Business Universal

The program aims to support development of business in Georgia and diversification of domestic production, through creation of new enterprises, and expansion / re-equipment of existing enterprises.

 

 

* Program Industries

• Manufacturing
• Hotels Industry/Balneological Resorts
• Tourism Services
• Agrotourism Industry
• Ecotourism Industry

* For loans issued by commercial banks/leasing companies

• Within the framework of the loan, the Agency subsidizes the loan interest rate by the national refinancing rate minus 5% for the full term of the loan and in case of leasing - the national refinancing rate minus 3%
• Within the framework of the loan, the Agency guarantees no more than 80% of the loan principal amount for a maximum period of 10 years;
• The minimum loan/leasing amount is 50,000 GEL, and the maximum is 10,000,000 GEL;
• At least 50% of the loan should be used for capital expenses and not more than 50% for working/operational capital.
• Full utilization of the subject of loan/leasing should be done within 2 years after confirmation of the subject of loan/leasing.

* Program conditions

• Economic activity should be included in the list of priorities approved by the Government of Georgia under this program;
• For detailed information regarding the economic activity classifications, please see the Economic Activities Classifications.
• The beneficiary of the program must be an entrepreneur who meets the 3rd or 4th  category enterprise criteria (only in its income component) - in accordance with the Law of Georgia on Accounting, Reporting, and Auditing, this can be checked through the link: www.reportal.ge
• All beneficiaries are obliged to ensure unimpeded access of persons with disabilities to administrative buildings using ramps and/or similar facilities.

• Within the framework of the EU Pilot Regions Program, for Agency-confirmed applications in 2022 - In case of a loan ranging from GEL 50 000 to GEL 1 500 000 beneficiaries from the pilot regions will receive a grant from 10% to 20% (For further information please visit Grant page).

• The first tranche of the loan/leasing must be fully utilized within 6 months after the confirmation of the subject of the loan/leasing by the agency;

• Full utilization of the subject of loan/leasing should be done within 2 years after confirmation of the subject of loan/leasing.

*Exceptions

Applies to all program directions

• It is not allowed to repair and purchase vehicles, except:

1. The vehicles that are directly involved in the production/service process on the territory of the enterprise;
2. Facilities used in the travel, agro, and eco-tourism industries which are classified as tourist attractions, including air and watercraft.
3. 49.41.0 Truck road transport; 49.42.0 shipping services; 52.21.0 land transport related services; 52.22.0 services related to water transport; 52.23.0 services related to air transport; 52.24.0 cargo loading-unloading;53.10.0 postal activities with universal service obligation; 53.20.0 Other postal and courier services - within the scope of these economic activities, only if the cost of purchase/repair of these vehicles (except for light vehicles defined in accordance with the Law of Georgia "On Road Traffic") equals the total cost of the loan/leasing project approved within the program not more than 30%.

• It is not allowed to purchase goodwill;
• Construction, repair, equipping of office space (administrative building) is not allowed;
• Purchase and/or temporary use of state and/or private real estate in the forms provided for by the Civil Code of Georgia;

• Purchase or management of stock or shares owned by a private entity;

The grant component can only by used by the existing Business Universal program beneficiaries

• In the year 2022, within the designated pilot (Imereti, Kakheti, Guria, and Racha-Lechkhumi-Kvemo Svaneti) in strict adherence to the financial framework prescribed by the program, and specifically for loan or leasing items with an approved value ranging from 50,000 GEL to 1,500,000 GEL, the recipient will have the capacity to:

- To obtain a disbursement equivalent to 10% of the approved loan or leasing asset from a commercial banking institution or leasing firm, capped at a maximum limit of 300,000 GEL, provided that the beneficiary company's operations are encompassed within the N1¹ appendix.

- To secure a disbursement amounting to 20% of the approved loan or leasing asset from a commercial banking institution or leasing firm, with an upper ceiling of 300,000 GEL, contingent upon the inclusion of the beneficiary company's operations in Annex N9.

Or

• The recipient under the universal program, with a loan/leasing subject ranging from 50,000 GEL to 10,000,000 GEL, is eligible to access a disbursement of 15% of the approved loan or leasing asset, not exceeding 500,000 GEL, contingent upon the inclusion of the beneficiary company's operations in Annex N9.

Grant Reception: The beneficiary can submit a grant application after utilizing at least 50% of the loan/lease, along with an audit document proving the targeted use of the loan/lease. In addition, submission of the grant application to the agency is allowed no later than three years after the loan/leasing was issued.

Note: The Agency will pay the cost(s) not more than twice, based on the grant application(s) received. Payment can happen either partially (after utilizing at least 50% of the loan/lease) or fully (after fully utilizing the loan/lease). The beneficiary’s grant will be paid in 30 calendar days after the submission of an application. It should be noted that the audit document has to clearly demonstrate the following: The conducted audit confirms that the loan/lease amount was spent in accordance with the targeting and economic activity(ies) from NACE2 indicated in the agreement signed with the commercial bank/leasing company.