Publication date: 11.03.2024
I am studying in the third year of the State University of Economics and Technology.I specialize in contractual, economic and corporate law, in particular, I provide consultations and write articles.
Recently, the practice of receiving grants as a certain type of targeted funding, provided under clearly defined conditions by the state, has become quite common. A type of grant is the so-called microgrant, provided in the form of non-repayable state assistance for the development of their own business to those individuals who undertake to register as a sole proprietor or create a legal entity and carry out entrepreneurial activities. Receiving microgrants allows a business entity to provide itself with financing for the purchase of furniture, necessary equipment, software, set up marketing and other needs. The size of the grant can be either 150 thousand UAH or 250 thousand UAH. In the first case, the recipient undertakes to create one workplace and employ a worker for it, and if we are talking about an amount of 250 thousand UAH, then the recipient will need to create two workplaces and accordingly employ workers for them. Therefore, before moving on to preparing the necessary documentation and drawing up a business plan, you need to properly analyze the requirements and procedure for obtaining a grant.
Business plan for receiving a grant:
In order for your microgrant application to be considered, it is extremely important to add a developed business plan to it. This plan must be drawn up based on a form approved by the Ministry of Economy. Conventionally, the components of a business plan can be divided into a descriptive part and a financial part. Moreover, each of these parts has its own subparagraphs, which also need to be given due attention. In particular, the descriptive part of the business plan should contain a subparagraph that describes the business itself and the business idea that the entrepreneur wants to implement. In this subparagraph it is necessary to indicate the organization of the business, its main advantages, and if the recipient has experience in this niche, then indicate this as well. The next component is determining the goals of the activity. This subclause should describe both short-term and medium-term goals. Goals must be specific, achievable, realistic, and have a clear time frame. It is also important to indicate a clear amount of grant assistance (150 or 250 thousand UAH) with a detailed description of its use. In your business plan, you should also pay attention to your skills and competencies that will help in implementing your business idea. Another important section is the target audience, within which the grant recipient must analyze the end consumers of the goods, works or services that he will provide. In addition to the target audience, it is extremely important to describe the market in which goods, services, or work will be sold, indicating the key competitors in it and the tools with which the recipient will attract the attention of customers. In a market economy, no business operates without sales plans and marketing strategies, so the applicant must decide how he will promote his business (website, online advertising, social networks, retail outlets, etc.).
What should I do if my business plan is returned?
The State Employment Center evaluates submitted applications and business plans. If there is a need to refine the business plan, the regional center returns it to the applicant and postpones the consideration to the next period. Revision is carried out only once. Spelling, syntax or other errors that do not distort the content of the plan are not grounds for returning it for revision. The recipient is given 15 days to make adjustments to his business plan, after which he must send it. If the applicant misses this deadline, this will become a valid reason for refusing to receive a grant. Other grounds for refusal include the following: non-compliance with the requirements, if the applicant received a score of 98, or less points based on the results of the application assessment, if the final assessment score is less than 130, opacity of the business plan or its dubiousness, negative reputation, non-compliance of the documentation with legally established requirements etc.
Lawyer's consultation when drawing up a business plan:
Developing a business plan in the process of obtaining a grant is one of the key stages, so the services of a lawyer are highly desirable. The lawyer will take into account all legal requirements, the wishes of the applicant, and will conduct a legal analysis of the situation and analysis of documents. Consequently, verification of documents by a lawyer increases the likelihood of obtaining the desired financing and, as a result, business development.
