Supporting small and medium-sized businesses to mitigate the negative effects of Britain’s exit from the European Union

A bill by which the Brexit Amendment Reserve would be implemented has been sent for consultation by the Department of Labor and Economy. Funds from the reserve will be used to support companies that have suffered from the negative consequences of the UK’s exit from the European Union. The law is necessary to use the funding allocated to Finland.

According to the draft, the law will include provisions on responsible national authorities and the support system that will be applied to the support granted by the reserve. The Brexit Amendment Reserve should be usable to support the development of businesses in mainland Finland, and therefore temporary amendments should be made to the State Assistance for Business Development Act 2021-2028 and changes of a technical nature in some other laws.

Funds from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve will be channeled to SMEs via NTMs in the form of support for business development

According to the bill, support from the reserve will be directed to small and medium-sized enterprises in the form of business development support. Corporate Development Assistance is government assistance under review that can be given to innovative development measures related to growth or internationalization as well as to investments. NTMs provide support primarily with co-financing from the European Union, either as part of the EU’s Regional and Structural Policy Program or as other EU-funded activities, for example as part of Finland’s Sustainable Growth Program, which is financed through the Recovery Facility. and flexibility.

A maximum of €23.2 million has been provisionally reserved for Finland. However, according to a preliminary assessment, most of the funds allocated for this purpose will not be used, since the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union did not have any significant negative economic consequences for Finnish small and medium-sized businesses.

The government bill is due to be presented to Parliament in the fall of 2022

The bill relates to the 2023 Budget Bill and is intended to be considered in connection with it. The proposed laws are scheduled to enter into force on January 1, 2023. It is proposed that the Law of Temporary Amendments to the Law on State Assistance for the Development of Business Activities 2021-2028 be implemented until January 1, 2027.

Comments on the government bill can be submitted in electronic form at utlåtande.fi. Comments can be submitted in Finnish no later than 25 May 2022. The deadline for submission of comments in Swedish will be set at a later date, as the Swedish translation of the bill will be completed at a later date. Requests for comments are published in Swedish on the website utlåtande.fi during week 20.

more information:
Petri Habalinen, Consulting Officer, Ministry of Labor and Economy, Tel: 029564922
Elisa Hajleh, Specialist, Ministry of Labor and Economy, Tel: 029564949