Irish companies can seek public support through Local Enterprise Offices, Enterprise Ireland and specialist programmes, but there is no single grant available to every business. The useful starting point is the project you want to fund: testing an idea, launching, expanding, adopting software or solving a research problem.

The next question is whether you need a grant, access to expertise, or investment involving ownership. These have different purposes and conditions. A large advertised funding ceiling does not establish that your company qualifies, that every cost is covered or that money will arrive before you pay suppliers.

This guide checks the main routes against official information available on 4 November 2026. It concerns businesses in the Republic of Ireland. Local grant schedules and individual offers still need to be confirmed with the body administering the support.

Start with the project and the right agency

The National Enterprise Hub’s official guidance provides a starting point for businesses unsure which agency handles their needs. Its service covers grants, advice and training. An initial conversation can help narrow the search before you invest time in an application.

Prepare a short project description: what will change, why it matters, the proposed timetable, expected costs and how the business will contribute. Separate that project from the company’s general wish to grow. Buying a new production machine, researching a product and adopting digital tools are different funding questions even when they arise in the same business.

Enterprise Ireland’s funding directory includes grants and equity investments across business development, innovation and international growth. Check the relevant scheme and client requirements rather than assuming its entire directory is open to every applicant. If you already have an agency adviser, discuss the proposed project with that adviser first.

LEO grants: check the business activity before the amount

The national LEO eligibility rules prioritise manufacturing and internationally traded services with potential to develop into export businesses. Core grant aid excludes domestically focused retail, personal and professional services and construction services, subject to the published rules and specific exceptions.

That distinction is easy to miss. Registering a limited company does not make a local service business eligible for every start-up grant. Equally, being outside a core grant category does not establish that mentoring, training or digital support is unavailable. Each support has its own test.

The national rules also require an application before expenditure or project activity begins, including commitments, orders and contracts. Obtain written guidance about your planned start date and the applicable process before proceeding. Submitting a form does not itself guarantee approval.

Company size needs checking too. Where businesses have partner or linked enterprises, the relevant group information may need to be included. Assessing only the staff working in one trading entity can produce the wrong answer.

Testing an idea: what a feasibility grant is for

A LEO Feasibility Study Grant supports investigation of market demand and technical viability before full development or launch. The national page lists a maximum of €15,000, with a funding rate of 50% or 60% depending on the region. Ask your local office which rate applies to your project.

The scheme is directed at exploring manufacturing or internationally traded service businesses. Potential cost categories include market research, specialist advice and prototype or technical development. Its purpose is to answer an unresolved business question, rather than retrospectively reimburse a launch already completed.

For a hypothetical manufacturer considering a new component, a useful feasibility proposal would identify what must be learned: whether buyers need it, whether it can be produced and what testing would establish viability. That creates a clearer project than a general request for help with all start-up spending.

Starting and expanding: understand the LEO ceilings

The Priming Grant is aimed at eligible micro-enterprises within their first 18 months. Sole traders, partnerships and limited companies may be considered, so incorporation is not a universal requirement for this particular route.

The national page gives an overall ceiling of 50% of investment or €150,000, whichever is lower. However, it explicitly makes grants above €80,000 exceptional, for projects clearly demonstrating potential to graduate to Enterprise Ireland. In other cases, the stated maximum is 50% or €80,000, whichever is lower. Employment-related support also has its own limit.

For illustration, if a fully eligible project cost €40,000 and received the maximum 50% rate, the calculation would be €20,000. That is an arithmetic example, not an award forecast. Assessment, eligible expenditure and available support determine the actual offer.

The Business Expansion Grant addresses growth after the initial 18-month start-up period. It has a similar distinction between the ordinary €80,000 ceiling and exceptional awards up to €150,000, with the 50% limit applying.

Previous assistance matters. The published expansion rules generally prevent an applicant that received a Priming Grant from applying until 12 months after its approval or drawdown date, whichever is later, with specified exceptions. Give the office the actual dates and award history; a company’s trading anniversary alone does not resolve that condition.

Digital investment: software support has a defined scope

The Grow Digital rules provide 50% of eligible costs, from a minimum grant of €500 to a cumulative maximum of €5,000. A business cannot assume that two approved projects mean two separate €5,000 allowances.

The published requirements include between one and 50 paid employees, at least six months’ trading and a completed Digital for Business project within the previous two years. Existing Enterprise Ireland or IDA clients are excluded from this route. Other financial, tax-clearance and activity requirements also apply.

Eligible spending focuses on new off-the-shelf software subscriptions and associated training or configuration. Bespoke software and custom website development are excluded. This makes the specification important: buying an existing stock-control subscription and commissioning a developer to create a custom system are different projects.

Before requesting quotes, describe the business process you want to improve. That helps the adviser distinguish an eligible digital adoption project from ordinary renewals, extra licences for an existing system or custom development outside the scheme.

Innovation Vouchers buy research expertise

Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Voucher guidance describes a standard €10,000 voucher for eligible Irish-registered SME limited companies working with approved publicly funded knowledge providers. Sole traders cannot apply under this scheme, even though they may qualify for other supports.

The co-funded option means a project of up to €20,000, with up to €10,000 from the voucher and a matching company contribution. It is not a €20,000 public grant. The company must also account for VAT, which the voucher does not cover.

Applications are available throughout the year, and being an existing Enterprise Ireland client is not required. The proposed knowledge question must still qualify. Routine website development, ordinary software purchases and standard marketing work are among the activities the guidance excludes.

Think about the deliverable you actually need. A research report, technical specification or rough prototype may answer the question; a finished commercial product is not the scheme’s promised outcome. Agree scope and costs with the knowledge provider before work begins.

Prepare the evidence and check the local timetable

The Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown application checklist illustrates the information an office may need: accounts, forecasts, quotations, ownership details, project costs and evidence of matching finance. It distinguishes the documents required for feasibility, priming and expansion applications. Your own office will specify its requirements.

Make the budget easy to check. For each cost, record the supplier, description, amount, expected payment date and proposed source of finance. Keep a separate list of previous public assistance and ask how it interacts with the proposed application. Do not assume that the same invoice can be claimed under several schemes.

Dates also vary locally. Kerry’s published application schedule lists a final 2026 closing date of 21 October for feasibility, priming and expansion applications. That date had passed when this guide was checked. It does not establish a nationwide closing date or a confirmed 2027 round; ask the office about the next opportunity.

Before committing money, obtain clear answers on eligible activity, the application and approval sequence, your contribution, payment evidence and the claim deadline. Those answers turn a list of possible supports into a workable funding plan for a specific business project.