Tourism PIA (Integrated Incentives Packages)

(New public notice - Regional Programme ERDF – ESF+ 2021-2027)

The new Integrated Incentives Packages scheme for tourism businesses (Tourism PIA), an evolution of the previous edition, features the opportunity to combine new business investments with at least one innovation initiative, relating to technological upgrading and digitalization, business processes and organization, and/or one training initiative to qualify skills relating to digital transformation, sustainable tourism, ecological transition and green reconversion.

Eligible investment programmes should involve capital investments relating to the expansion, modernization and renovation of hotels or tourist accommodation structures, the recovery and completion of unfinished structures, the redevelopment of existing or abandoned ones, the conversion of properties of artistic and historical interest or of rural buildings, farms, trulli, towers and forts, with a view to increasing the value of existing heritage, sustaining continuous tourist flows and qualifying the local hospitality industry.

For SMEs, the incentives packages available also cover the costs related to specialist consultancy services, including for international business promotion, in addition to trade fair participation.

The Tourism PIA scheme is available to large, medium or small-sized companies, as well as formal business networks and consortia, and provides funding support for investment programmes with overall eligible expenditure, ranging from a minimum of 5 million euros to a maximum of 40 million euros. Eligible capital investments should not exceed 90% of the total investment programme.

The Tourism PIA scheme operates an open call procedure, as of April 30^th 2024 and has no fixed deadlines for proposals, subject to the availability of funds.

Applications must be submitted online, following the procedure in the dedicated section, by registering and filling out the necessary online forms, on the platform PugliaSemplice: pugliasemplice.sistema.puglia.it

For further information, please consult the public notice, available here.

Tourism MiniPIA (Integrated Incentives Packages)

(New public notice - Regional Programme ERDF – ESF+ 2021-2027)

The Tourism MiniPIA funding scheme is available to businesses of all sizes, from large enterprises to micro-businesses, offering integrated incentives packages for business investment programmes with overall eligible expenditure, ranging from a minimum of 30,000 euros to a maximum of 5 million euros.

Eligible investment programmes should involve the expansion, modernization and renovation of hotels and tourist accommodation structures (with at least 5 rooms) and the recovery of existing structures and historical buildings (from abandoned or unfinished buildings to farms, buildings of historical value, trulli, towers and forts, period houses and farmhouses) with a view to increasing the value of existing heritage and qualifying the local hospitality sector.

In terms of maximum eligible costs, capital investments should not exceed 90% of the total investment programme. In addition to capital investments, the investment programme must include at least one innovation initiative (relating to technological upgrading and digitalization, business processes and organization) and/or one training initiative, which may be also associated with specialised consultancy and international business promotion services, trade fair participation as well as the introduction of environmental protection and energy efficiency measures.

The business investments should be geared towards the improvement of hospitality services, with an emphasis on ecological and green initiatives, in addition to advancing the digitalisation of businesses operating in the tourism sector and the skills training of tourism and hospitality workers, improving the quality of regional employment, including women’s employment.

The Tourism MiniPIA funding scheme is also available to formal business networks and consortia, for investment programmes with overall eligible expenditure, falling within the range of minimum 500,000 euros and maximum 2 million euros.

The Tourism MiniPIA scheme operates an open call procedure: to qualify for evaluation and selection, the business investment proposal should first secure a bank loan, making use of the guarantee facilities offered by Confidi and Medio Credito Centrale.

As of May 22^nd 2024, applications must be submitted online, following the procedure in the dedicated section, by registering and filling out the necessary online forms, on the platform PugliaSemplice:

pugliasemplice.sistema.puglia.it

The application will then be forwarded to the bank or to the Confidi, which, after examining the eligibility status of the proposing business, will grant the secured loan and send the investment programme proposal to Puglia Sviluppo for evaluation.

The Tourism MiniPIA funding scheme has no fixed deadlines for proposals, subject to the availability of funds.

For further information, please consult the public notice, available here.