Scottish Government release Brexit Support Grant for SMEs

As part of their Brexit readiness preparations, the Scottish Government have announced funding grants for SMEs (organisations with fewer than 250 employees and turnover of less than 250 EUR) to help prepare for or mitigate the impact of Brexit.

The grant can be used to finance an activity that would otherwise not take place without the grant (and has not already started). Some activities the grant could be used for are:

• Brexit impact scenario planning
• Additional professional services specifically in relation to Brexit issues, e.g.
  • Legal and contractual issues
  • Modelling cash-flow
  • Modelling impact of changing customs/tariffs/VAT
  • Strengthening financial and currency management
• Exploring supply chain issues and opportunities
• Reviewing and optimising transport or logistics arrangements
• Costs incurred in acquiring AEO (Authorised Economic Operator) status
• Human resource issues
• Training: Cost of (up to two employees) attending training courses relating to any of the above topics if your company is also undertaking complementary activity
• Air travel from Scotland to international markets to react to supplier and/or customer issues directly relating to Brexit (two employees per company, per visit, economy fares and flat rate of £50 per person per night for accommodation)
• Air travel within the UK if the company is in a remote location (e.g. the outlying Scottish islands) and/or if travel to the location of the eligible activity necessitates travel via a UK travel hub (two employees per company, per visit, economy fares and flat rate of £50 per night)
• Additional temporary storage facilities (e.g. rental or hire costs) to hold increased levels of materials, components and finished goods to mitigate logistics delays directly related to Brexit

And, to help your company respond to Brexit implications, the grant can be used for costs incurred for:

• Consultancy (not on payroll)
• Professional fees – legal and financial (not on payroll)
• Graduate placements (on payroll)
• Interns (on payroll)
• International market visits – travel and accommodation

This is a great opportunity for members based in Scotland who think their organisation would benefit from taking actions to prepare themselves for Brexit, but are short of funds to do so. All relevant information is retained in this link (including access to the application form). Please feel free to get in contact with Michael.Sturrock@dma.org.uk for any further advice on applying for the grant.