Factsheet for case
EE-2020-20/962
–
Updated
– measures in Estonia
Grants for SMEs and entrepreneurs in tourism, accommodation, catering, travel and commerce sectors
Turismi-, majutuse-, toitlustuse-, reisi- ja kaubandusettevõtete toetused
Background information
In tourism, accommodation and food, and commerce sectors, several companies were in difficult financial situation due to the COVID-19 related containment measures resulting in significant or total loss of income. With the adoption of the supplementary state budget on 15 April 2020, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication supports those companies via Enterprise Estonia (EAS), a state-founded foundation which aims at developing the Estonian economy.
Content of measure
In May and June 2020, Enterprise Estonia provided seven different grants to partially compensate the losses due to the COVID-19 outbreak of:
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micro and small companies (all sectors)
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accommodation companies
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catering companies
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travel agencies
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tourism attractions
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tourism companies
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commerce and service companies (for compensating their rental fees)
Each grant has its own eligibility criteria and terms and conditions. Overall, the amount of the grant per company could be between €2,000 and €60,000, depending on the specific grant. For compensation of the rental fee, the minimum amount was €100. The total budget allocated to compensate the losses was €36.5 million.
Updates
The following updates to this measure have been made after it came into effect.
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30 December 2020
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On 30 December, it was decided via EAS that additional funds to acommodation companies, travel companies, restaurants in the capital's old town and to handicraft and souvenier stores will be allocated in the first quarter of 2021 after receiving state aid permission from the European Commission. The Government will allocate €5 million from its reserve and the unused funds from application rounds in Spring will also be used for this measure. The total budget is therefore €9.9 million.
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22 October 2020
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As the initial budget allocated for these measures was not entirely used, the Government decided on 8 October 2020 that the unused finances (€5.8 million) will be allocated to tourism sector, of which €200,000 will be allocated to the organisers of international concerts to cover their losses. The other target groups are companies of accommodation, attractions, tourism services, international transport servises and travel and guides. The support per company will be between €2,000 and €60,000, while for guides and tourism services there will be flat grants of €3,000 and €5000, depending on their turnover and for transport services the support can be up to €200,000 per company. The specific terms and conditions will be developed by the support providers (Enterprise Estonia, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication, and Ministry of Culture) by, probably, November 2020.
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Use of measure
5,938 applications were submitted to EAS. Altogether 3,839 applications were approved in the total amount of €30.2 million.
The application round for the additional support introduced in the update was open between 27 November and 8 December. Altogether 211 companies received the support in the total amount of €2.1 million.
Target groups
Actors and funding
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Actors
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Funding
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National government
Public support service providers
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National funds
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Social partners
Social partners' role in
designing the measure
and form of involvement:
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Trade unions
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Employers' organisations
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Role
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No involvement as case not in social partner domain
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Consulted
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Form
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Not applicable
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Any other form of consultation, institutionalised (as stable working groups or committees) or informal
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Social partners' role in the
implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
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No involvement
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Main level of involvement: Sectoral or branch level
Involvement
A number of different sectoral social partners were involved – they proactively provided their opinions and suggestions, which also received written feedback from the Ministry. Instead of peak-level social partners, they were concentrated more on sectoral social partners.
Views and reactions
No information.
Sectors and occupations
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This case is sector-specific
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Economic area
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Sector (NACE level 2)
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G - Wholesale And Retail Trade; Repair Of Motor Vehicles And Motorcycles
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G46 Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
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G47 Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles
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I - Accommodation And Food Service Activities
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I55 Accommodation
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I56 Food and beverage service activities
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N - Administrative And Support Service Activities
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N79 Travel agency, tour operator and other reservation service and related activities
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This case is not occupation-specific.
Sources
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11 May 2020: Compensation for small companies (väikettevõtete toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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11 May 2020: Support for accommodation companies (Majutusettevõtete toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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11 May 2020: Support for catering companies (Toitlustusettevõtete toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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11 May 2020: Support for travel conpanies (Reisiettevõtete toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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11 May 2020: Support for tourism attractions (Turismiatraktsioonide toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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11 May 2020: Support for tourism companies (Turismiteenuste pakkujate toetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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02 June 2020: Rent fee support for commerce and service companies (Kaubandus- ja teenindusettevõtete renditoetus)
(www.eas.ee)
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08 October 2020: Additional support in tourism sector (Valitsus otsustas turismisektori kriisitoetuste tingimused)
(www.kriis.ee)
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31 December 2020: Additional support 31 December (Valitsus eraldas erahuvihariduse- ja tegevuse pakkujatele kriisitoetuseks 2,74 miljonit eurot)
(www.hm.ee)
Citation
Eurofound (2020),
Grants for SMEs and entrepreneurs in tourism, accommodation, catering, travel and commerce sectors, case EE-2020-20/962 (measures in Estonia),
COVID-19 EU PolicyWatch, Dublin,
http://eurofound.link/covid19eupolicywatch
