EU grants for digitalizing SMEs in Romania in 2026

POCIDIF Action 2.1 — «developing new services, applications and products through innovation and the adoption of advanced technologies», part of Programul Creștere Inteligentă, Digitalizare și Instrumente Financiare (Romania's Smart Growth, Digitalisation and Financial Instruments Programme) — receives applications between 30.06 and 30.09.2026. Non-repayable grants run from EUR 200,000 to EUR 1,500,000 for an innovative software solution, with EUR 3,000,000 reserved for innovative hardware products, and the condition that eliminates most companies is the mandatory IT&C CAEN code: the line targets companies in the information technology sector, not end users of software.

SME Eco-Tech, financed from the Swiss contribution, accepts applications until 24 September 2026, 20:00. The grant covers at most 40% of eligible costs, capped at 50,000 CHF (roughly 267,240 RON), and since the order published in Monitorul Oficial no. 558 of 7 July 2026 it is open to trade and services companies and to micro-enterprises, not only to manufacturers. Note the entry thresholds: a project starts at 668,100 RON of eligible costs, of which at least 400,860 RON must come from a loan with a partner bank.

The PNRR C9 call of 20,000–100,000 EUR has not accepted applications since 2023. Its beneficiaries had to complete implementation by 30 June or 31 July 2026, under Order 607/2026, and the payment claim must be filed by 30 October 2026, under Order 963/2026. If you are among them, the priority is no longer hunting for new funds but closing the project correctly.

One route is announced but not yet datable: Start-Up Nation session 2, officially confirmed by MEDAT (the Romanian ministry for economy and entrepreneurship), with up to 250,000 RON per business plan and spending allowed until 8 December 2027, but with no submission calendar published as at the verification date. A further route is regional rather than national: the 2021-2027 regional programmes, whose calls, ceilings and calendars each regional development agency publishes on its own schedule. We do not recommend passive waiting: preparing the technical specifications for a serious application file takes several weeks.

Your funding consultant writes the grant application; we cover everything software-related: needs analysis, the detailed technical offer, the budget by eligible categories, the draft supply contract and, after contracting, the actual development and delivery — from ERP to web applications.

Four criteria when you choose that vendor for a funded project. One: contractual deadlines aligned with the implementation period of the financing contract, not merely with the vendor's own roadmap. Two: acceptance documents issued in the form the payment officer asks for. Three: demonstrated integration with the systems you already run — invoicing, e-Factura, accounting. Four: availability for maintenance after go-live, because the indicators you committed to are measured well beyond project closure.