Enterprise Ireland's Pre-Seed Start Fund (PSSF) offers qualifying startups €50,000 or €100,000 through a convertible loan note. For the €100,000 route, the money comes in two €50,000 tranches, with conditions attached. Prepare a milestone budget, evidence of qualifying private co-investment and a cash forecast that separates approval from actual receipt. The critical question is whether you can complete the next stage if a payment takes longer than planned.
An approval letter can change your plans before it changes your bank balance. You hire a developer, commit to a contractor and set a launch date. The spending starts. The investment is still completing.
One question I kept asking while delivering startup programmes was whether a founder could reverse a decision once it had been made. A staged contractor brief and a long commitment leave very different options if funding is delayed. Put hoped-for receipts in a separate scenario, then test each commitment against the cash you have and the time you can afford to wait.
Stock photograph: ThisisEngineering on Unsplash.
Start with the milestone the investment will fund
PSSF is intended to help an early-stage business reach technical and commercial milestones that support its next funding stage. Check the current Enterprise Ireland programme criteria before preparing an application. Our broader Enterprise Ireland funding guide explains how the different supports fit together.
Eligibility is only the first question. Does PSSF fit the amount you need, the pace of the business and the next funding round? If you are preparing a larger private raise, work through the timing and possible conversion of the note with your advisers. Build the funding plan around what the business needs to prove, rather than reshaping the business simply to qualify for support.
For the financial plan, replace “build the product and grow” with something a reviewer can assess. For a fictional SaaS company, that might mean deploying a defined product version, completing three customer pilots and establishing whether customers will pay the proposed price. Those are illustrative milestones, not Enterprise Ireland's prescribed targets.
Work backwards from each result:
| Milestone | Work and cash commitment | Evidence to retain |
|---|---|---|
| Product ready for a defined pilot | Development time, contractor scope and testing | Release record, agreed specification and test results |
| Pilot delivered | Onboarding, support and delivery costs | Pilot agreement, usage evidence and customer feedback |
| Commercial proposition tested | Agreed validation activities and their costs | Pricing evidence, conversion results and an explanation of what changed |
Keep cost eligibility separate from commercial usefulness. A necessary business expense is not automatically an eligible programme expense. Enterprise Ireland's application FAQ excludes direct export aid costs, including sales and marketing expenditure, and caps legal costs at €10,000. Confirm the treatment of the actual activities in your plan.
Then include all business payments in the cash forecast, even where a particular cost cannot be funded by PSSF. Leaving an ineligible expense out of the application budget must not make it disappear from the bank forecast.
Keep four funding events separate
Your finance schedule should distinguish application, approval, completion and receipt. Add a separate line for the conditional second investment and the private money supporting it.
Approval starts the completion process; it does not establish a guaranteed bank date. Before making a new spending commitment, use this practical control list alongside Enterprise Ireland's requirements:
| Check | Owner to confirm it | Decision if unresolved |
|---|---|---|
| What cash is available today? | Finance reconciles the bank and separates restricted cash, unpaid bills and future receipts. | Test the commitment against the cash actually available. |
| What stands between approval and payment? | The founder coordinates EI, the solicitor and the person certifying the private investment. | Give each outstanding condition a date; move the forecast receipt if it slips. |
| Can the milestone still be delivered in the delayed case? | The founder and product lead agree delivery options with finance. | Phase commitments or secure suitable finance before creating an obligation the business cannot meet. |
Each €50,000 investment requires at least €5,000 of qualifying new private co-investment. The equity FAQ requires that cash after the application date. For the €100,000 route, plan for the additional €5,000 needed at the second close, not just the first. Capitalising an old director loan does not qualify. It lists certain subordinated related-party funding alongside other equity and quasi-equity, while excluding ordinary loans. Confirm your proposed instrument with Enterprise Ireland and your solicitor before relying on it.
If the founder has €5,000 sitting personally in a savings account, that is different from qualifying cash already invested in the company and evidenced correctly. Show the transfer and documentation as completion tasks.
Worked example: enough funding overall, but a cash shortfall in month seven
Consider a fictional company following completion of its first investment. It starts month one with €55,000: €50,000 from PSSF and €5,000 of qualifying new private investment.
Assume total cash payments of €9,000 each month and no customer receipts. Payments include payroll, employer costs, suppliers and any tax or VAT cash payments due. No extra bills or tax refunds sit outside this simplified model.
