Definition

The European Commission does not consider certain aid granted by Member States to their companies to qualify as State aid, as its effects on competition are limited.

EU Regulation 1407/2013 by the European Commission on de minimis aid considers that aid of less than €200,000 granted over a period of three fiscal years does not affect trade between Member States and therefore does not fall within the scope of Article 107, section 1 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. This ceiling is set at €100,000 for aid to companies operating in the road transport sector.

In addition to the amount and timing, de minimis aid must also be transparent. According to the Regulation, gross cash aid, guarantees and aid incorporated into loans (interest rate subsidies) are considered to be transparent provided that they fulfil certain conditions.

Scope of application
The minimis aid described above can be granted to companies in all sectors, with the exception of:

• Companies operating in the fishing and aquaculture sectors.
• Companies operating in the primary production of agricultural products listed in the Annex I of the EU Treaty.
• Companies that operate in the processing and marketing of agricultural products listed in Annex I of the EU Treaty when the amount of aid is determined based on the price or quantity of said products purchased from primary producers or marketed by the companies concerned, or when the aid depends on whether it is fully or partially passed on to the primary producers (farmers).
• Export-related activities.
• Aid subordinated to the use of national goods with preference over imported goods.
• The acquisition of road freight transport vehicles granted to companies that carry out road freight transport operations for others.
• Companies in crisis.

The agricultural sector and the fishing and aquaculture sectors are subject to their own de minimis regulations: Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1408/2013, of December 18, 2013 and Regulation (EU) No. 717/2014 of the Commission, of June 27, 2014, respectively), which establish other de minimis aid limits as well as specific conditions for these sectors.

If a company operates both in the agricultural or fisheries sector and in one or more other sectors or carries out other activities falling within the scope of EU Regulation 1407/2013, that Regulation shall apply to aid granted to the latter sectors or activities, provided that appropriate guarantees are in place, such as separation of activities or distinction of costs, to ensure that the primary production of agricultural products or the production, processing and marketing of fishery and aquaculture products do not benefit from de minimis aid granted under that Regulation.

Monitoring

The Member State may grant de minimis aid only after having checked that this does not raise the total amount of de minimis aid received by the company during the current and the previous two fiscal years to a level above the ceiling.

For this reason, companies that request de minimis aid from CDTI must submit, along with their aid application, an express declaration duly signed by their legal representative regarding any other de minimis aid received during the two previous fiscal years and during the current fiscal year.

Amount and method to calculate the aid

The total de minimis aid granted to a single company must not exceed €200,000 over three fiscal years, except for the road transport sector, for which the ceiling is €100,000; the fisheries and aquaculture sector, with a limit of €30,000; and the agricultural sector, with a limit of €20,000.

For these purposes, "sole company" includes all companies that have at least one of the following links between them:

(a) one company holds the majority of the voting rights of the shareholders or members of another company;

(b) one company has the right to appoint or remove the majority of the members of the administrative, management or supervisory body of another company;

(c) one company has the right to exercise a dominant influence over another by virtue of a contract entered into with it or a second company's statutory clause;

(d) one company, being a shareholder or associate of another, has sole control of the majority of the voting rights of its shareholders, by virtue of an agreement with other shareholders or associates of the latter.

Companies which maintain any of the relationships referred to in points (a) to (d) through one or more other companies shall also be considered to be a single company.

All aid must be expressed as a cash grant, i.e. as a numerical amount. Where aid is awarded in another form, it shall be calculated on the basis of the gross grant equivalent. For example, in the case of subsidised loans, the gross grant equivalent will be calculated on the basis of the market rates (reference rates) applicable at the time it is awarded.