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In recent days the Government has announced a number of further supports to SME's.
These measures introduced by Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke are designed to further reduce costs for small to medium sized businesses.
The newly announced measures include:
- ICOB(Increased Cost Of Business) scheme re-opened for an additional 14 day's. The scheme has now been extended to Wednesday May 29th. View our blog on the ICOB Scheme
- Introduction of a second payment of ICOB for businesses in the retail and hospitality sectors.View our blog on the ICOB Scheme
- Doubling of the Innovation Grant Scheme to €10,000
- Increasing the maximum amount available under the Energy Efficiency Grant Scheme to €10,000 and reducing the business contribution rate from 50% to 25%
- Widening the eligibility for the Trading Online Voucher, (extended to all sectors up to 50 employees), modernise eligible expenditure and doubling the grant to €5,000
- Increasing the lending limit for Microfinance Ireland loans to €50,000 from €25,000
- Widening the eligibility for the Digital for Business Consultancy Scheme and extending it to all sectors with up to 50 employees
- Launching a new ‘Ireland’s Best Entrepreneur Programme’ to encourage entrepreneurship and startups in under-represented groups
- Launching the new online National Enterprise Hub for SMEs to access information on the wide range of government business supports
- Implementing an enhanced ‘SME Test’ by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in conjunction with the Department of the Taoiseach
- Review ESRI research on the impact of Statutory Sick Leave before deciding on any further increases
- Review the proposed Roadmap for Increasing Minimum Annual Remuneration Thresholds for Employment Permits
Notice was also made of progress in terms of several matters, including:
- Plans to increase the PRSI threshold from €441 to €496 with effect from 1 October 2024.
- Plans to develop proposals for the effective and sustainable use of the €1.5 billion surplus in the National Training Fund to future proof workforce skills in SMEs and ensure workers in SMEs can readily access lifelong learning opportunities
- Planned issue of a circular letter to local authorities informing them that no fees shall be charged or levied for tables and chairs for the purpose of outdoor dining up to 31 December 2024.
Should you require any assistance with your ICOB grant application or any other topic raised above please do not hesitate to contact a member of the DBASS team on info@dbass.ie or 01 849 88 00, we would be happy to help.