The base case assumes a further €55,000 arrives at the start of month four: the second €50,000 investment and another €5,000 of private cash. The delayed case moves both receipts to the start of month eight. These dates are modelling assumptions, not payment promises from Enterprise Ireland.
| Month-end | Base case | Delayed second receipt |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | €46,000 | €46,000 |
| 2 | €37,000 | €37,000 |
| 3 | €28,000 | €28,000 |
| 4 | €74,000 | €19,000 |
| 5 | €65,000 | €10,000 |
| 6 | €56,000 | €1,000 |
| 7 | €47,000 | €8,000 shortfall |
| 8 | €38,000 | €38,000, only if the earlier shortfall is bridged |
The delayed column becomes unfinanceable during month seven. Its month-eight figure is a theoretical cumulative balance, not evidence that the business can keep paying its bills until then. No overdraft or bridge facility is assumed.
Both cases contain the same total funding and eight months of spending. Only one can pay those bills on the assumed timetable without intervention. An annual budget would make that difference easy to miss.
Decide before the cash reaches zero
Suppose the founders choose a €9,000 minimum cash reserve for this example. That is their planning choice, not a programme rule. The delayed forecast breaches it in month six, so waiting until month seven to act is already too late.
At the end of month three, €28,000 remains. To get through months four to seven and still retain €9,000 before the assumed month-eight receipt, total payments across those four months could be no more than €19,000. That averages €4,750 a month, compared with the original €9,000.
That is a substantial reduction. Can the team achieve the agreed milestones at that spending level? If the answer is no, a simple spending freeze is not a complete solution.
The choices need to be explicit: phase commitments where contracts allow, secure suitable additional finance, revise the plan with Enterprise Ireland or reduce the project's scope through an agreed process. Each choice affects timing or delivery. A later receipt does not retrospectively fund an earlier missed payroll.
For near-term pressure, extend the monthly model into a weekly cash schedule. Our cash-flow forecasting guide explains that process.
Make the second-tranche evidence part of month end
Enterprise Ireland's equity FAQ requires a spending and progress report, current management accounts, tax clearance, details of share-capital changes, matching-funds evidence and the loan-note certificate for the second tranche. Completion must be within 12 months of the first investment; it is not an automatic anniversary payment.
Build the supporting records as you go. For each material payment, retain the invoice or payroll record, payment evidence, cost category and milestone it supports. Reconcile those records to the accounts and bank. Explain unpaid liabilities and commitments separately from money already spent.
A developer invoice proves a cost was incurred. It does not, on its own, prove that the product milestone was achieved. The founder or product owner supplies delivery evidence; finance makes the spending traceable. Bring the two together in a short progress schedule.
When actual spending moves away from the plan, explain why and ask whether agreement is needed. Do not wait until a drawdown request to discover that the cost categories and project narrative have drifted apart.
Coordinate the company setup and legal completion
You can begin the application while incorporating an Irish company, but a sole trader cannot be approved. Have the company setup, ownership records and required intellectual-property assignments ready for the investment process.
The solicitor handles the legal completion requirements. The equity FAQ specifies solicitor involvement and solicitor or auditor confirmation of the additional qualifying investment. An internal spreadsheet does not replace that confirmation.
The published equity FAQ gives an eight-week offer-validity period, with extensions at Enterprise Ireland's discretion. Read your actual offer and track its dates. Also ask how restrictions on repayment of related-party loans affect the founder's own cash plan.
Keep the finance process useful after the application
At each monthly review, connect three things: what the team delivered, what the company spent and what it can now afford to commit. If one changes, update the others.
Around Finance's support for technology companies includes financial preparation, current records and reporting, with modelling and funding support scoped separately. We coordinate with the relevant advisers; Enterprise Ireland decides on the investment.
If you have a funded growth plan or a credible near-term funding route and need ongoing accounting support, book a Finance Fit Call.
FAQs
Is PSSF a grant?
No. It is investment through a convertible loan note. Conversion, interest and repayment depend on the applicable documents. Do not assume the headline amount buys a fixed percentage of your company. Our guide to convertible loan notes and dilution explains the underlying calculations.
Is the second €50,000 automatic?
No. It depends on the agreed conditions, progress and supporting evidence. Include it as a conditional receipt in your forecast, with a delayed case alongside the expected case.
Can an old director loan count as matching funds?
Capitalising an existing director or shareholder loan does not meet the published new-cash requirement. Confirm the eligibility and documentation of any fresh investment before counting it.
Does approval mean the cash will arrive immediately?
No. Legal completion, evidence and payment processing still have to happen. Track the actual outstanding tasks and test how long your existing cash can cover commitments.
Can I apply before my company is incorporated?
Enterprise Ireland's application FAQ allows an individual who is in the process of incorporating in Ireland to apply. A sole trader cannot be approved for PSSF. Complete the required company and legal work before investment.
What financial records should I maintain?
Keep current accounts, reconciled bank records, payment evidence, a milestone-linked spending schedule and a dated cash forecast. Retain the investment documents and ownership changes too. The specific offer and drawdown requirements determine the final submission.
