Corona Emergency Aid

Bridging Aid III Plus supports companies, solo self-employed and freelancers in all sectors with annual revenues of up to €750 million that experience a drop in revenues of at least 30 percent in the period of July 2021 to September 2021 compared to the reference month in 2019. Applications are submitted through auditing third parties. Bridging Assistance III Plus is the successor program of Bridging Aid III.

The federal government's bridging aid is (so far) divided into four phases of funding: Phase 1 (Bridging Aid I) in the funding period of June to August 2020; Phase 2 (Bridging Aid II) in the funding period of September to December 2020; Phase 3 (Bridging Aid III) in the funding period of November 2020 to June 2021. Since July 2021, it is now possible to apply for federal grants in a 4th phase (Bridging Aid III Plus); the funding period is between July 2021 to September 2021.

Common criterion for eligibility to apply: All companies with more than a 30 percent drop in revenue are eligible to receive the sliding scale fixed cost reimbursement under Bridging Aid III Plus.

The following enterprises are explicitly not eligible to apply (exclusion criteria):

- Companies that are not registered with a German tax office,
- Companies without a domestic permanent establishment or registered office,
- Companies that were already in (economic) difficulties as of December 31, 2019 (EU definition) and have not overcome this status thereafter
- Companies that were only established after October 31, 2020,
- Public companies,
- Companies with more than 750 million euros in annual revenue in 2020, and
- Freelancers or solo self-employed persons in part-time employment.

Bridging Aid III Plus reimburses a share in the amount of
- up to 100 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a > 70 % drop in revenue
- Up to 60 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a drop in revenue ≥ 50 % and ≤ 70 %.
- up to 40 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a drop in revenue ≥ 30 % and < 50 %.
in the eligible month compared to the corresponding month in 2019.
The maximum grant is 10 million EUR per funding month.

The extension of Bridging Aid III is implemented with the new program Bridging Aid III Plus, which is largely congruent with Bridging Aid III in terms of content.
New to the Bridging Aid III Plus program is:

- Restart premium: companies that bring back staff from short-time work, hire new staff or otherwise increase employment in the course of reopening can receive a personnel cost subsidy as an alternative to the general lump-sum personnel cost allowance as a subsidy for the resulting increase in personnel costs.
- Court costs of up to EUR 20,000 per month for restructuring companies in imminent insolvency to avert insolvency can be reimbursed.
- Structural measures and other investments for the implementation of hygiene concepts and digitalization are eligible for funding.

Eligible costs are ongoing, contractually justified or officially determined fixed operating costs incurred during the funding period. (See the detailed explanations under point 2.4. of the FAQ of Bridging Aid III Plus).

No, private living expenses such as rent or interest payments for private housing (with the exception of (pro rata) costs for a study if this has already been claimed for tax purposes in 2019), health insurance contributions and contributions to private pension plans are not subsidized by Bridging Aid III Plus.
Entrepreneur' wages are not eligible for support.

Restart Aid Plus is a separate program under the 4th phase of federal bridging assistance (Bridging Aid III Plus). Therefore, solo self-employed individuals can either claim Restart Aid Plus or fixed cost reimbursement under Bridging Aid III Plus. It is not possible to claim both subsidies:

- Solo self-employed persons who have applied for or received the Bridging Assistance III Plus are thus not eligible to apply for the Restart Aid Plus.
- Solo self-employed persons who have applied for or received the Restart Aid cannot apply for reimbursement of fixed costs under Bridging Aid III.
However, a change from Bridging Aid III Plus to Restarting Aid Plus or vice versa can be made during the final settlement.

As before, applications can be submitted electronically by tax advisors, auditors, certified public accountants or attorneys-at-law via the Bridging Aid Platform.

Auditors can be searched for here:
- Tax consultant search service
- Professional register for auditors/sworn accountants
- Tax consultant search service of the German Tax Association e.V. (DStV)
- Lawyer register

The application can be submitted until October 31, 2021. An application can only be submitted once. Applications for amendments are excluded.

The application must be submitted via the Bridging Aid platform.
 

Bridging Aid website
Website of the BMWi

Restart Aid Plus is a liquidity advance amounting to a maximum of 4,500 EUR for the period between July 1 and September 30, 2021.

Solo self-employed persons as well as multi-person corporations and cooperatives who cannot otherwise claim fixed costs under Bridging Assistance III Plus are eligible to apply.
Eligible applicants are solo self-employed persons who have generated at least 51% of their income from self-employment in the reference period (normally the year 2019).

Within the framework of Restart Aid Plus, employees in the performing arts who predominantly have short-term employment agreements of up to 14 consecutive weeks can also be taken into account.
So-called non-permanent employees in all sectors as well as short-term employees in the performing arts can also apply for Restart Aid Plus, provided that they do not receive unemployment benefits or reduced working hours benefits. This means that non-permanent actors and similar employees are also effectively supported.

The advance is a one-time payment of 50% of the reference revenue ( revenue of the corresponding pre-crisis period in 2019), up to a maximum of 4,500 EUR. (This is a taxable grant).

The full operating cost of 4,500 EUR will be granted if the revenue during the three-month period of July to September 2021 has decreased by more than 60% compared to the three-month reference revenue 2019.

To determine the 2019 reference revenue, the average monthly revenue of 2019 is used (monthly reference revenue). The reference revenue is three times the monthly reference revenue.

Special rules apply to applicants who only started their self-employed activity on or after January 1, 2019.
Example: with an anual revenue of 20,000 EUR (average revenue in the Künstlersozialkasse), 2,500 EUR Restart Aid Plus will therefore be paid (50 percent of the reference revenue for three months in 2019, 5,000 EUR).

