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Good practice Imported

Scheme for the Digital Upgrade of Enterprises — Cyprus's THALIA-Funded SME Digitalisation Vouchers

Cyprus · Nicosia · See the Cyprus profile · See the Nicosia profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 84% 52/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Cyprus's THALIA 2021-2027 scheme grants SMEs 50-70% (up to €50k-€70k) of digital-upgrade and e-commerce costs, with higher rates for mountainous/disadvantaged areas; a 2025 €14m call carried over unspent savings from the first call.

30 EUR million
Total programme envelope, 2021-2027
14 EUR million
Third call allocation (May 2025)
50 % up to EUR 50,000
Standard-area grant rate
70 % up to EUR 70,000
Disadvantaged/mountainous-area grant rate
Scheme for the Digital Upgrade of Enterprises — Cyprus's THALIA-Funded SME Digitalisation Vouchers

Details

Maturity
Scaling
Promoter
Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry — Industry & Technology Service
Period
2022–2027 (third call opened May 2025)
Region (NUTS)
CY00
Keywords
SME digitalisation, e-commerce, cohesion policy funding

Context

Under the THALIA 2021-2027 EU cohesion policy programme, Cyprus sought to support SMEs adopting digital technology, including e-commerce, with extra support for businesses in mountainous or otherwise disadvantaged regions.

Objectives

The Scheme for the Digital Upgrade of Enterprises aims to give new and existing SMEs grants toward digital-technology and e-commerce adoption costs.

Activities

Administered by the Industry & Technology Service under the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry, the scheme funds standard-area recipients at 50% of eligible costs up to EUR 50,000, rising to 70% up to EUR 70,000 for businesses in mountainous or disadvantaged regions, with a EUR 5,000 minimum project size and a EUR 300,000 de minimis aid ceiling per enterprise over a rolling three years.

Results

The scheme's overall envelope for 2021-2027 is EUR 30 million. A third call opened in May 2025 with a EUR 14 million allocation that explicitly incorporated savings carried over from the first call, indicating continued demand across successive rounds without runaway oversubscription.

Conclusions

Public sources describe the grant design and cumulative budget commitments but do not include an independent post-implementation evaluation of business outcomes, so this is best treated as a well-specified, EU-cohesion-anchored SME digitalisation instrument rather than proven-impact evidence.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k) — EUR 30m total 2021-2027 envelope; grants of 50% up to EUR 50,000 (standard) or 70% up to EUR 70,000 (mountainous/disadvantaged areas); EUR 5,000 minimum project size; EUR 300,000 de minimis cap per enterprise over a rolling 3 years.
Time to results
Long (> 3 years) — Runs across the THALIA 2021-2027 programming period; a third call opened May 2025 with EUR 14m, carrying over unspent savings from the first call.
Staffing & skills
Industry & Technology Service under the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry administers the scheme

Conditions for success

  • Tiered subsidy rates raise the incentive for mountainous/disadvantaged regions
  • Carry-over of unspent funds between calls sustains demand across successive rounds
  • De minimis ceiling (EUR 300,000 per enterprise over 3 years) controls state-aid exposure

Common failure modes

  • No independent evaluation of downstream business outcomes (revenue, productivity, survival) has been published to date

Where it fits

Governance type
national ministry administering an EU cohesion-policy scheme
Scale
national SME grant scheme
Income level
high-income EU member state

Commonly funded by

ERDF — European Regional Development Fund National / regional programmes

Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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