 instalments and the final balance), which are each subject to the following access conditions to be achieved by the applicant company:

    a. The first instalment of EUR 50.000 is accessible to Participants in accordance with the following conditions:
    • The Participants need to have their company established in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and obtain their business permit, meaning:
      1. For start-ups which are not yet incorporated in Luxembourg at the time of their selection: the commercial company must (i) be incorporated within 9 months from the beginning of the Fit 4 Start Programme and (ii) have at the time of its aid application a minimum issued capital of EUR 15.000 (contributions in cash, fully paid-up) and be able to demonstrate a minimum of EUR 15.000 of cash available to the company to develop its activities.
      2. F or start-ups which are already incorporated in Luxembourg at the time of their selection: the commercial company must have at the time of its aid application a minimum issued capital of EUR 15.000 (contributions in cash, fully paid-up) and be able to demonstrate a minimum of EUR 15.000 of cash available to the company to develop its activities.
    •  A company already incorporated by a Participant should be no older than 5 years at the opening date of the respective Fit 4 Start call.
    •  Participants have 9 months as of the beginning of the Programme to submit an application for the first instalment of the aid.
    •  Participants have to submit a detailed budget concerning the use of the first instalment of the aid of EUR 50.000 and the minimum EUR 15.000 of issued capital in compliance with the categories of eligible costs defined under item B. below. Participants have 15 months to spend a minimum of EUR 50.000 of their available funds as of the beginning of the Programme.
    •  Selected participants must be at least 18 years of age as of the starting date of the Programme and need to have a team consisting of at least two people of which at least one will work full time on the realisation of the project, attending all sessions during the Coaching Phase of the Programme and being responsible to develop the start-up’s operations out of Luxembourg.

     

    b. The second instalment of EUR 80.000 is only accessible to successful graduates of the Coaching Phase in accordance with the following conditions:
    •  Graduates have successfully managed to raise a minimum of EUR 50.000 of private equity and to perform a formal capital increase in the Luxembourg commercial company (contributions in cash, fully paid-up), within the period of 12 months from the start of the Programme.
    •  The company has at least 2 full time employees at the time of its application for the second instalment of the aid.
    •  Graduates have spent a minimum of EUR 50.000 within the period of 15 months from the start of the Programme in accordance with their initially submitted budget concerning the use of the first instalment of the aid.
    •  Graduates have 16 months as of the beginning of the Programme to submit an application for the second instalment of the aid and their associated interim project report.
    •  Graduates have to submit an updated budget for the second instalment and the final balance of the aid for a total of EUR 100.000 and the minimum EUR 50.000 of private equity in compliance with the categories of eligible costs defined under item B. below.

     

    c. The final balance of EUR 20.000 is only accessible to successful graduates of the Coaching Phase in accordance with the following conditions:
    •  Graduates have benefited from the first two instalments of the aid.
    •  Graduates have spent in total a minimum of EUR 150.000 of their available funds within the period of 24 months from the start of the Programme, according to the updated budget submitted for the second instalment and the final balance of the aid.
    •  Graduates have 25 months as of the beginning of the Programme to submit an application for the final balance of the aid and their associated final project report.

  • Payment of each instalment of the aid will be subject to a positive assessment by the Initiator of the interim or final project reports submitted by the Participant. In addition, these reports should highlight deviations observed between the initial planning and the further development/progress of the supported project. The Initiator reserves the right to request any supplementary information in order to verify the effective implementation of the supported Fit 4 Start project.

    As part of proper compliance with eligibility and aid payment conditions, Participants have to submit the following project reports:

    Status

    Report

    Latest filing deadline

    All participants

    Interim project report

    16 months as of the beginning of the programme

    Graduates

    Final project rapport

    25 months as of the beginning of the programme

     

    Furthermore, the Participants’ attention is drawn to the following facts:

    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that refusal of / non-compliance with the submission of an interim or the final project report may result in the loss of eligibility for this state aid and the immediate reimbursement of the amount of the grant paid, plus applicable legal interest.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that, in the event of non-graduation from the Coaching Phase or unsuccessful raise of a minimum of EUR 50.000 of private equity, the Participant is still required to submit to the Initiator within the period mentioned above an interim project report relating to the use of the first instalment of the aid of EUR 50,000. Refusal of / non-compliance with the submission of such interim project report may result in the loss of eligibility for this state aid and the immediate reimbursement of the amount of the grant paid, plus applicable legal interest.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that, in the event of a voluntary early exit from or abandon of the Programme by the Participant, participation to the Programme will cease as from the date of such event and any outstanding aid payments be immediately suspended.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that, in the event of a compulsory exclusion of the Participant from the Programme, participation to the Programme will cease as from the date of such event and any outstanding aid payments be immediately suspended.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that any voluntary early exit from or abandon of the Programme by the Participant or any compulsory exclusion occurring after the receipt of any instalment of the aid still requires the submission to the Initiator of an interim project report detailing, among others, the use of the aid instalment(s) received. Such project report should be submitted by the Participant within one month following the date of the relevant exit event. Refusal of / non-compliance with the submission of such interim project report may result in the loss of eligibility for this state aid and the immediate reimbursement of the amount of the grant paid, plus applicable legal interest.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that, in the event of bankruptcy, judicial or voluntary liquidation of the Participant, participation to the Programme will cease as from the date of such event and any outstanding aid payments be immediately suspended.
    • By submitting an application, the Participant accepts that any misuse and/or the disbursement of the aid received in discord with the budget submitted and/or the categories of eligible costs described here below may result in the loss of eligibility for this state aid and the immediate reimbursement of the amount of the grant paid, plus applicable legal interest.

    Regarding the appropriate accounting and/or tax treatments of the grant, Participants should consult their fiduciary/accountant and/or tax advisor.

  • Graduates should successfully manage to raise a minimum of EUR 50.000 of private equity within the period of one year from the start of the programme.

  • Eligible costs, all of which have to be in direct relation with the realization of the applicant company’s Fit 4 Start project, are categorized as follows:

    Category

    Description

    Personnel costs

    Remuneration and social contributions of technical and non-technical staff dedicated to the project.

    Technical and development costs

    Rent/acquisition of technical equipment/software, certifications, IP protection, regulatory advice, procurement of specific technical expertise.

    Testing costs

    Procurement and execution of product/service testing (ex: renting of environmental testing facilities or specific test environments, procurement of testing services, laboratory tests, clinical trials, etc.).

    Data acquisition costs

    Procurement of specific data and/or databases.

    Customer discovery costs

    User experience analysis, sales related activities.

    Facilities & Infrastructure costs

     

    Rent of laboratory and/or office space, IT infrastructure, Cloud and HPC usage, etc.

    General & Administration costs

     

    Telecommunication, accounting, insurance, legal advice, etc.

     

    For the purpose of proper expenses verification and prior to the release of the second instalment and the final balance of the aid the participant must submit a report (or extract from its accounting records) having been duly certified by an external auditor showing all aforementioned project related expenses.

    The participant’s attention is drawn to the fact that additional information can be requested by the Ministry of the Economy at its sole discretion in order to verify all respective project costs and/or other financial data prior to the release of the respective aid instalment.

    Ineligible costs:

    Are considered among others as “ineligible costs” any cost (i) occurred before the start of the Fit 4 Start Programme, (ii) before the incorporation of the company which applied for the state aid, (iii) not directly related to the respective Fit 4 Start project as well as (iv) any financial cost (ex: reimbursement and/or interest payments related to any type of loan, etc.). The heretofore-enumerated items constitute a non-exhaustive list only and costs other than those categorized as “eligible” have to be duly considered on a case-by-case basis.
  • Please refer to the question ‘Which conditions are linked to receiving the first instalment of EUR 50.000 and how can the second instalment of EUR 80.000 as well as the final balance of EUR 20.000 be unlocked?’.
    1.  Incorporate your company in Luxembourg and obtain your business permit;
    2.  Send your grant application and all relevant documents to Luxinnovation for review;
    3.  Submit your complete grant application file to the Ministry of the Economy once you have received feedback from Luxinnovation.

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