A monthly reference revenue is used in this case. This is the average monthly revenue of January and February 2020 or the average monthly revenue of the 3rd quarter of 2020 (July 1 to September 30, 2020).

The subsidy for operating costs is not counted towards basic welfare benefits and is also not taken into account when determining income for the purpose of determining the child supplement.

The payouts and application process will start in the month of July 2021.

The operating cost allowance is paid out as an advance at the beginning of the period, even if the specific loss of revenue during the period July 2021 to September 2021 has not yet been determined. If the revenue during the three-month period is more than 40 percent of the three-month reference revenue, the advance payouts must be repaid on a proportional basis.

Solo self-employed persons applying for Restart Aid Plus can submit direct applications here using the ELSTER certificate familiar from tax returns.

After the end of the funding period (July 1 to September 2021), you as a recipient of Restart Aid Plus are required to prepare a final statement by March 31, 2022 at the latest using an online tool on the platform www.ueberbrueckungshilfe-unternehmen.de, which is currently still under development.

If the revenue during the three-month period is more than 40% of the three-month reference revenue, any repayments due must be reported to the granting agency by March 31, 2022 without being asked and must be transferred by September 30, 2022.

The deadline for repayment of Restart Aid Plus is September 30, 2022.

Bridging Assistance page
Page of the Federal Ministry of Finance

The BMWI has a hotline for answering questions, especially regarding direct applications for new start-up assistance for solo self-employed persons. The service desk for solo self-employed persons can be reached at the following number: 030-1200 21034 (service hours Mon-Fri, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.). This servive will most likely only be available in German.

An easy calculation of Restart Aid Plus can be done with the VSGD-Calculator (Excel sheet)

Emergency Aid IV 5.0 is a grant program of the State of Berlin for cultural and media enterprises (with at least 2 employees) that have been particularly hard hit by the Corona crisis. The grant is intended to help the respective companies cover operating costs and commercial material and financial expenses in the months of July to September 2021, as well as costs accrued since March 11, 2020, if ongoing revenues from the applicant's business operations are not expected to be sufficient to cover them. Applicants must have used all relevant aids provided by the federal and state governments. In particular, use of the federal government's Bridging Aid III Plus is a prerequisite of Emergency Aid IV 5.0.

Eligible applicants are cultural and media companies affected by the Corona crisis (for industry codes, see FAQs section "What types of companies and institutions belong to the cultural and media industry and are therefore eligible to apply?") with at least 2 employees (full-time equivalents) that are not regularly or predominantly publicly funded and have their registered office or place of business in Berlin (and are also registered with a Berlin tax office).

Companies with an average annual turnover of more than EUR 10 million (2017-2019), all sectors not explicitly mentioned (e.g. galleries, event service providers, advertising, PR and digital agencies, manufacturers and renters of film equipment, etc.), as well as cultural and media companies with fewer than two employees are not eligible to apply.

As a rule, theater and concert organizers with the following focuses are not eligible to apply:

- Concert and artist agency,

- touring and booking,

- artist management and placement,

- event promoter,

- full-service agency,

- trade fair,

- Exhibition and congress organizer,

- Performing arts service provider,

- music/record label,

- music production,

- network building,

- marketing,

- distribution,

- PR,

- promotion.

Operating costs and non-staff operating and financial expenses such as:

- Commercial rent

- Lease

- Leasing expenses

- Personnel costs for employees incl. management, provided that these are not covered by short-time allowance and, in the case of management, do not exceed a certain amount (see FAQs section "To what extent can management salaries be taken into account in liquidity planning?")

- A notional entrepreneurial salary in the amount of 1,180 euros per month per person for owners of sole proprietorships and partnerships

- Repayment installments of business bank loans

- Fee costs - the recommendations of the State of Berlin for lower fee limits, exhibition fees and reading fees and the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg for the production of cinema films (feature films and documentaries) must be taken into account for fees in the liquidity plan

Investment measures can only be supported if they are indispensable for the maintenance of the company until 30.09.2021.

Please note: It is not possible to apply for Emergency Aid IV 5.0 without applying for Bridging Aid III Plus by the deadline of August 31, 2021.

The list of industries that are given the opportunity to apply for Emergency Aid IV 5.0 following their application for Bridging Aid III Plus can be found in the FAQs. Companies in the culture and media sector that have applied for Bridging Aid III Plus will be informed by IBB about the possibility of applying for Emergency Aid IV 5.0. Within a set period, companies can express their interest in this directly. Subsequently, the expressions of interest will be checked for fulfillment of the application requirements, in particular the cultural relevance for the State of Berlin. This assessment is carried out by the Senate Department for Culture and Europe in the case of cultural enterprises, or by the Senate Chancellery in the case of media enterprises, based on its dutiful discretion and with the assistance of specialist expertise.

Please have the following information and documents ready for submission:

- Name, street, zip code, legal form, date of incorporation, registration number, tax number and VAT ID of the company, name of the tax office

- Valid identification document, name, contact details, tax identification number of the owner / legal representative

- Bank account details of the company given to the tax office

- Liquidity planning (see Downloads/ form available from the beginning of August)

- Evidence of initial cash position (e.g. bank statements)

- Documentation of loans to secure liquidity, if already applied for

- Business registration (if applicable)

- Annual financial statements for the last 3 years (BWA for 2020, if applicable)

- Current BWA 2021

- Explanation of the economic situation (form no longer exists!) You can write such an explanation on your own as free text and send it as PDF).

