By Richie Lennon
Enterprise Ireland supports innovative Irish businesses with international growth potential through grants, investment and practical advice. Those are different offers: a grant, a convertible loan and an equity investment do not have the same cost or conditions. Start with your eligibility, the milestone you need to reach and how you will fund the project before support arrives. Then choose the programme.
Grant funding rewards the ability to deliver, not the ability to write an impressive application. That is the point we keep coming back to.
An owner can spend weeks polishing a submission for a programme that was never designed for their business. The better first conversation is with the funding body: does this business and this project fit, and what evidence would establish that?
Why Enterprise Ireland should be part of the conversation
Enterprise Ireland focuses on innovative businesses with international potential. A growing local business is not automatically an Enterprise Ireland candidate. Your Local Enterprise Office can be a useful first stop for advice and signposting, even where a particular grant is unavailable.
Support can include mentoring, connections, market-development work and finance. None of it replaces customer demand or a business model that can fund itself over time.
Build a relationship with the relevant adviser before a deadline turns the application into a rush. Explain the actual business, including what has not worked and the risks you still need to resolve.
Grants, loans and investment are different
| Funding form | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Grant | Eligible costs, support percentage, timing, claim evidence and conditions |
| Convertible loan | Interest, maturity, conversion triggers and the eventual ownership effect |
| Equity investment | Valuation, percentage ownership, investor rights and future funding needs |
| Development programme | Time commitment, learning, mentoring and any associated financial support |
A grant can be non-dilutive, but it still comes with obligations. An award may cover only part of a project. Failure to meet the conditions can affect payment or lead to recovery.
Do not describe Enterprise Ireland funding as free money or assume its investment takes a fixed percentage of every company. Read the specific offer and the legal terms.
High Potential Start-Up support
Enterprise Ireland’s published HPSU criteria include international ambition, an innovative product or service, relevant management capability and an Irish headquarters and control. The business needs the potential to create ten jobs in Ireland and reach €1 million in annual sales within three years of starting, and normally be less than five years old from registration.
Those are eligibility criteria, not a forecast you should copy into every plan. Show how your actual customers, hiring and sales process could support that growth.
The Innovative HPSU Fund involves investment. Do not treat it as a grant that leaves the shareholding untouched. Establish the co-investment arrangements and terms with the adviser before building them into a funding plan.
A credible plan explains the link between product development, sales, delivery capacity and cash. A sales target alone does not establish what the company needs to spend or when.
HPSU Feasibility Study Grant
The HPSU Feasibility Study Grant currently lists a maximum award of €30,000 to help prepare an investor-ready business plan. Check the eligible work, funding percentage and application conditions with Enterprise Ireland.
This is a different job from raising the whole investment round. Use the feasibility work to test the strategy, identify risks and understand the resources required.
Pre-Seed Start Fund
The Pre-Seed Start Fund lists €50,000 or €100,000 investment for early-stage companies. Enterprise Ireland describes the funding as a convertible loan note in its programme explanation.
That matters. It is not an unconditional grant, nor a promise that €100,000 always buys exactly 5% of the company. The conversion terms and future priced round affect the outcome.
Identify the technical and commercial milestone the money will fund. For example, what would the next product release, pilot evidence or customer traction allow you to demonstrate? Work backwards from that milestone to the people, costs and time required. Our PSSF financial preparation guide works through the cash timetable, matching funds and evidence for the second investment.
Do not assume that one award guarantees access to the next programme. Each stage needs its own eligibility and decision.
New Frontiers
New Frontiers is an entrepreneur-development programme. It can help an early-stage owner test the opportunity, improve the business plan and build practical capability.
Check the phase, local provider, time commitment and current financial support. Do not confuse the stated value of a support package with cash paid to you. An old stipend figure is not enough to budget from.
This can be a useful route when the business needs validation and structure before a funding application. It is not simply another cheque to add to a spreadsheet.
Innovation Vouchers
The current standard Innovation Voucher is €10,000, not the old €5,000 figure. It purchases eligible expertise from a registered knowledge provider. It is not a cash grant for your usual software subscription or accountant’s fee.
Check the eligible activity and agree the work, deliverables and costs with the provider. Routine website development, marketing and general consultancy are among the exclusions in Enterprise Ireland’s guidance. The company must pay the VAT separately.
A co-funded option can support a project of up to €20,000 on a 50:50 basis. Establish your contribution and the rules before committing the work.
Innovation funding and Local Enterprise Offices
Enterprise Ireland also provides support for qualifying research, development and innovation projects. See the RD&I Fund information for details. Talk to the adviser about the activity and costs before assuming that ordinary development work qualifies.
