EU Funding

POCIDIF: the three funding routes for companies

Direct grant, subsidized services or a guaranteed loan with a grant component — POCIDIF supports companies along three different routes, and the right one depends on your company's profile.

Programme fact sheet

Programme: POCIDIF — Programul Creștere Inteligentă, Digitalizare și Instrumente Financiare 2021–2027
Programme family: POCIDIF
Managing authority: MIPE — the Ministry of European Investments and Projects
Status: OpenChecked on 30 July 2026
Submission deadline: 30 September 2026
Funding value: per the official applicant guide
Eligible beneficiaries: SMEs

The programme's official applicant guide

Northdan Soft is a software supplier, not a funding consultancy, and is not affiliated with any managing authority or development agency. Programme information is indicative — always check the conditions in the programme's official applicant guide.

Under the POCIDIF umbrella — Romania's Smart Growth, Digitalisation and Financial Instruments Programme, managed by MIPE, the Ministry of Investments and European Projects — companies have three distinct support routes in 2026, and the useful first question is not how much money is available but which route your company actually fits. The grant route is Action 2.1: submissions between 30.06.2026 and 30.09.2026, non-repayable aid from 200,000 up to 1,500,000 EUR for an innovative software solution, reserved for SMEs whose CAEN code sits in the ICT field — that call has its own dedicated page in this hub. The second route runs through the European Digital Innovation Hubs: the Action 2.4 call closed on 25.10.2023 and the live line is Action 6.1, open 30.04.2026–30.12.2026, whose eligible applicants are the seven STEP-sealed hubs and never the company — a firm receives non-financial state aid under a contract with a hub, not money in its account. The third is the financial instrument managed by FNGCIMM — a capped portfolio guarantee of up to 80% per transaction, on loans of at most 500,000 EUR, combined with a de minimis grant capped at 49% of the loan — except that on 30 July 2026 the fund had still published no partner bank, which makes that route planned rather than usable. Worth knowing, too, that under Innovation România (EIF) companies cannot yet apply directly — access will come later via selected investment funds. On any of the three routes, Northdan Soft keeps the same software-vendor role: technical offer, eligible-cost budget, implementation.

Let’s talk about your project

Message us on WhatsApp or send an email — you talk directly to a developer.

Message us on WhatsApp Send an email

office@northdan.com · +40 752 070 247

How we help

Quick orientation across the three routes

From the first conversation we tell you whether your company's profile fits the 2.1 grant, the EDIH services or the FNGCIMM financial instrument — with no funding promises.

The technical component of the grant dossier

For Action 2.1 we prepare the technical offer of the software product, the budget structured by eligible cost category and the draft development contract.

Technical execution alongside EDIH services

When a hub validates your digitalization direction through testing or advisory, we turn those conclusions into working software for your company.

A solid budget for loan-based financing

Once the FNGCIMM instrument has partner banks, a credible technical budget is what the analysis turns on — we deliver the specifications and figures behind it.

Route 1 — the Action 2.1 grant, open until 30.09.2026

Action 2.1 is the only POCIDIF component with a direct grant for companies currently accepting submissions: a minimum of 200,000 EUR in non-repayable aid and a maximum of 1,500,000 EUR where the project result is an innovative software solution (service or application), reserved for SMEs with an ICT CAEN code, with a window of 30.06.2026–30.09.2026 and MIPE as managing authority.

The 3,000,000 EUR ceiling quoted in many articles does exist, but not for software: the guide reserves it for projects whose result is an innovative hardware product manufactured by the beneficiary company itself, and the share of funding above 1,500,000 EUR has to be justified by the production line. For a company building a service or an application, the working figure is 1,500,000 EUR.

Because it is a call for developing innovative software products, we cover it separately: our page on POCIDIF 2.1 for SME digitalization details the conditions, timeline and targeted project types, while the 2026 funding calendar page places it among the year's other deadlines.

Route 2 — the EDIH line: the hub applies, not your company

The Action 2.4 call, „Digitalizarea IMM-urilor realizată prin Hub-uri de Inovare Digitală Europene din România”, ran from 25.08.2023 to 25.10.2023 with an allocation of 12,873,886.83 EUR — 50% of the amount approved under the Digital Europe Programme — and is listed as inactive in the ministry's guide table. The live line is Action 6.1, for hubs carrying the STEP sovereignty seal: 30.04.2026 12:00 to 30.12.2026 17:00, allocation 20,918,624.37 EUR, guide amended by MIPE Order no. 1098/09.07.2026.

On both actions the applicant is the hub, never the beneficiary company, and what a company receives is non-financial state aid under a contract with the hub: digital maturity assessments, technology testing before investment, advisory and training. The state-aid and de minimis scheme covering both actions was approved by MIPE Order no. 3151/18.08.2023 and amended by MIPE Order no. 440/25.03.2026.

For an SME that does not qualify for the 2.1 grant, this is often the only real door into POCIDIF — and it leads to services, not to funding for a software investment.

Route 3 — the FNGCIMM financial instrument, not yet usable

The third route combines credit with grant in a single operation: a capped portfolio guarantee allocated 573,945,327.60 lei and managed by FNGCIMM, Romania's national credit guarantee fund for SMEs, with a guarantee rate of up to 80% per transaction, a guaranteed loan capped at the lei equivalent of 500,000 EUR and a de minimis grant of no more than 49% of that loan. The obstacle is practical rather than legal: as of 30 July 2026 the fund's list of partner banks was still empty and the selection of financial intermediaries was ongoing, so there is no institution with which to sign. We therefore mark the route as planned, not open, and keep a separate fact sheet for its mechanics and verification date.

Our role here is strictly technical, not financial intermediation: we define the software solution, translate it into a budget the bank and the fund can analyse, then deliver after approval. We do not broker credit, we do not issue eligibility verdicts about your company and we make no approval promises.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Action 2.1 and Action 2.4 in POCIDIF?

Action 2.1 awards direct grants of 200,000–1,500,000 EUR to SMEs with an ICT CAEN code developing an innovative software solution, with submissions until 30.09.2026. Action 2.4 transferred no money to companies but subsidized services delivered through the EDIH network, and its call closed on 25.10.2023; the successor line is Action 6.1, open until 30.12.2026.

Do I receive money in my account if I work with an EDIH hub?

No. On POCIDIF's EDIH line the applicant is always the hub, and the company receives non-financial state aid under a contract with that hub — assessments, technology testing and advisory — rather than a cash grant. The software investment itself remains a separate decision and expense.

How does the POCIDIF financial instrument run through FNGCIMM work?

It pairs a capped portfolio guarantee of up to 80% on a loan of at most 500,000 EUR with a de minimis grant worth no more than 49% of that loan, out of an allocation of 573,945,327.60 lei. It is not operational yet: on 30 July 2026 FNGCIMM had published no partner bank, so no company could sign such a loan.

Can my company access Innovation România directly?

Not yet — under Innovation România (EIF) companies cannot apply directly; access will happen in the future through selected investment funds. Until it becomes operational, the concrete POCIDIF routes remain the 2.1 grant, the EDIH services and the FNGCIMM instrument.

My company has no ICT CAEN code — which POCIDIF route is left?

Without an ICT CAEN code, the Action 2.1 grant is off the table. The route available today is the EDIH one, where the hub is the applicant and your company is the recipient of subsidized services. The FNGCIMM instrument stays on the watch list rather than the shortlist: its terms are published, but no partner bank had been enrolled as of 30 July 2026.