- SME self-declaration (see Downloads) (here you can refer to the period before the start of the Covid19 pandemic, i.e. to the year 2019)

- Amount of small grants already applied for or received under other Corona Emergency Aid or Corona aid programs (federal and state funds).

Yes, Emergency Aid IV 5.0 can only be applied for downstream via Bridging Aid III Plus. In order to be able to apply for funds from Emergency Aid IV 5.0, an application for Bridging Aid III Plus from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy must first be submitted by an auditing third party (tax advisor, auditor, lawyer, etc.) by August 31, 2021.

Please note that funds from federal aid programs must generally be applied for and used first. These include the Bridging Aid III Plus and the Special Fund of the federal Government for Cultural Events. Click here to access the Special Funds FAQ. If your company does not qualify for these, you may be asked to provide proof of this status.

FAQ about IBB's Emergency Aid IV 5.0

Further information from IBB

FAQ of the Bridging Aid III Plus

You can find tax advisors here

The Federal Government's Special Fund for Cultural Events supports cultural events with two modules: economic aid for small events with up to 2,000 participants and cancellation coverage for larger events with more than 2,000 participants. 
The special fund is endowed with 2.5 billion euros to support the events.
 

Funding is available for cultural events that take place in Germany and which generate income from the sale of tickets:

• -    Performances of the performing arts
  •  Theatre (musical theatre, drama)
  • musicals
  • Dance (including folk dance)
  • Puppet, figure and object theatre 
  • Performing arts
  • Variety, circus
  • Cabaret, comedy and artistry
  •  
• -    Concerts including live music concerts with a curated music program, provided that the organiser has held at least 12 curated live music concerts by different artists music clubs in 2019. Live music concerts in this sense are targeted performances by musicians (including events with creative/artistic/self-producing DJs) basically on a stage in front of an audience that has been specifically advertised.
•  
• -    Screenings in the fields of film and media, including cinemas and outdoor film screenings.
•  
• -    Special exhibitions for the communication of artistic or cultural content, including
  • special exhibitions of visual arts, photography and light art
  • special exhibitions of natural and cultural history 
  • special exhibitions of commemorative culture
  •  
• -    readings and other literary events
•  
• -    festivals of all artistic disciplines and interdisciplinary cultural events in the above-mentioned disciplines
   

In particular, organisers are not eligible for funding:

• -    of events where the cultural components are not in the foreground
• -    cultural events in the context of fairs, folk festivals and medieval festivals
• -    cultural events in the context of city or municipal festivals
• -    the cultural program for weddings and family celebrations
• -    the cultural program of gastronomic events, if the latter is in the foreground (e.g. in beer gardens, discotheques, clubs)
• -    of cultural performances in the context of confessional, scientific and educational events or
• -    guided tours of exhibitions and buildings
• -    of cultural framework programs for visits to botanical and zoological gardens, if the visit to the garden is in the foreground
   

In principle, the organiser of a cultural event is eligible to apply (see "Which events are eligible for funding?"). An organiser within the meaning of the special fund is someone who bears the economic and organisational risk of a cultural event. This applies regardless of the legal form of the organiser.
 

• -    Companies that are not registered with a German tax office


• -    Companies without a domestic permanent establishment or registered office


• -    Companies that were already in (economic) difficulties as of 31 December 2019 (EU definition) and have not overcome this status thereafter.


• -    Public-law companies can only apply for economic aid, but not for default protection
  
   

Yes, public broadcasters can also apply. However, they can only apply for economic aid. Public service broadcasters are not granted a cancellation coverage.
 

• 1.    the organiser must register on this website. Registration has been possible since 15 June 2021.
• 2.    the event must be registered before it is planned to take place. Proof of the Corona-related restrictions must be provided. 
• 3.    not later than eight weeks after the event has been held: submit the application via the IT platform and identify yourself with the ELSTER organisation certificate. 

In principle, you do not need a third party examiner for registration. However, you must have all applications for cancellation coverage and applications for economic aid above a funding amount of 100,000 euros checked and confirmed by a third party examiner.

Only in the case of economic aid can collective applications be submitted. 

Events that take place up to 5 times per month at the same location can be registered and applied for as part of a collective application. The application must be submitted no later than eight weeks after the last event. 

Events that are the same or similar and take place more than 5 times a month at the same location must be registered and applied for as part of a period-related application. The application can be submitted for a whole month or a quarter. Examples of such series of events are film screenings in cinemas and exhibitions in museums.
 

Economic aid is intended to enable the economic realisation of rather smaller cultural events which, due to Corona, can only be held with a reduced number of participants.

Two additional criteria for this form of aid are:

• -    Size: maximum of 500 or, from 1 August 2021, maximum of 2,000 participants. 
• -    Corona-related restriction: The number of possible participants must be reduced by at least 20% compared to the possible capacities of the venue due to Corona conditions. 

Maximum limit and de minimis limit: 

• -    Individual application: maximum 100,000 euros
• -    Collective application: maximum 100,000 euros per event
• -    Period-related application: maximum 500,000 euros per month/ 1,500,000 euros per quarter
• -    de minimis limit: at least 1,000 euros per application
• -    Several smaller events can be registered and applied for together as part of a collective application.

Calculation of the funding amount

• -    Corona-related restrictions on the number of participants between 20% and 75%: Ticket income is doubled up to the maximum funding limit.
• -    Corona-related restrictions on the number of participants of more than 75%: Ticket revenue tripled up to maximum funding limit 
• -    Maximum funding limit: Funding gap between event-related costs (+ 10% flat-rate implementation fee) and the income generated. 

If the event has to be cancelled due to Corona, the cancellation coverage is integrated in the economic aid.
 

