TOP tourism grant assistance, part A:  TOP investment

General information

Assistance is provided for investments in tourism and leisure in the areas of:

• Quality improvement
• Business size optimisation, diversification of offerings and innovation
• Setting up and improving tourist infrastructure
• Creating and improving staff accommodation
• Environment and safety-related facilities, accessibility
  • Investments in the course of business takeovers^{German text}

The assistance consists of:

• Projects with investment costs of 100,000 Euro to 700,000 Euro:
• Five percent cash allowance for investments focussing on company size optimisation, investment measures to extend seasons and for repositioning, business and cross-business infrastructure, facilities for employees, accessibility, and energy and resource efficiency
• Projects with investment costs of 100,000 Euro to 5 million Euro:
• TOP impulse loan at favourable interest rates (covers 100 percent)
• Projects with investment costs of 1 million Euro to approx. 8.3 million Euro:
• TOP tourism loan with Federal interest allowance (covers 60 percent)

The funding limit for financial assistance is 5 million Euro.

Enterprises affected

Small and medium-sized businesses in tourism and leisure (SME) with a place of business in Austria and membership of the Federal Tourism and Leisure Industry Division of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WKO) (or companies listed in the annex to Section 2 of the WKG). Members of this division include companies in the catering and hotel sectors, as well as leisure and sports businesses, travel agencies, cinemas, cultural and entertainment businesses and health care businesses.

Deadlines

Applications can be submitted at any time.

Competent authority

Austrian Hotel and Tourism Bank (→ ÖHT)^{German text}
Parkring 12a
1010 Vienna
Email: oeht@oeht.at

Procedure

The application for funding must be submitted to the Austrian Hotel and Tourism Bank (ÖHT), which also administers the remainder of the process, from application review, to decision, to payment. Applications for funding can be submitted via the ÖHT customer portal^{German text}.

Required documents

The materials to be submitted include the following:

• Full completed application form with authorised company signature.

For projects with investment costs up to 700,000 Euro:

• construction plans approved by the planning authorities
• for artificial snow systems:
  legal water use and nature conservation approvals
• costing summary organised by trades
• Signed annual accounts^{German text} or earning/expenditure calculations for the previous two years (if liability is desired: three years)
• Financing and/or grant assistance undertaking(s)
• Rent/lease contract
• Trading permit(s)/concession certificate(s)
• Company register extract(s)
• if liability desired: Forecast estimate for the next five years

For projects with investment costs over 700,000 Euro: 

• construction plans approved by the planning authorities
• brief description of the initial project status
• for artificial snow systems:
  legal water use and nature conservation approvals
• Summary of detailed company bids or request for proposal results broken down by construction activity and facility
• Signed annual accounts or earning/expenditure calculations (together with status of assets) for the previous three years
• Description of financing (promise notes) and collateral
• Property lease contract (if applicable)
• Trading permit(s)
• Company register extract(s)
• Forecast estimate for the period after investment (for a period of five years)
• Repayment obligations per year (principal and interest) for any existing old obligations, and any other obligations (rent, property lease, leases, annuities, etc.), in each case for the next 5 years

Costs and fees

There is generally no charge for the financial assistance applications.

Legal bases

• Guidelines of the Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Regions and Tourism on the TOP Tourism Impulse 2014 to 2020
• Annex to Section 2 of the Wirtschaftskammergesetz (WKG)

Link to form

• TOP tourism grant assistance, part A: Investment − financial assistance application, allowance^{German text}
• TOP tourism grant assistance, part A: Investment − financial assistance application, loan^{German text}