FAQ

This program is intended for teams containing a minimum of two (2) and a maximum of five (5) team members with at least 51% of the team members being residents of the Republic of Serbia. Applications submitted by individuals will not be considered.

This program is not intended for the persons registered as sole proprietors (entrepreneurs). Eligible Applicants for this program are teams of 2 to 5 members, with at least 51% of the team members being residents of the Republic of Serbia.

Informal teams can apply for this program. If funding is approved, teams will be required to establish a new company under the rules described in the Program manual.

The maximum number of team members is 5 (the minimum number of team members is 2). If financing is approved, the Applicants will be required to establish a limited liability company in accordance with the current Serbian Company Law. Furthermore, the newly established company must be 100% owned by at least 51% of the proposed team members who are residents of the Republic of Serbia and does not have any stake in any other company in the Republic of Serbia. The ownership percentage among team members is subject to their internal agreement. Note that in case the project is comprised of two team members, both proposed team members have to be residents of the Republic of Serbia, without any stake in any other company in the Republic of Serbia and if financing is approved newly established company must be owned by both proposed team members.

Each individual team member can participate in only one Application within the current public call, regardless of the Innovation Fund’s programs. Accordingly, applications where the same person is part of multiple key staff will not be eligible for funding.

The Smart Start program is open to applications coming from all sectors/industries of the economy and all areas of science and technology. However, bear in mind that this program is in line with the Smart Specialization Strategy of Serbia 2020 – 2027. Therefore, the program will prioritize the sectors covered in the strategy mentioned above, and at least 50% of the Fund’s available funds within the framework of the public call will be allocated to applications from the specified priority domains in the mentioned strategy.

A team applying for the Smart Start Program can apply for only one project per this public call including all other IF programs. If funding is approved, the team must use funds exclusively for the applied and approved project without the possibility of using them for other purposes and projects.

The Application where team members/key personnel are also part of other implementing project within Innovation Fund’s Programs, will be disqualified from the further evaluation process.

Grant can be used for:

• Human resources (cofounders and key personnel) salaries/compensation for personnel engaged in the project; inclusive of all social benefits and income tax for personal working on the project)
• Office rent and business support costs (bookkeeping, legal services, etc.)
• Equipment and supplies needed for development (not including used or refurbished equipment and supplies)
• External business development services

Eligible costs under this category include renting office space (offices, workshops), internet and telephone, electricity and heating (overheads), office supplies, accounting or legal support costs. Still, these items must be directly related to the project’s needs.

No, taxes, including VAT, customs duties and fees are ineligible costs.

Eligible costs under this category include renting office space (offices, workshops), internet and telephone, electricity and heating (overheads), office supplies, accounting or legal support costs. Still, these items must be directly related to the project’s needs.

The maximum amount of funds is RSD 5.400.000,00 RSD, or 90% of the maximum project budget that the Awardee can receive (excluding the amount of mentoring support).

In addition to the funds for the project implementation, the IF will provide 600,000.00 RSD of additional funds for the costs of mentoring support.

Co-financing in at least 10% of the total project budget is required (excluding the amount of mentoring support). For example, in the case of the maximum requested grant of RSD 5.400.000,00, the co-financing part would be RSD 600.000,00 since in this case the total project budget would be RSD 6.000.000,00. The share in the co-financing part by the awardee does not include the costs of mentoring support, which the IF fully covers.

A minimum of 10% of the funds must be provided by the Awardee, exclusively in the form of cash deposits. These funds may come from existing sources or other private or venture capital, private sector borrowing, and other private sector cash contributions. The co-financing part from the awardee must be independent of the funding received from the IF. Given that payments for the project budget are made in phases, it is not necessary to have co-financing part at the moment of application. The co-financing part must be secured upon signing the Financing Agreement and during project implementation.

Yes, the funds within this program are non-refundable (grants), as long as they are used in line with the rules defined in the Smart Start Program Manual and the Financing Agreement.