The cancellation coverage covers events with more than 2,000 participants. In the event of a pandemic-related cancellation, partial cancellation or postponement, the cancellation coverage reimburses 80% of the cancellation or postponement costs.

The maximum funding is 8 million euros. All relevant documents must be checked and confirmed by a third party examiner before submission.
 

You can find a list of eligible costs here

Cancellations or partial cancellations/reduction of capacity are pandemic-related if there are official legal regulations or official orders. This may also mean a reduction in the number of participants or a reduction in the scope of the event (e.g. if part of the event may not be held). 
In addition, the following reasons also apply to a pandemic-related cancellation as long as they can be proven. 

• - Non-feasibility of tour productions because cancellations of at least 50 per cent of the event planned in Germany are mandatory due to regionally different Corona regulations.
• - Illness/infection and/or ordered quarantine of artists who are formative for the event (e.g. solo artists).
• - Entry bans to Germany/exit bans from the country of origin etc. of (foreign) artists in the sense of the previous point.

The decisive factor is that it is a pandemic-related cause that occurred after registration.

Third party examiner can be found here:
- Steuerberater-Suchdienst
- DStV - German Association of Tax Advisers
- Public Register / Register of Statutory Auditors
- Official Nationwide Register Of Lawyers

An advice hotline run by North Rhine-Westphalia is available for further questions at this number: 0800 6648430.

Here is the link to the FAQs 

The Land of Berlin also provides information and assistance on the programme at this link.

Here is the link to the video of the info event 
 

Hardship Aids is a joint program of the federal government and the states. The federal government has left the program design to the states, so that the design is identical in the key points and has been adapted in some details individually for the states.
The Hardship Aids are an aid program for companies and self-employed persons who are in an economic emergency due to the Corona pandemic and for whom existing federal and state aid programs are not effective.

Any company may apply if a case of hardship exists. For a case of hardship, the following two characteristics must apply: 

• -    The company is in a situation that threatens its existence (the company's continued existence is not assured) due to the consequences of the Corona pandemic.
• -    The company does not currently have access to a federal and state Corona aid programs. 
   

Every independent legal entity that is active on the market counts as a company. This also includes solo self-employed, non-profit enterprises or social enterprises, organizations and associations. 
It is important that the company is registered with a Berlin tax office. 
Affiliated companies may only submit one application for all affiliated companies together.
 

Companies that have received existing Corona aids are not eligible to apply - for the grant period November 2020 through June 2021.
 

Hardship Aid is applied for in the respective state. The decision on the applications is also the responsibility of the respective state. In Berlin, the granting authority is Investitionsbank Berlin. 
Unlike previous aids, Hardship Aid is assessed on a very individual basis. For this reason, a longer period of time may elapse between application and approval. 
The application for Hardship Aid can only be submitted via an examining third party. Verifying third parties are, for example, tax advisors. 
In addition to general information, the following information must be provided: 

• -    Sales slump: details of sales in the months November 2020 to June 2021.
• -    Operating fixed costs for the subsidy period must be stated or estimated.
• -    Presentation of the hardship case: A document must explain why a special pandemic-related hardship exists in the present case of the application. 
   

The support is basically based on the eligible facts of the Bridging Aid III. This means that especially fixed costs are supported. The support for the entire support period amounts to at least 2,000 euros and should not exceed 100,000 euros as a rule.
 

Months from the years 2018, 2019 and 2020 can be considered for comparison; monthly averages are also conceivable. It is important that the calculation is comprehensible and that the choice of months is plausibly justified in the hardship case.
 

Third party examiner can be found here:
- Steuerberater-Suchdienst
- DStV - German Association of Tax Advisers
- Public Register / Register of Statutory Auditors
- Official Nationwide Register Of Lawyers

Link to the IBB product page

Link to the FAQ of the Hardship Aid Berlin 

Link to the FAQ of the Bridging Aid III

Contact form of the IBB
 

Restart Aid for SME is a supplement to the federal government's Bridging Aid III. It is intended to help solo self-employed persons and small businesses (with up to 5 full-time employees) secure their entrepreneurial existence in the period from January to June 2021.

In principle, Berlin-based micro-enterprises with up to 5 full-time employees as well as self-employed persons who have submitted an application under Bridging Aid III and have been granted this for at least one month from January to June 2021 are eligible to apply. In addition, applicants must maintain their business operations or self-employment until at least June 30, 2021.

Applicants who

• -    Have not received Bridging Aid III,
• -    Have received federal Restart Aid (for these applicants the Neustarthilfe Berlin for solo self-employed applies),
• -    Have received Bridging Aid III for the months of November and December 2020 only.
• -    Have already been in economic difficulties as of December 31, 2019, and have not subsequently overcome this status and have therefore filed for or opened bankruptcy proceedings at the time of application
• -    have permanently ceased their business activities.
   

All companies that have a registered office or place of business subject to trade tax at a Berlin tax office or all freelancers who have registered their main activity in Berlin.

The state of Berlin will pay a lump sum of 1,000 euros for each month in the period from January to June 2021 in which Bridging Aid III was approved. Thus, a maximum of 6,000 euros can be paid out for the entire funding period. 

With regard to the use of the Restart Aid Berlin for SMEs, there are no requirements after the grant. The use is uncommitted and therefore not verifiable.
 

The microentrepreneurs and self-employed persons who are eligible to apply and who have received the Bridging Aid III in the approval period January - June 2021 will be informed by Investitionsbank Berlin about the possibility of applying for the New Start-up Assistance Berlin for SMEs by e-mail. This e-mail contains a link to the application form. 
The application is only possible via the online form. It is not possible to apply by mail or fax. 
 

