Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

The following are answers to frequently asked questions about the role of the Slovene Enterprise Fund (SEF), types of financial incentives, and procedures for applying to public tenders. The purpose of this content is to offer companies a quick and clear insight into the basic information that is important when planning an application and using SEF support.

The Slovene Enterprise Fund (SEF) is a specialized development and financial institution that encourages the growth and development of entrepreneurship in Slovenia. It provides micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with favorable financial incentives for start-up, growth, and liquid operations, while also providing content support in the form of consulting, training, mentoring programs, networking, and connecting with various partners. This helps companies strengthen their competitiveness and successfully enter and operate in domestic and foreign markets.

SEF financing is intended for start-ups and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises based in Slovenia with fewer than 250 employees. Eligible beneficiaries are companies organized as sole proprietors (s.p.), economic companies (e.g., d.o.o.), or cooperatives that are not considered companies in difficulty. Specific eligibility conditions are set out in the individual public tenders or calls of the SEF.

SEF offers companies financial and content incentives. Financial incentives include grants, favorable loans, guarantees for bank loans, and vouchers for co-financing individual services. In addition, SEF also offers content support, such as mentoring, consulting, training, networking, and connecting with domestic and international partners, with the aim of strengthening the competitiveness and growth of companies.

All forms of SEF financial incentives, such as guarantees, favorable loans, interest rate subsidies, and grants, fall under state aid and are awarded in accordance with European rules on state aid and applicable European and national legislation.

SEF state aid is intended to support development-oriented projects that contribute to the growth of companies, increased value added per employee, technological development, and the creation of quality jobs. Special emphasis is placed on companies with high market potential that build their competitiveness on innovation, knowledge, and technological improvements, including new innovative companies in Slovenia.

No. As a rule, a company cannot apply for SEF funds for an investment that has already started or has already been completed.

SEF financial incentives fall under state aid, which is governed by common European rules. One of the key rules is that state aid must be necessary for the implementation of the project, so it cannot be awarded retroactively. This means that an investment that has already started or is already operating is not eligible for co-financing by SEF. Eligibility is always assessed according to the conditions of each tender.

After receiving funds, companies are expected to create measurable and positive effects in the environment with the implementation of the project. These primarily include increasing value added per employee, growth and expansion of market share, and creating new jobs or strengthening the quality of existing ones.

The Slovene Enterprise Fund (SEF) monitors and verifies the achievement of effects by supervising the earmarked spending of funds and by regularly analyzing the achieved goals of the project.

During the implementation of the investment, SEF may carry out on-site inspections, during which it verifies the actual state of the investment and the compliance of the spending of funds with the approved project. After the completion of the investment, the recipients of funds have contractual obligations to report on the results achieved.

Companies typically report annually on the achievement of goals for the investment year and for three years after receiving funds. Reporting relates to key indicators such as sales revenue, profit, number and growth of employees, new jobs created, and value added per employee.

SEF also verifies the data through official public databases (e.g., AJPES, ZZZS, Business Register of Slovenia, InfoBON), which enables objective and reliable monitoring of the effects of allocated state aid.

SEF state aid is awarded exclusively through public tenders.
Public tenders are published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, in other public media, and on the official SEF website (www.podjetniskisklad.si).

The company applies to an individual tender with electronic submission of the application via the SEF ePortal, namely for the financial product for which it meets the tender conditions. The applicant is responsible for preparing and submitting the application.

The application must be prepared in accordance with the tender documentation and typically includes:

  • application form (via ePortal),
  • business plan with basic financial statements,
  • and other evidence, if required by the individual tender (e.g., bank resolution, creditworthiness evidence, employee statements).

A detailed list of mandatory documents and the application procedure are always clearly stated in each individual SEF public tender.

When applying for a public tender, the company must carefully check the tender conditions, as these differ depending on the individual SEF product. Special attention should be paid to:

  • type of state aid (e.g., guarantee for bank loan, interest rate subsidy, grants),
  • beneficiaries, i.e., which companies can apply,
  • eligible costs and investments that can be co-financed,
  • exclusion conditions, due to which the company cannot apply,
  • period of eligibility of costs, i.e., when these costs can be incurred.

In tenders that include guarantees for securing bank investment loans with an interest rate subsidy, banks also participate in the financing. In these cases, the company must select a participating bank in a timely manner and apply for an investment loan.

All tender documentation and detailed application instructions are available on the website www.podjetniskisklad.si.

For easier and clearer preparation of applications for public tenders, the Slovene Enterprise Fund (SEF) offers several free online tools, which are available on the website www.podjetniskisklad.si.

The following are available to companies:

  • SEF ePortal, which enables quick and easy electronic submission of the entire application,
  • tool for preparing a business plan with clear instructions, separately for economic companies and sole proprietors,
  • tool for preparing an amortization plan, which helps with the informative display of the repayment of investment loans.

The applicant decides for themselves whether to prepare the application themselves or with the help of an external advisor. In the case of external assistance, the company independently selects a consulting company or business advisor, and SEF does not interfere in this relationship.

It is important to emphasize that SEF does not grant powers of attorney to advisors for the preparation of applications and that submitting an application through an advisor is not a condition for successful application. Companies decide on the suitability and quality of external assistance themselves, depending on market conditions.