The application consists of:

1. Applicant Statement (signed and submitted on the IF portal in PDF format);
2. Application Form (filled out and submitted in PDF format). Furthermore, it contains:

• Details on the proposed solution and its potential business cases;
• Brief description background of the co-founders and key personnel to be engaged on the project (maximum 5);
• Simplified budget
• A video clip that represents the applicant’s elevator pitch, lasting no longer than 3 minutes, including a brief video presentation of the concept behind the product/service and introduction of the team members.

Note: The application form must be submitted in exactly the same visual and structural format and style as provided on the Fund’s website.

An Applicant is allowed to submit up to three times substantially the same, modified and/or improved Application which was considered for evaluation, regardless of the IF financing program. The Applicant must provide a clear description on what concrete steps have been undertaken to improve the project since the previous application. This progress can be achieved for example, through working towards idea validation with potential clients, creating a demo version of the product, or conducting other activities relevant to the field of business that clearly present a path towards a more mature business idea.

Criteria to be used by the Investment Committee to evaluate applications are:

а) Usefulness and competitive advantage of the proposed solution, maximum 30 points;

b) Market potential, maximum 30 points

c) Team competences, maximum 40 points

More details on the above criteria can be found in the Program Manual.

Once submitted, the document can be freely changed before the application deadline. When the Applicant enters the final versions of all necessary documents for the Application, it is mandatory to confirm the submission by clicking the “Submit” button, in order for the Application to be sent.

By signing the Rulebook on Confidentiality Policy and Prevention of Conflict of Interest Policy, all hired independent experts, members of the Investment Committee (IC) and the IF’s staff, have been obliged to follow all the provisions of the aforementioned Rulebook.

1st Phase – Once the public call for the application is ended, Applications are reviewed by Fund staff in terms of administrative and eligibility check and first screening.

2nd phase – After the 1st phase, the Applications are further evaluated by the members of the Investment Committee, which consists of experts in the field of investing in innovative projects and startups. Applications with a score of 75 or more will be preselected and have the opportunity to present their projects in front of the members of the Investment Committee in the final phase of evaluation.

3rd phase – Presentation of projects in front of the members of the Investment Committee. The Investment Committee makes the final decision on the projects to be financed.

Applicants may be rejected for financing on several grounds, at different stages of the evaluation process:

1. 1st Phase – projects of those Applicants who are not eligible to apply and whose applications are not complete will not be taken into further consideration. Eligible Applicants will be notified upon completion of this phase. Besides that, in order to select the most promising Applications, the IF team will conduct the First screening of all eligible Applicants. During this phase, the IF team will assess if the Application content is satisfactory and provides sufficient information in regards to the established Evaluation criteria (especially related to the explanation of the product/service/technology, competitive advantage or the identified market potential which the Application has to present with substantial detail). The IF team will eliminate Applications whose content is clearly lacking the information and substance as described above. Applicants will be informed after completion of this phase.
2. 2nd phase – Applications are evaluated by the members of the Investment Committee which will preselect projects for the next phase of the evaluation. Applicants whose projects have not been preselected will be notified after the preselection decision is made.
3. 3rd phase – after the completion of the entire evaluation process i.e., after the pitch presentations phase, Investment Committee makes the final decision on financing. All Applicants that participated at the pitch presentation sessions, will be notified about the Investment Committee decision.

After being notified that the project has been pre-selected, the applicant is obliged to deliver a presentation that is appropriate to the format of the final event – it is necessary to present the project within a time frame of up to 5 minutes, while the rest of the time is reserved for questions of the independent Investment Committee. The mentioned presentation must be submitted to the Fund in PowerPoint format by the required date according to the given instructions.

Yes, all Applicants receive comments on the submitted project. These comments are intended to help the Applicant to improve its project.

Applicants whose projects are approved for financing, become Awardees.