Restart Aid Berlin for SMEs does not require a separate final settlement. The final settlement builds on the final settlement of the Bridging Aid III. The final statement must indicate the revenue generated from January to June 2021. Eligibility to apply will then be reviewed by June 30, 2022, and the Berlin Restart Aid for SMEs will be finally approved. If the application eligibility for individual months is not available, the advance lump sums of 1,000 euros must be repaid for these months.

FAQ on Restart Aid Berlin for SMEs
FAQ on Bridging Aid III
Product page Restart AIid Berlin of IBB 
Video of the Restart Aid Berlin information event
 

Restart Aid Berlin for solo self-employed persons is a supplement to the federal government's Neustarthilfe. It is intended to help solo self-employed persons secure their professional or entrepreneurial livelihood in the period from January to June 2021.
 

All Berlin-based solo self-employed persons who have received Restart Aid from the federal government are eligible to apply.

Not eligible to apply are applicants who

• -    Have received Bridging Aid III
• -    Have not received any Restart Aid from the federal government 
• -    Have already received the entire 7,500 euros as part of the Restart Aid from the federal government
• -    Have already found themselves in economic difficulties as of December 31, 2019
• -    Have permanently discontinued their business activities 
   

Berlin solo self-employed persons are working people whose main occupation is self-employment with less than one full-time employee and who pay tax on this income in the state of Berlin. In principle, the obligation to pay income tax according to the local tax office responsible for the place of residence is decisive here.
 

The subsidy is calculated on the basis of the reference turnover (as with the Restart Aid from the federal government). The state of Berlin adds another 25% of the reference turnover on top of the 50% from the federal government. However, 7,500 euros remains the limit here. For example, if you have already received 6,500 euros from the federal government, you can only receive a maximum of 1,000 euros from the state of Berlin. 

Everyone who has received the federal funds within the framework of the Restart Aid and is eligible to apply will be contacted by IBB by mail. In this mail you will receive the link to the application form. You will usually receive the mail two weeks after the federal funds have been paid out.

In the case of Restart Aid Berlin for solo self-employed, no separate final settlement is necessary. It is sufficient to make the settlement within the framework of the Restart Aid from the federal government. If your own generated turnover during the funding period (January to June 2021) exceeds 40 percent of the reference turnover, the advance must be repaid in full or proportionally, analogously to the federal government. 
 

Here is the link to the FAQ of the IBB
Here is the link to the FAQ of the Neustarthilfe des Bundes
Here you can find a video of the info event

The Congress Fund Berlin is a promotion initiated by the state of Berlin to revitalize the event industry. The aim is to support event planners who implement B2B events in Berlin conference hotels or event venues. The aim is to ensure that despite the disruptions and uncertainties caused by the Corona pandemic, trade events can be safely planned and held in Berlin.

Funding is provided for events that are aimed exclusively at a professional audience. Participants who attend out of professional motivation count as a professional audience. In addition, the event must take place in Berlin. Examples of event formats are congresses, conferences, seminars and training courses. 

Requirements for events: 
- Takes place in an event venue that has been booked for a fee
- Takes place by December 31, 2021
- At least 50 participants
- Duration of the event at least one day (program of at least four hours per day)
- Aimed at a professional audience 

Not funded are:

• Trade fairs, exhibitions and similar formats, even if they are aimed exclusively at a professional audience and/or are linked to an eligible congress; 
• Events aimed at private individuals (persons who participate in the event for private reasons) or for leisure or recreational purposes; 
• Events that take place on the organiser's own premises;
• Events that the applicant himself/herself or a third party is legally obliged to organise; 
• Events for which funding is provided elsewhere, e.g. from other funding programmes of the State of Berlin, the Federal Government or the European Union (income from sponsorship contracts, however, does not exclude funding); 
• party political events.
   

Basic funding: 
25 euros per attendance participant and per day 

Supplementary funding: 
For hybrid events additional 10 euros per presence participant and per day
Events that meet certain sustainability criteria receive an additional 25 euros per participant present and per day. For this, a certain number of points from various categories of the "Sustainable Event Scorecard" must be achieved. 

Per event, there can be a maximum subsidy of 49 950 Euros.

If an event has to be cancelled due to restrictions within the meaning of the Infection Protection Act, eligible expenses actually incurred can be settled under the grant to the extent of a maximum of 60% of the provisionally approved funding amount. This does not apply to costs incurred through a contract with an event agency for the purpose of conception, organization and implementation.
 

There is an electronic procedure for the application. Applications are processed in the order in which they are received. It is important to note that an individual application must be submitted for each event. As soon as a confirmation of receipt of the application is received, orders and contracts for the planned event can be concluded. However, the confirmation of receipt does not constitute an entitlement to actual funding. The organizer therefore acts at his own risk. 

The subsidies will only be paid out after the event has taken place. The granting authority will first issue a provisional decision in which the provisional amount of funding will be determined. The complete proof of use must be submitted to atene KOM GmbH no later than four weeks after the event. An electronic procedure is to be set up for this purpose. Once the proof of use has been checked, the approved subsidies will be paid out, provided that the check has not given rise to any objections. 

You submit the application via this website.

You need:

- A fully completed application form (including information on the applicant, the event, the event location, the event date, the event duration/day, the participants, the application amount, the account details, the hybridity; in the case of an application for supplementary funding, information on the sustainability criteria likely to be met ("Sustainable Event Scorecard"); an assurance of the accuracy of the information; in the case of legal entities, the registration number of the Transparency Database of the State of Berlin10 if applicable).