Local Enterprise Office eligibility also matters. Manufacturing and internationally traded services can fit the financial supports, while retail, professional services and other activities can face restrictions. A trading website does not, by itself, turn a retailer into an innovative technology company.
Advice, training or another programme may still be relevant. The sensible response to a poor grant fit is to find the right support, not to relabel the business.
Prepare the application around evidence
Use the application to explain a project you have thought through. The following questions should have answers before the final writing pass:
| Question | Useful evidence |
|---|---|
| Who needs the product? | Customer conversations, pilots, orders or documented testing |
| What is different? | A clear comparison with available alternatives |
| What will the funding achieve? | Deliverables, milestones and a realistic timetable |
| What will it cost? | People, supplier quotations and the calculation behind the budget |
| Who will deliver it? | Relevant experience, responsibilities and capability gaps |
| How will the company fund its share? | Cash, committed funding and a payment timetable |
Write so an evaluator can follow the business without knowing every technical detail. Specific language is more useful than claims that a product is revolutionary.
Keep the financial model connected to the operational plan. If the forecast assumes more customers, show the sales capacity and acquisition costs. If it assumes more delivery, show the people and other resources required.
A grant award is not the cash in your bank
Suppose a project costs €100,000 excluding VAT and an illustrative award covers €40,000. The company’s share is €60,000. But if the conditions require the expenditure to be paid before the claim, the cash required before reimbursement could be €100,000, plus any VAT and other costs.
| Illustrative project | Amount |
|---|---|
| Project cost excluding VAT | €100,000 |
| Assumed grant contribution | €40,000 |
| Company’s eventual share | €60,000 |
| Cash paid before reimbursement, if that is the offer’s process | €100,000 |
This is an illustration, not a programme’s promised payment terms. The actual offer decides the claim process and timing. Put those dates into the cash-flow forecast and test a delay.
Do not hire or sign a supplier commitment solely because an application has been submitted. Establish the approval and expenditure rules first.
Grants and the R&D tax credit
A project may raise both grant and R&D questions, but you cannot simply add the two headline percentages to the same cost. Revenue’s R&D manual excludes relevant expenditure met by grant aid or assistance from the qualifying calculation.
Check the activities, eligible costs, grant allocation and accounting period before calculating a claim. Ordinary software development does not automatically qualify.
Our R&D tax-credit guide covers the period-specific rules. Keep technical records and cost evidence while the work happens. Reconstructing them after filing is harder.
Build the plan before chasing the award
The right support should help the business deliver a worthwhile next step. It should not become the reason for doing a project you would otherwise reject.
Our tech funding guide compares the broader capital options. The existing business grants resource is another starting point; verify each scheme with its funding body.
Around Finance can discuss the financial records, reporting and planning your business needs. If you run an Irish business turning over €250,000 or more, book a Finance Fit Call. Application writing, fundraising and specialist tax work need a separate agreed scope. A funding application is never a promise of an award.
FAQs
What is Enterprise Ireland funding?
It includes grants, investment, advice and development supports for qualifying businesses. Identify the specific offer: a grant and a convertible loan have different obligations and ownership effects.
Who is eligible for Enterprise Ireland funding?
Eligibility depends on the programme. Innovation, international potential, stage and Irish operation can matter. Start with an adviser and the current criteria rather than assuming incorporation is enough.
What is the High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) programme?
It supports qualifying internationally focused businesses with strong growth potential. The published criteria include the potential for ten Irish jobs and €1 million annual sales within three years. Investment terms need separate assessment.
How does the Pre-Seed Start Fund (PSSF) work?
It offers qualifying early-stage companies investment of €50,000 or €100,000. It is structured as a convertible loan note. Read the conversion and other terms; it is not a fixed-percentage, non-dilutive grant.
What are Innovation Vouchers?
They fund eligible work with registered knowledge providers. The standard voucher is currently €10,000; the company pays VAT separately. Check activity restrictions and agree the project before starting.
Are Enterprise Ireland grants repayable?
A qualifying grant can be non-repayable when its conditions are met. That does not describe every Enterprise Ireland funding product. Check recovery conditions, reporting and whether the offer is actually investment or a loan.
Can I apply to multiple programmes?
Possibly, where each programme’s conditions allow it. Declare other support and check restrictions on funding the same costs. A staged plan is useful, but progression is not automatic.
How competitive is the application process?
An eligible application still needs evidence and assessment. Prepare a clear project, realistic budget and relevant team. There is no reliable universal success rate or turnaround promise.
How does Enterprise Ireland support start-ups beyond funding?
Support can include advisers, mentoring, networks and international market assistance. Establish which supports are available to the business at its current stage.
Where can I get help with my application?
Start with the programme adviser and clarify the requirements. An accountant or specialist can help with agreed financial or application work. Ask for the scope and cost; no adviser can guarantee approval.
