TOP tourism grant assistance, part B: Young entrepreneurs

General information

Financial assistance is provided for material costs (construction work, setup, business acquisition, and compensation during the business transfer process).

The financial assistance consists of an allowance in the amount of 7.5 percent of the assistance assessment basis - provided that the Province provides an allowance at least equal in size to that provided by the Federal Government. The assumption of liabilities for commercial bank financing is also an option.  A lower limit of EUR 20,000 to an upper limit of no more than EUR 250,000 is used as the assessment basis. For assistance-eligible costs in excess of the assessment basis, the conditions from the TOP impulse guidelines, part A: ‘TOP investment’, apply.

Enterprises affected

• Young entrepreneurs in tourism and leisure with a place of business in Austria and a membership in the WKO of the federal division of tourism and leisure industry (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.
• The young entrepreneur must not have been self-employed within the five years prior to the foundation or transfer^{German text} ; they must have given up any non-self-employment and have the qualifications required to manage a travel and tourism business.
• When founding a legal entity or other company under enterprise law, the young entrepreneur must have a share of at least 25 percent and must assume responsibility for the management in accordance with trading and commercial law.
• When taking over a legal entity or other company under enterprise law, the transferee must have a share of at least 50 percent and must assume responsibility for the management in accordance with trading and commercial law.
• The young enterpreneur must raise stockholder equity in the amount of at least 25 percent of the total costs.

Deadlines

Applications can be submitted at any time.

Competent authority

Austrian Hotel and Tourism Bank (→ ÖHT)
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.

Required documents

The materials to be submitted include the following:

• Full completed and signed application form
• Construction plans approved by the planning authorities
• Operating licence^{German text}
• Detailed costing summary organised by trades
• Proof of qualifications based on the submission of certificates and similar
• Excerpt from insurance data, including data for the past five years for the managing director under trading law
• For a company takeover^{German text}: additionally, purchase or handover contract and, if possible, balance sheet together with profit and loss calculation for the last financial year for the company to be taken over
• Rent/lease contract
• Plan estimate with detailed anticipated earnings and costs for the next five years
• For partnerships/ registered firms: additionally company register excerpt^{German text} and memorandum of association
• Trading permit(s)/concession certificate(s)
• Financing and/or grant assistance undertaking(s)
• Proof of stockholder capital in the amount of 25 percent of the investment costs
• Precise details regarding any interwoven capital arrangements
• For franchising: additionally 
  franchise contract, rent contract, if appropriate

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 - 2020^{German text}
• Annex to Section 2 of the Wirtschaftskammergesetz (WKG)

Link to form

• TOP tourism grant assistance, part B – young entrepreneurs - financial assistance application^{German text}