- The information/named attachments requested in the application form, including: 

• Proof of the legal form/existence of the applicant's institution, 
• Declaration of de minimis aid already received/applied for (de minimis declaration), 
• Declaration as to whether the applicant or its beneficial owner is a "politically exposed person, a family member or a person known to be closely associated" under the Money Laundering Act (PEP declaration),
• Declaration in accordance with Section 3 (1) of the Ordinance on the Granting of Benefits, including measures for the advancement of women and/or the promotion of the compatibility of work and family.
   

Information page of visitBerlin

Funding guidelines of the Berlin Convention Fund

Information events on the Berlin Convention Fund 
- April 28, 2021
- May 05, 2021
- 18 May 2021 
Registration here! 

The Digital Allowance is an economic development program with a total volume of 70 million EUR for the State of Berlin to actively support the ongoing digitization process of Berlin's medium-sized companies.

Small and medium-sized companies with up to 249 employees and their headquarters or permanent establishment in Berlin as well as self-employed people and freelancers in their main occupation without employees (with at least EUR 26,000 income / year from their current activity). The establishment must have taken place before December 31, 2019.

Companies that do not have a registered office or a permanent establishment in Berlin and have more than 250 employees. Solo self-employed people as part-time jobbers and self-employed people who earn less than EUR 26,000 in income per year from their current activity and those who are founded after December 31, 2019.

Self-employed people and small and medium-sized enterprises with up to 10 employees can receive a grant of up to EUR 7,000. Small and medium-sized companies with 10 up to 249 employees can receive a grant of up to EUR 17,000.

Funding grants for external material expenses are received in the following areas:

Digital work, production and management processes:
• Acquisition of a CAM system
• Digital inventory control system
• Digital POS system
• Company-related internet of things platform
• Digital timekeeping recording
• Digital payroll accounting

Introduction or improvement of IT security:
• IT security infrastructure
• Digital data storage and backup
• Digital business premises security
• Penetration test of IT systems and certification

Digital advice and qualification:
• Advice on implementation
• Workshop on the digitization of the business model
• Further training in corporate IT security
• Training as a data scientist
The training providers must prove their qualification through certification according to ISO 27001, accreditation according to AZAV 18 or an authorization within the framework of the federal funding program "go-digital".

The application can be submitted from November 2, 2020 until October 31, 2021. Applications can only be submitted online via the IBB Business Team GmbH website.

You can find more information about the digital bonus here. IBB Business Team GmbH acts as the contact person for further questions about the digital bonus.

Solo self-employed persons can apply for a one-time lump sum for operating costs ("restart aid") within the framework of Bridging Aid III. The maximum amount is 7,500 euros.

Eligible applicants are solo self-employed individuals who cannot otherwise claim fixed costs under Bridging Aid III and who earned at least 51% of their income from self-employment during the reference period (normally 2019).

Within the scope of the Restart Aid, sales from short-term employment relationships in the performing arts of up to 14 consecutive weeks can also be taken into account as sales from self-employment.
So-called non-permanent employees in all sectors as well as short-term employees in the performing arts can also apply for Restart Aid, provided they do not receive unemployment benefits or short-time work benefits. In this way, non-permanent actors and comparable employees are also effectively supported.

Those who are not eligible to apply are those who

• has one employee or more (full-time equivalent);
• started his or her self-employment after October 31, 2020;
• has already filed an application in Bridging Aid III;
• has already filed an application for Restart Aid for solo self-employed persons or, in the case of a one-person corporation, the partner has already filed an application for Restart Aid as a natural person; 
• has already been in economic difficulties as of December 31, 2019 (EU definition) and has not recovered this status thereafter; and
• has permanently ceased business activities or has filed for or opened national insolvency proceedings.

Since March, corporations with up to four shareholders have been able to apply for Restart Aid. And since the end of June, cooperatives with up to ten employees who are also members of the cooperative are eligible to apply. Cooperatives and corporations can only apply for Restart Aid through a third party examiner.

Furthermore, multi-person companies and thus also GbRs are eligible to apply. If you as a natural person want to claim professional and/or commercial income and/or (pro rata) sales from a partnership, you can either submit a direct application or an application via third party examiner. Important: The income from partnerships is only to be taken into account once.

The costs for an application via third party examiner are covered to a certain extent and paid out in addition to the grant.

The lump sum for operating costs amounts to a one-time 50% of the reference turnover (turnover of the corresponding pre-crisis period in 2019), up to a maximum of 7,500 euros. (This is a taxable subsidy).

To determine the 2019 reference turnover, the average monthly revenue for 2019 is used (reference monthly turnover). The reference turnover is six times this reference monthly turnover. Special rules apply to applicants who started their self-employed activity only after January 1, 2019.

Example: With a turnover of 20,000 euros (average turnover in the artists' social insurance fund), 5,000 euros of Restart Aid is therefore paid (50 percent of the reference turnover for six months in 2019, 10,000 euros).

When calculating turnover, both turnover from self-employment and turnover from employment are included. This applies to the calculation of the reference turnover as well as to the calculation of the actual turnover in January to June 2021. It is important that the turnover from self-employed activities predominates in the reference turnover (in 2019) (See "Who is eligible to apply?"). 

Revenue from self-employment include: (These are always the net sales).

