SME Packages Luxembourg, up to €17,500 in aid for your SME.
The SME Packages reimburse 70% of the eligible costs of a digitalisation, cybersecurity, AI, sustainability or customer-experience project, for a project between €3,000 and €25,000 excl. VAT. The aid is paid by the Ministry of the Economy after the project is completed. This independent guide covers eligibility, the procedure and the accounting treatment of the subsidy.
An SME Package is financial aid from the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy that reimburses 70% of the costs of an improvement project carried out by an SME with an external provider, for a project between €3,000 and €25,000 excl. VAT, i.e. a maximum subsidy of €17,500. Legal basis: Regulation (EU) 2023/2831 (de minimis). Figures as of 11 March 2025, source Guichet.lu.
What is an SME Package in Luxembourg?
The SME Packages scheme supports improvement projects of Luxembourg SMEs carried out with an external provider. Launched in 2019 in the lineage of the Fit 4 Digital Packages, rebranded in October 2022, it was overhauled on 11 March 2025: the flat-rate aid of around €5,000 was replaced by a reimbursement of 70% of eligible costs, and two new strands, Cybersecurity and AI, joined Digital, Service and Sustainability.
The scheme is run by the Ministry of the Economy, Directorate-General for SMEs (Classes moyennes), with mandatory support from the House of Entrepreneurship (Chamber of Commerce) or the eHandwierk service (Chamber of Skilled Trades) for craft businesses.
For the project-by-project analysis (fundable project examples, ROI calculations, document templates), see the dedicated guide smepackages.lu, published by our firm.
Official documents use the term “voucher”, but the real mechanism is an ex-post reimbursement: the company pays 100% of the provider's invoice, VAT included, then receives the 70% subsidy from the Ministry after the evaluation meeting. You therefore need to be able to advance the cash.
The official parameters of the scheme
| Parameter | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Aid intensity | 70% of eligible costs | Guichet.lu, 11.03.2025 |
| Project size | €3,000 – €25,000 excl. VAT | Guichet.lu, 11.03.2025 |
| Maximum aid | €17,500 per package | Calculation: 70% × €25,000 |
| Payment | After the project, on a settled invoice | Guichet.lu |
| Cumulation | Several packages, successively | Government press release, 11.03.2025 |
| Legal basis | Regulation (EU) 2023/2831, de minimis | Guichet.lu fact sheets |
The €17,500 maximum is not written on the official pages: it derives from the published rate and cap. The exact amount depends on the costs the Ministry retains as eligible.
Is your company eligible?
Three cumulative conditions, identical for all five packages:
- A valid business permit issued by the Ministry of the Economy.
- SME status within the EU meaning: fewer than 250 employees and annual turnover ≤ €50M or balance-sheet total ≤ €43M.
- Registered office in Luxembourg.
The mandatory pre-analysis with the House of Entrepreneurship or eHandwierk confirms eligibility before any filing. Sectoral exclusions under de minimis rules and a waiting rule for companies that already benefited from the programme apply case by case: these points, not published in detail, are checked during the pre-analysis.
Which SME Package for which project?
The amount, rate and procedure are identical across the five strands. Only the project scope changes: the package follows from your project, not from its budget.
| Package | Typical projects | Entry point |
|---|---|---|
| Digital (2019) | Website, e-commerce, ERP, CRM, POS, e-invoicing, online marketing | House of Entrepreneurship / eHandwierk |
| Cybersecurity (2025) | Security audit, NIS2 compliance, protection against cyberattacks | Same, with NC3 support |
| AI (2025) | AI tools: automation, assistants, data exploitation | House of Entrepreneurship / eHandwierk |
| Sustainability (2022) | Energy, water and waste reduction, carbon footprint and action plan | House of Sustainability / eHandwierk |
| Service (2019) | Customer journey, sales space, loyalty, feedback collection | House of Entrepreneurship / eHandwierk |
How much will you receive?
The formula is simple: aid = 70% × eligible costs, for a project between €3,000 and €25,000 excl. VAT. Estimate your subsidy and, a point the official pages do not show, the cash advance to plan for.
The application in 6 steps
- Mandatory pre-analysisFree meeting with the House of Entrepreneurship (+352 42 39 39 600) or eHandwierk for craft businesses (+352 42 67 67 305). It is the only entry point: there is no public online form.
- Package and provider selectionProject definition with the adviser, selection of an external provider, quote between €3,000 and €25,000 excl. VAT.
- Filing and validationFile prepared with the adviser, analysed and validated by the Ministry of the Economy (validation committee, Directorate-General for SMEs).
- ImplementationThe provider delivers the project. Any substantial change is reported to the adviser.
- Evaluation meetingReview of satisfaction and gains achieved, a condition for payment.
- Payment then reimbursementYou settle the provider's final invoice, VAT included, then receive the 70% subsidy paid by the Ministry.
No processing or payment deadline is officially published. Build your cash plan as if the reimbursement arrived several weeks after project completion, and have the timeline confirmed during the pre-analysis.
