Guidelines for Regional Aid 2021-2022
The guidelines of the European Commission for regional aid explain the conditions, incentives, and criteria that state aid must meet to promote regional development and territorial cohesion in disadvantaged EU areas.
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Grant criteria
Funding objective
The aim of the guidelines is to support investments in A and C funding areas, create jobs, and reduce regional disparities, while simultaneously avoiding distortions of competition.
Eligible expenses
- Investment costs for tangible and intangible assets
- Projected wage costs for created jobs
Eligible to apply
- Companies
Funding requirements
- The investment must contribute to job creation and regional development
- No relocation of business premises is permitted
- Compliance with national and EU-specific criteria regarding per capita GDP and unemployment rate
Documents required for application
- Standard application form
- Proof of economic indicators (per capita GDP, unemployment rate)
- Evidence of planned investment measures
Evaluation criteria
- Incentive effect
- Necessity
- Suitability
- Appropriateness
- Avoidance of negative impacts on competition and trade
- Transparency
Description
The Regional Aid Guidelines 2021‑2022 provide a comprehensive framework that enables the Member States of the European Union to deploy state aid specifically to promote regional development and territorial cohesion. These guidelines define the conditions under which aid may be granted to ensure compliance with the requirements of the internal market. A clear distinction is made between investment aid and operating aid: investment aid is intended, for example, to support the establishment of new business sites or the expansion of existing infrastructure, while operating aid aims to offset ongoing additional costs in structurally disadvantaged regions. The provisions take into account socioeconomic indicators such as GDP per capita, unemployment rates, and population densities to make the selection of A and C aid areas transparent and comprehensible.
In detail, the guidelines enable Member States to precisely determine the eligible costs—whether for tangible and intangible assets or projected wage costs. This ensures that the granted aid has a clear incentive effect that significantly influences investment and location decisions. In particular, companies, both large and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are to be motivated by the funding to initiate additional economic activities in the designated aid areas or to intensify existing activities. In areas undergoing significant structural change or experiencing population decline, higher maximum aid intensities may be permitted to address the specific challenges of these regions.
Furthermore, the guidelines place great emphasis on transparency and monitoring. Member States are obliged to make all relevant information on granted aid publicly accessible via central national or European aid transparency databases in a standardized format. Detailed records and regular evaluations are intended to ensure that the positive effects of the aid—such as job creation and the stimulation of local economic activities—clearly outweigh any potential distortions of competition and negative impacts on trade between Member States. Overall, the guidelines offer a balanced, practice-oriented framework that contributes to reducing regional disparities and sustainably strengthening social and economic cohesion within the European Union.