• Freelance and commercial revenue 
• Proportionate revenue from a GbR 
• Revenue from short-term employment (up to 14 weeks) 
• Revenue from temporary employment (up to 7 days) 
• Revenue generated abroad for the company registered in Germany 
   

Revenue from non-independent employment includes: 

• Wages and salaries
• Turnover from marginal employment (450 Euro jobs) 
• Tax-exempt wage replacement benefits such as short-time working allowance, unemployment benefit and parental allowance
• (basic) pensions 
• Capital-forming benefits, severance payments, benefits in kind, bonuses, commissions, gratuities, pension payments. 
   

Do not count as revenue: 

• Bafög 
• Scholarships 
• Donations 
   

All those who started their self-employment before November 1, 2020 are eligible to apply for the Restart Aid. An alternative reference turnover period can be selected here. 

Alternative reference monthly turnover: 

• Average monthly revenue for all full months of self-employment activity in 2019.
• Average monthly revenue of January and February in 2020
• Average monthly revenue of the third quarter (July to September) in 2020
• Average monthly turnover from 2020, based on the estimated annual turnover reported to the tax office at the time of initial tax registration.

The subsidy for operating costs is not counted towards basic security benefits (ALG II/ Hartz IV) and unemployment benefit (ALG I). It is also not taken into account when determining income for the purpose of determining the child supplement.

Solo self-employed persons applying for Restart Aid can apply directly (www.ueberbrueckungshilfe-unternehmen.de) using the ELSTER certificate familiar from the tax return.

The lump sum for operating costs is paid out as an advance at the beginning of the term, even if the specific loss of sales during the term January 2021 to June 2021 has not yet been determined. At the end of the funding period, each applicant must submit a final settlement via an online form in which they provide information on their actual revenues generated (more on this under "How does the final settlement work?").

After June 30, 2021, all those who have received Restart Aid are to independently submit a final statement by December 31. An online tool is to be made available for the final statement. Here, it should be indicated how much turnover was actually generated in the period from January to June 2021. Important: no information needs to be provided on what the grant was used for. 

If a revenue of more than 40 percent was generated compared to the reference turnover of 2019, the Restart grant must be repaid on a pro-rata basis. The deadline for repayments is June 30, 2022

No repayment: Revenue in the funding period is less than 40% of the reference turnover.

Proportional repayment: Turnover in the funding period is between 40% and 90% of the reference turnover.

Full repayment: Turnover in the funding period is more than 90% of the reference turnover.

The deadline for repayments is 30 June 2022.

The BMWI answers questions about direct applications for Restart Aid for solo self-employed persons via a hotline. The service desk for solo self-employed persons can be reached at the following number: 030-1200 21034 (service hours Mon-Fri, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.).

You can find more information on the pages of the Federal Ministry of Finance.
A simple calculation of the Restart Aid is possible with the ver.di calculator (Excel document).

Here is a step-by-step application completion guide.

The federal Bridging Aid is (so far) divided into three funding phases: Phase 1 (Bridging Aid I) ran from June to August 2020; Phase 2 (Bridging Aid II) ran from September to December 2020. Since February 2021 it is now possible to apply for federal grants in a third phase (Bridging Aid III); the funding period is between November 2020 and June 2021.

Bridging Aid III will support companies, solo self-employed and freelancers in all sectors with annual sales of up to €750 million that experience a drop in sales of at least 30 percent in the period from November 2020 to June 2021 compared to the reference month in 2019. Applications are submitted through reviewing third parties. Bridging Aid III is the follow-up program to Bridging Aid II.

Uniform criterion for eligibility to apply: All companies with more than a 30 percent drop in sales are eligible to receive the tiered fixed cost reimbursement under Bridging Aid III.

The following companies are explicitly not eligible to apply (exclusion criteria):

• Companies that are not registered with a German tax office,
• Companies without a domestic permanent establishment or registered office,
• Companies that were already in (economic) difficulties as of December 31, 2019 (EU definition) and have not overcome this status thereafter,
• Companies that were only established after April 30, 2020,
• Public companies,
• Companies with more than 750 million euros in annual sales in 2020 and
• Freelancers or solo self-employed persons in sideline business.

For more information on the exclusion criteria, see point 1.1 of the FAQ of the Bridging Aid III.

Bridging Aid III reimburses a share amounting to

• Up to 90 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a drop in sales > 70 %.
• Up to 60 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a drop in sales of ≥ 50 % and ≤ 70 %.
• Up to 40 % of the eligible fixed costs in the event of a drop in sales ≥ 30 % and < 50 %.

in the eligible month compared to the corresponding month in 2019.

In the future, costs for structural modernization, renovation and conversion measures to implement hygiene concepts, as well as investments in digitization (e.g., setting up or expanding an online store, entry costs for major platforms) can also be claimed up to 20,000 euros.

For these areas, costs incurred outside the funding period are now also taken into account. Specifically, appropriate costs of up to 20,000 euros per month or, in the case of investments in digitization, one-off costs incurred in the period from March 2020 to June 2021 will be reimbursed accordingly.

Depreciation of assets of up to 50 percent is recognized as eligible costs. For example, a showman who has bought his carousel and financed it with a loan or from his own capital can deduct half of the monthly depreciation as a cost. This helps the carny industry in particular, but also companies in the event sector and bus tourism.

A special regulation for retailers will be introduced for perishable goods and for seasonal goods for the 2020/2021 winter season. This affects, for example, Christmas items, fireworks and winter clothing. But it also affects perishable goods that become unusable if they could not be sold. Under certain conditions, retailers can deduct up to 100 percent of their merchandise write-offs as fixed costs.

In addition, marketing and advertising costs are eligible for a maximum of the corresponding expenses in 2019.

Additional costs are recognized for industries particularly affected by the Corona crisis. This concerns solo self-employed persons, the travel industry (travel agencies and tour operators), the culture and events industry, and the pyrotechnics industry.

