Between the double transition, technological and environmental, and the impossibility of finding one's way around, the government had to put some order into the organisation of aid for SMEs. So that they are aware of it, so that they seize it and so that they benefit from it.
Concretely, in the new bill, the forms of aid are changing. Loans and guarantees already existed in the law for young businesses (article 8). What's new is that loans are now extended to investment aid and certain types of investment aid. This aid "may take the form" of a capital grant, a repayable advance, a guarantee, an interest subsidy or a loan. Both the Chamber of Commerce and the Council of State criticised this wording as too vague and called for it to be replaced by "take the form of" for greater clarity.
The scheme has been modernised by the digital procedure: applications and payments go through a secure State platform, with a deadline of one year (extendable by one year) after the end of the project to request payment. A new article 16bis sets out the processing deadlines: acknowledgement of receipt within 15 days, decision within three months (extendable to six months), and "silence means agreement" on expiry. The Chamber of Skilled Trades and Crafts is arguing in favour of a period reduced to three months with no extension, in the name of predictability.
The scope of beneficiaries is specified. The coordinated version introduces a requirement for investments "within the territory of the Grand Duchy" and reaffirms the minimum thresholds: a minimum of €1,000 for micro and small businesses, and €5,000 for medium-sized and large businesses. The Chamber of Skilled Trades and Crafts is calling for the minimum threshold for micro and small businesses to be reduced to €500. Large companies are eligible for certain types of aid (consultancy, art. 5; various investments, art. 10 §2 a), b), c), d) and f)). However, the Chamber of Commerce is critical of the exclusion of the term "natural person" in the definition of business, believing that this risks excluding sole traders.
As far as public finances are concerned, the Government estimates the additional cost of the amendments at two million euros a year, mainly linked to three measures: the eligibility of large companies for consultancy aid, a new calculation method for SME Packages and the adaptation of the exclusion list.
The "excluded" field has been rationalised. The annex, which is now part of the law rather than the regulation, excludes fewer activities than before; certain sectors that were previously excluded are no longer included, and companies active in the forestry sector would become eligible.
Some invariants remain. The "incentive effect" remains a cardinal condition: apart from a limited exception relating to de minimis aid under Article 10(2)(b), the application must precede the start of the work, with a detailed file (identity, organisation chart down to the actual beneficiary, accounts, description, costs, financing plan, etc.). The rules on cumulation are aligned with European law: maximum intensities may not be exceeded and cumulation with "de minimis" beyond the ceilings is prohibited.
The Council of State approves of the consistency sought, but has several major reservations, including formal objections. It objected to the "joint" power of ministers to decide on aid, which it deemed contrary to Article 90 of the Constitution. It rejects the reference to a "performance contract" with an unnamed GIE (Luxinnovation), which would create legal uncertainty. It demands that the definition of "operator of an accommodation establishment" be brought into line with the law of 2 September 2011. Finally, he asks that the word "in particular" be deleted from the clause on access to registers and databases in order to comply with the RGPD and Article 31 of the Constitution.
Other comments, which are not "formal", call for alterations: specifying that aid "takes the form" of a defined instrument, clarifying the wording of aid for miscellaneous investments, harmonising references and terminology, or uniformly expressing the duration as "twelve months".
Beyond the technical points, the political ambition is clear: a more legible and rapid one-stop shop, built around "SME Packages" of entrepreneurial performance, and a targeted expansion of aid to accelerate the dual digital and sustainable transition. But the Council of State and the professional chambers warn that the legibility and coherence of the aid scheme will need to be consolidated in the final version of the text.
This article was originally published in French.
