An additional €14.2million in funds has been allocated to the Trading Online Voucher Scheme to help small and micro enterprises get online quickly during Covid-19.
The Scheme is being expanded after the Local Enterprise Offices received 3 years’ worth of applications in 3 months following the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ireland.
Under the Scheme, small businesses can claim up to €5,000 in two grants worth €2,500 each. The Scheme also facilitates subscriptions to low-cost online retailing platform solutions to quickly establish a retailing presence online.
Included in the additional funding allocated for the Trading Online Voucher Scheme is an allocation of €600,000 in new money provided for Údarás na Gaeltachta to deliver the scheme in Gaeltacht areas.
Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys TD said: “There has been unprecedented demand for the Trading Online Voucher Scheme since the outbreak of COVID-19
“To put this into perspective, in 2019, there were 1,218 applications for the Scheme; this year, between mid-March and early-June alone, there were 3,962, representing three years’ worth of applications in less than three months.
“The Scheme is an essential part of our Covid-19 business supports for small businesses, and it is vital that we continue to make it available for enterprises to meet the ongoing trading challenges.
“Thousands of small businesses across the country have already benefitted from funding under the scheme. The additional funding which we are announcing today will mean that total funding for the scheme has been increased by almost 1000%.”