Three concrete cases, cash flow included
| Case | Project excl. VAT | Aid (70%) | Advance incl. VAT (17%) | Final net cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail — e-commerce site + POS (Digital) | €10,000 | €7,000 | €11,700 | €3,000 |
| Craft business — cyber audit + NIS2 (Cybersecurity) | €5,000 | €3,500 | €5,850 | €1,500 |
| Services firm — ERP + e-invoicing (Digital) | €25,000 | €17,500 | €29,250 | €7,500 |
Final net cost excl. VAT, VAT being recoverable under your deduction regime. A project above €25,000 excl. VAT remains possible: the aid is simply capped at €17,500, the surplus staying entirely at your charge, subject to validation of the quote at pre-analysis.
What makes applications fail
- Committing expenses before validation. The procedure places the Ministry's approval before implementation: signing or paying earlier exposes you to refusal.
- Confusing project cost and aid amount. €25,000 is the project cap; the maximum aid is €17,500.
- Underestimating the cash advance. You pay 100% incl. VAT before being reimbursed 70% of the excl.-VAT amount.
- Relying on outdated figures. The €5,000–6,000 flat rates and the 3-package scheme predate March 2025; official pages from 2022 still circulate online.
- Ignoring the de minimis ceiling. De minimis aid accumulates over three years; exceeding the ceiling blocks the grant.
- Skipping the pre-analysis. No file is submitted directly: the House of Entrepreneurship or eHandwierk is the single entry point.
How to treat the subsidy in your accounts?
This is the angle generalist guides ignore. Three rules structure the treatment:
- Accounting. The subsidy is operating income, allocated to the financial year in which the right to reimbursement becomes certain. If the project creates a fixed asset (website, ERP), the investment is capitalised and depreciated; the aid is released to profit consistently with the depreciation.
- Taxation. The subsidy enters the taxable base. The real net gain is computed after tax: for €17,500 of aid, the final benefit depends on your effective tax rate.
- VAT and de minimis. VAT on the provider's invoice follows the normal deduction regime. The aid consumes your de minimis ceiling (Regulation (EU) 2023/2831): it must be documented in your aid tracking and may reduce your capacity to mobilise other schemes.
These general principles do not replace an analysis of your situation: the exact treatment depends on the nature of the project and your tax regime.
Have your file checked before filing.
Eligibility diagnosis, SME thresholds and de minimis ceiling check, quote structuring, cash plan and accounting of the subsidy.
Frequently asked questions about the SME Packages
The maximum aid is €17,500 per package: 70% of a project capped at €25,000 excl. VAT. The project must reach at least €3,000 excl. VAT. Official figures as of 11 March 2025 (Guichet.lu).
After. The company pays the provider's invoice in full, VAT included, then receives the reimbursement of 70% of eligible costs paid by the Ministry of the Economy after the evaluation meeting.
Any SME holding a business permit from the Ministry of the Economy, meeting the EU SME criteria (fewer than 250 employees, turnover ≤ €50M or balance sheet ≤ €43M) and with its registered office in Luxembourg.
Five packages since 11 March 2025: Digital, Service, Sustainability, Cybersecurity and AI. The financial parameters are identical for all five: 70% of a €3,000–25,000 excl. VAT project. Only the project scope changes.
The application follows 6 steps: mandatory free pre-analysis with the House of Entrepreneurship or eHandwierk (craft businesses), choice of package and provider with a €3,000–25,000 excl. VAT quote, filing with the adviser, validation by the Ministry of the Economy, implementation, evaluation then 70% reimbursement. There is no public online form.
Yes. The subsidy is operating income recognised in the profit-and-loss account and enters the company's taxable base. VAT paid on the provider's invoice follows the normal deduction regime and is not covered by the aid.
Yes, several packages can be taken successively, according to the government press release of 11 March 2025. The scheme falls under the de minimis Regulation (EU) 2023/2831, which caps all de minimis aid received over three years: tracking the ceiling is the company's responsibility.
The official procedure places the Ministry's validation before implementation. Committing expenses before approval exposes the company to a refusal of reimbursement. As this point is not published explicitly, it must be confirmed during the mandatory pre-analysis.
Luxinnovation publishes a list of providers for the Digital strand. Being on that list is not a State accreditation: the term “accredited provider” does not exist in the programme's texts.
No processing or payment deadline is published by the Ministry of the Economy. The file goes through a validation committee; the timeline is clarified during the pre-analysis with the House of Entrepreneurship or eHandwierk adviser.
The SME Packages replaced the Fit 4 Digital Packages in October 2022. Before March 2025 the aid was a flat rate of around €5,000–6,000; since 11 March 2025 it reaches 70% of eligible costs, i.e. up to €17,500. Luxinnovation's Fit 4 Digital consulting programme remains a separate scheme.
No. The €3,000 and €25,000 thresholds and the 70% reimbursement are computed excluding VAT. The company advances the full invoice VAT included and recovers VAT under its normal deduction regime.
Official sources and verification
- 11.03.2025Guichet.lu — SME Packages – Digital fact sheet
- 11.03.2025Guichet.lu — news: new packages and aid intensity
- 11.03.2025Gouvernement.lu — press release launching the AI and Cybersecurity packages
- —Luxinnovation — SME Packages Digital provider list
- —Chamber of Skilled Trades — SME Packages, eHandwierk service
- —smepackages.lu — dedicated project-by-project guide, published by our firm
Figures last verified: 25 July 2026. Four parameters are not officially published (deadlines, document list, waiting rule, early start): they are flagged as such in this guide and are confirmed at pre-analysis. Financial Services Luxembourg is neither a public body nor an official desk of the programme: the grant decision belongs to the Ministry of the Economy.
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