All Luxembourg companies carrying out an economic activity involving export are eligible, with the exception of the following sectors :

Excluded sectors and activities:

• Financial (banking, insurance, trustees, chartered accountants and auditors of companies and investment funds) with the exception of Fintech
• Real estate promotion
• Culture including art galleries, whose principal purpose is not commercial
• Tourism
• Training
• Primary production of agricultural products, fishing or any other activity related to the production, processing or marketing of the products listed in annex 1 of the Treaty of the EU
• Extraction of the most polluting fossil fuels, in particular shale gas and coal
• Interim work
• NPO – Nonprofit organization
• EIG – Economic interest group

General scheme :

Eligibility conditions:

Be a Luxembourg company economically engaged in export activities.

• Have a valid business permit and all other permits that are legally required to carry out its activity.
• Exist for at least 3 years (if this is not the case, consult the scheme for young and/or micro-companies “YMC”).
• Be a financially company i.e., have positive equity and adequate liquidity to finance activities in profitable means.
• Have at least 2 employees (if this is not the case, consult the scheme for young and/or micro-companies “YMC”).
• Represent a substantial added value for the Luxembourg economy.

Examples of indicators that reflects a company’s added value for the Luxembourg economy:

• Company development: total growth and export turnover and number of employees
• Positive development prospectives
• Business activity carried out in Luxembourg (production, processing, sales, marketing, research and development, operating with Luxembourg subcontractors, etc.)
• Luxembourg visibility of the company

Scheme for young and/or micro-companies “YMC”

The annual ceiling for all types of aid for YMC is €10,000.

Companies whose products/services are not ready to be sold are not eligible

Classification under the “YMC” scheme (criteria non-accumulative) :

Are automatically classified under “YMC”:  Start-ups, SARL-S and companies employing less than two employees

With the first request the Copel classifies the company under the “General” or “YMC” scheme.

Based on the information gathered, the COPEL has the right to reclassify a company from the General to the YMC scheme.

If the following conditions are met a company classified under the YMC can ask to be reevaluated:

• be a financially healthy company i.e., have positive equity and adequate liquidity to finance activities in profitable means
• have at least 2 employees
• demonstrate real growth in turnover
• represent a substantial added value for the Luxembourg economy (see examples of indicators).

The company must provide a detailed presentation showcasing the following points:

• a description of the company’s business activities, any changes to its articles of association, its growth prospects, and any other documents relevant to the analysis
• a CCSS certificate confirming the current number of employees
• full annual accounts for N-2 and N-1 (balance sheets, profit and loss accounts and notes).

Submission of an application

The request must be sent before any costs are incurred, i.e. before the offer/order confirmation is signed and before the project begins.

Exception: In case of participating in a trade fair/seminar/conference abroad, the application must be submitted before the start date of the event, even if some costs have already been incurred.

The online form in French, German and English is available on the platform MyGuichet.lu.

https://guichet.public.lu/en/entreprises/financement-aides/regime-pme/aide-exportation-frais-promotion-exposition/aide-exportation.html

To access the MyGuichet.lu portal, the user needs:

• a LuxTrust product or an eID (Luxembourg electronic identity card).
• a national identification number (13 digit number)
• a legal electronic signature
• a certificate of authentification which allows to access to the State online aid applications
• a professional space in MyGuichet.lu

Steps to follow :

• complete the application form according to the instructions
• check the data entered and confirm
• sign the application form
• add all the requested documents (balance sheets, organisational chart, quotation, registration form)
• submit the application.

As soon as the application has been submitted, you will automatically receive an e-mail confirming that your application has been submitted.

Contact: Guichet.lu Helpdesk; phone: (+ 352) 247-82000

Documents to add to your application if you are applying for the first time:

• Two recent and complete annual accounts (balance sheets, profit and loss accounts and annexes) or, if not available, a detailed business plan
• Complete organisational chart, detailing the structure of the company with all the entities in the group at national and international level, controlled by the same entity or individual, their respective percentage in the holdings and their activities and relationships within the group
• Current CCSS certificate showing the number of employees
• Bank details (RIB)
• Register of beneficial owners (current RBE).

For consecutive applications, please attach the most recent annual accounts and any amendments to the articles of association.

Additional explanations or documents may be requested when analysing the applications.

Response time

The Committee meets once a month to analyse complete applications.

The decision is communicated by e-mail.

If your application is accepted, you will receive a letter of commitment valid for 6 months. This validity can be extended on written request before the end of the validity of the commitment. In all your communications, please always quote the file number.

Incomplete applications are automatically closed after 90 calendar days. Rejected applications are closed at the end of the appeal period.

Request for reimbursement

The request for a reimbursement must be sent by e-mail or post within the validity of the commitment, including by the following documents :

• paid invoices for eligible expenses
• proof of payment (bank statements/debit notes)
• order confirmation dated and signed.

The file number must be clearly indicated in the request for reimbursement.

If all the criteria are met, the eligible amount (determined based on invoices and proof of payment) will be reimbursed to the company’s Luxembourg bank account. Copel reserves the right to request a bank details statement (RIB).

An grant letter will then be sent by e-mail to confirm payment.

Appeal

A company might challenge a decision of ODL by introducing a legal appeal before the administrative court. This recourse must take the form of a petition signed by a court lawyer within 3 months from the notification of the decision.

Within the same period of time, the company might challenge the decision of ODL by introducing a non-contentious appeal of the decision of ODL. To do so, the company has to send a registered letter to ODL in which it has to present the facts and its claims and add all documents it deems useful.

In the event of a non-contentious appeal, the time limit for introducing a legal appeal before the administrative court is suspended. If within three months from the introduction of the non-contentious appeal, a new decision is made or if no decision is made, a new period of three months to introduce the legal appeal before the administrative court begins to run.

The company might also introduce a complaint with the Mediator – Ombudsman. This complaint does not interrupt or suspend the legal deadlines for non-contentious and legal appeals. The mediator cannot change the decision taken, but will intervene with ODL to find an amicable agreement.