Solo self-employed:

• the current reimbursement of fixed costs will be supplemented by a one-time lump sum for operating costs ("Restart Aid").

• As an alternative to the reimbursement of fixed costs for the period December 2020 to June 2021, solo self-employed persons can receive a one-time lump sum for operating costs, the so-called "Restart Aid" (Neustarthilfe), in the amount of up to 50 percent of the 2019 reference turnover up to a maximum of 7,500 euros (for more information, see the explanations on the Restart Aid).

• The Restart Aid does not have to be offset against benefits from the basic income support.

Culture and event industry:

• If events had to be cancelled due to Corona, their cancellation and preparation costs can also be claimed retroactively for the period March to December 2020 as part of Bridging Aid III, in addition to the other eligible costs.

o Both internal project-related costs (primarily personnel expenses) and external costs (such as costs for commissioned third parties, e.g. graphic designers) are eligible.
o These special costs of the past months will not be counted towards the otherwise applicable maximum funding limit up to 200,000 euros per month of the period March to December 2020.

• A special fund for cultural events is also to be created - outside of Bridging Aid III - which is to provide a profitability bonus for Corona-related low-frequented cultural events such as concerts, festivals and theater performances.

o Hybrid cultural events, which are offered in both presence form and online, are also to benefit from this in particular.
o As part of the special fund, there is to be a kind of failsafe for cultural events that are planned for the period from summer 2021, but then later have to be canceled due to Corona, contrary to the plans.
o The details of this special fund are currently being worked out. It will complement the NEUSTART KULTUR program launched as part of the economic stimulus package, which has already made one billion euros available for the cultural sector.

Eligible costs are ongoing, contractually justified or officially determined fixed operating costs incurred during the funding period. (See the detailed explanations under point 2.4. of the FAQ of Bridging Aid III).

No, costs of private living such as rent or interest payments for private housing (with the exception of (pro rata) costs for a study if this has already been claimed for tax purposes in 2019), health insurance contributions, and contributions to private pension plans are not covered by the Bridging Aid.

Entrepreneurial wages are not eligible.

The Restart Aid is an independent program under the 3rd phase of the federal Bridging Aid (Bridging Aid III). Therefore, solo self-employed persons can either claim the Restart Aid or the reimbursement of fixed costs under the Bridging Aid III. It is not possible to claim both subsidies:

• Solo self-employed persons who have applied for or received the Bridging Aid III are thus not eligible to apply for the Restart Aid.

• Solo self-employed persons who have applied for or received the Restart Aid cannot apply for reimbursement of fixed costs under the Bridging Aid III.

As before, applications are submitted electronically by tax consultants, auditors, sworn accountants or lawyers via the Bridging Aid platform.

Examiners can e.g. be searched here:
• Tax advisor tracing service
• Professional register for auditors / sworn accountants
• Tax consultant search service of the German Tax Association e.V. (DStV)
• Register of Lawyers

The application can be submitted until August 31, 2021. An application can only be submitted once. Amendments are excluded from this.

The application must be submitted via the Bridging Aid platform.

Here you can find further information on Bridging Aid III. In addition, on February 16, 2021, Berlin Partner and the IHK Berlin collaborated with Dr. Michael Knieß (Head of Regional Structural Policy, Economic Promotion of the Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Enterprises), Matthias Steger (Member of the Board of the Brandenburg Chamber of Tax Advisors and the Berlin-Brandenburg Association of Tax Advisors) and Eike Schmaida (Chief Digital Officer, Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB) in offering a digital information event followed by a question and answer session on Bridging Aid III, which is available as a video.

Third party examiners can be found here:
- Steuerberater-Suchdienst
- DStV - German Association of Tax Advisers
- Public Register / Register of Statutory Auditors
- Official Nationwide Register Of Lawyers

You can find more information about the November- and December Aid here are more FAQ.
Here is the official hotline and contact form.
Instructions for applying (for solo self-employed people) can be found here.
Here is an overview of the November and December Aid.
You can find helpful tips in the FAQ of VGSD.

With a press release dated 4.12.2020 IBB informed about the start to send the information letters. You can read the press release here.

From 27.03. to 01.04.2020 (12 o'clock) it was possible to apply for the state subsidy (in the amount of a lump sum of 5,000 EUR) and for the operating subsidy from federal funds via the Emergency Aid Program II. Since 06.04.2020, only the federal funds could be applied for via the Emergency Aid Program II.

An overview of both grants with information on eligibility, application period, application amount and possible uses of each grant can be found here.

Here you must first answer the question: did you apply for the Corona grant from state or federal funds, or did you even receive both grants?

The Corona grant, which was disbursed as part of the state funds, can be used for personal living expenses, entrepreneurial wages, and current material and financial expenses.

The Corona grant, which was disbursed as part of the federal appropriation, is usable for ongoing operating expenses and commercial non-personnel and financial expenses such as:

• commercial rents
• leasing expenses
• business telecommunications costs
• running costs/fees for providers, domain(s), webspaces etc. as well as maintenance costs
• personnel costs for employees, if not covered by short-time allowance (these costs can no longer be financed from federal funds since 20.4.2020 and thus can no longer be accounted for).
• etc.

Salaries of managing directors, private withdrawals or compensation for loss of sales and fees for personal living expenses, health insurance contributions, etc. are not included. On the other hand, the "social protection package" adopted on 27.03.2020 opens up access to basic benefits under much easier conditions.

The FAQ as of March 31 can be found here. Expanding the answers does not work via the archive version. The answers can be displayed using the Developer Tool of the browser.