Before signing off the Financing Agreement, the Awardee is obliged to provide the following information and documents to the IF:

1. Official company registration and its registered founders in the Serbian Business Registers Agency (SBRA);
2. Proof that the Awardee is listed in the Register of Tenderers (srb. “Registar ponuđača”) in the Serbian Business Registers Agency (SBRA);
3. Proof or Contract on opening a dedicated bank account to which the grant will be transferred as well as confirmation that there were no financial transactions on that bank account;
4. Signed De minimis State aid regulation form;
5. Any additional documents if needed.

Yes, it is necessary for the Awardee under this program to open separate bank account. Keep in mind that this procedure takes place not earlier than in the phase of signing the Financing Agreement.

The funds intended for the project are paid to the account of the Awardee in phases which are confirmed by the assigned mentor upon completion. Completion of the phase is documented by appropriate reports as outlined in the Manual. However, before each payment to the Awardee, the Awardee must submit to the IF a bank statement showing that the Awardee has deposited the necessary co-financing part (minimum 10% of the total funds required for a given phase), together with an appropriate report. Upon approval of the report by the IF, the Awardee will be eligible for further payment.

It is not necessary to hire the proposed team members (and other individuals who would be engaged through the project) in advance, i.e., when submitting the Application. When submitting the Application, it is necessary to fill in the Application Form with biographies of the team members that will be engaged in the project.

If it is determined that the Awardee has misused funds, the IF will reduce the amount of its payment for the next phase in the amount of these ineligible costs, but also reserves the right to request from the Awardee the refund all or part of the funds disbursed in case of breach of the Financing Agreement.

In addition to financial support, the Smart Start program includes the mentoring support, which is an important segment of this program.

Teams that receive notification of joining the Smart Start program (positive decision on financing) will have the opportunity to meet mentors through online matchmaking sessions and choose the appropriate mentor based on the competencies that will be available to them.

The list of mentors is available on the IF’s website.

Every Awardee will get additional 600.000,00 RSD for the mentorship support that will be paid to the mentor in line with the approved project budget and Financing Agreement with the IF. Schedule of payments in % for this program is specified for each phase of the project and for mentoring support.

The IF will provide a Mentoring contract sample.

If there appears to be a need for a significant change in the development of your product or service, it is crucial to inform the IF, and in cooperation with the mentor to formulate a further work plan in order to continue with the Smart Start program. Based on the new / altered implementation plan, the mentor further considers, and the IF approves or rejects the proposal.

Reporting is done based on the delivery reports (through phases), approved by the mentor, and financial monitoring by the IF can be performed at any time.

Awardees are obliged to use the grant in accordance with the approved project and the Financing Agreement.

The staff of the Innovation Fund may at any time conduct monitoring visits to the companies that are beneficiaries of the grant, in order to determine that the project development and financial activities are carried out in accordance with what is reported and what is stated in the approved project documents and Financing Agreement.

The prototype/MVP/pilot development report cannot be submitted to the IF before half of the contracted project duration.

You can find out more about Smart Start program by writing us at the following email address: smartstart@inovacionifond.rs.

Applicants may file a fact-based objection to the outcome of eligibility and preselection phase of the selection process (citing evident omissions or mistakes made during the process), by submitting a letter of objection to the IF, by email, at smartstart@inovacionifond.rs.

The letter must be written in English with a recommended limit of 500 words within 8 calendar days. The IF will provide an official response to the formal letter of objection no later than 14 calendar days from receiving the objection.

No. A team member who is a co-founder of the new Smart Start company cannot simultaneously hold the position of director or legal representative in any other company, regardless of whether they have an ownership stake.

No, if this applies to at least 51% of the team members. The requirement that at least 51% of the team members must not hold ownership stakes in any other business entity in the Republic of Serbia applies from the date of application submission until the completion of project implementation.

Yes. The video recording is mandatory and is an important part of the Committee’s review in the initial stage of the evaluation process. All team members must introduce themselves in the video so the Committee can get to know the entire team.

The request for portal registration must be submitted no later than three days before the closing date of the public call.

No. Under the Smart Start program, a mentor can only be engaged as a natural person (individual) or as an entrepreneur. This ensures that contracts are not concluded with legal entities on behalf of mentors.