Smart&Start Italia: eligibility, funding and how to apply (2026 guide)

Smart&Start Italia is Italy’s national incentive for innovative startups. Invitalia manages it on behalf of the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT). It offers a zero-interest loan, with no collateral, equal to 80% of the eligible costs of the business plan. In Southern Italy and in the 2016–2017 earthquake area of Central Italy, part of it does not have to be repaid.

It is a powerful but selective instrument: the process includes an interview. And the rules are changing. A ministerial decree dated 13 July 2026 rewrites parts of it, but nothing changes until the implementing circular is out, and at the time of writing we’re still waiting for it.

So this guide covers two things: the rules that apply today, and what’s coming. We checked all of it on 1 October 2026 against the official sources you’ll find at the bottom.

Just starting? Our guide to grants for founders under 35 and the innovative startup status cover the steps that usually come before Smart&Start.

Where the measure stands in October 2026

Smart&Start works on a rolling basis: no calls for proposals, no rankings. Invitalia reviews applications in order of arrival until funds run out, and at the time of checking the measure was open. Since 3 November 2025, applications go through Invitalia’s new platform.

The decree of 13 July 2026

With the ministerial decree of 13 July 2026 (notice in the Official Gazette no. 213 of 14 September 2026), MIMIT updated the rules, partly to reflect the new definition of innovative startup introduced by law 193/2024. The main changes:

• access for medium-sized innovative startups too, with aid within the de minimis limits (Regulation (EU) 2023/2831);
• simplified evaluation for plans up to €250,000 and for companies that have already completed a funded plan without revocations;
• €10,000 of tutoring for startups incorporated no more than 36 months earlier (currently no more than 12 months);
• new bonus points for gender equality certification and for a technology partner entering the capital (at least 30% of the loan requested);
• more precise rules on converting the loan and on selling the company to a third party.

The key point is timing: the new rules apply from the publication of the implementing circular, “consistently with the status of proceedings already under way”. At 1 October 2026 the circular had not been published on the MIMIT or Invitalia websites. Until then, the rules described below apply. The MIMIT page already presents the new rules, while Invitalia’s FAQ still describe the previous ones: check the current status before you apply.

Who can apply

Three types of applicants qualify: innovative startups already incorporated; teams of individuals, including people living abroad, who want to set one up in Italy (non-EU citizens not resident in Italy need the Italia Startup Visa); and foreign companies that commit to opening an office in Italy. For incorporated startups, the requirements in the table apply.

Requirement	What to check
Status	Registration in the special section for innovative startups (art. 25, decree-law 179/2012)
Age	No more than 60 months from incorporation to the application date
Size	Micro or small company; medium-sized only after the implementing circular of the 2026 decree
Location	Registered and operating office in Italy (a commitment to open one for foreign companies)
Standing	Not in difficulty, not in insolvency proceedings, no unlawful aid to repay
Insurance	For incorporated companies, a declaration on the mandatory catastrophe insurance (law 213/2023)

If the company does not exist yet, one of the future shareholders, all individuals, signs the application. If you are admitted, you have 30 days to incorporate it. Age and gender of the shareholders are not eligibility requirements: they only matter for the 90% rate.

Mind the age of the startup

Here’s a trap that catches people out. Since law 193/2024, a startup that has been registered for more than three years only keeps its place in the special section if it meets at least one extra requirement, such as higher R&D spending or a patent. So if your company is past its third birthday, make sure it’s still registered before you put any work into the application.

What it funds

Smart&Start backs business plans worth anywhere from 100,000 euros to 1.5 million. What it wants to see is a plan with real technology and innovation in it. Projects in the digital economy, artificial intelligence, blockchain or the internet of things also qualify, and so do plans that put research results to commercial use. Excluded sectors include primary agricultural production and coal.

Category	What it includes
Tangible assets	New technological plant, machinery and equipment, hardware and software components
Intangible assets	Patents, trademarks, licences, certifications, know-how and technical knowledge
Services	Development of IT solutions and technological systems, specialist technology consulting, incubators and accelerators, marketing and web marketing
Staff	Salary costs of employees and contractors working on the plan
Working capital	Up to 20% of the costs above: raw materials and goods, services needed for the business, use of third-party assets

Four practical rules matter more than they seem:

• only costs incurred after the application is submitted count, with invoices showing the project code (CUP) or the application ID;
• marketing and web marketing cannot exceed 20% of the approved costs;
• contractors must meet the qualification requirements of art. 25(2)(h)(2) of decree-law 179/2012 and have technical roles;
• used goods, mere replacement investments, taxes and duties are not eligible.

The incentives

Source: Invitalia, Smart&Start Italia Incentives and FAQ pages, accessed 1 October 2026.

The loan covers 80% of eligible costs. It rises to 90% if the team is made up entirely of women and/or people under 36, or if one of the shareholders is a PhD holder, with the title obtained no more than six years earlier, who has worked abroad in research or teaching for at least three years. You repay the loan over ten years, in half-yearly instalments, starting twelve months after the last disbursement.

The grant share in the South and the earthquake area

If the startup is based in Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Apulia, Sardinia or Sicily, you repay only 70% of the loan: the other 30% becomes a non-repayable grant. The same applies in the municipalities of the 2016–2017 Central Italy earthquake area and to plans carried out in these areas by companies based elsewhere. Two exceptions: the working capital share must be repaid in full, and staff costs earn the grant only for people working in the eligible areas.

A worked example

A 500,000 euro plan, with no working capital, carried out in Bari by a team without the higher rate. If admitted, the loan would be 400,000 euros: you would repay 280,000 over ten years, interest-free, and 120,000 would remain as a grant. The 100,000 euros not covered come from you or your investors.

How to apply

Applications are online only, from your personal area on the Invitalia website. You need an Italian digital identity (SPID, CNS or CIE), a digital signature and a certified email address (PEC) that can also exchange messages with private parties: government-issued PEC addresses will not work.

1. You fill in the business plan on the platform and upload the attachments; on submission you receive a protocol number.
2. Invitalia checks the requirements and assesses the merits, including through an interview with its experts.
3. The evaluation is completed within 60 days of submission, unless additional information is requested.
4. If there are grounds for rejection, you receive them by PEC and have 10 days to submit comments.
5. If you are admitted, within 30 days you incorporate the company (if needed) and send the documents for the contract.
6. You sign the loan contract: from then on you have 24 months to carry out the plan.

Documents and business plan

The business plan describes the team, the business, the market, technical and financial aspects, working capital needs and partnerships with research bodies and incubators. You also need CVs and the declarations in Invitalia’s forms, including those on PhD holders and qualified investors, where relevant.

How the evaluation works

There are four criteria: the team’s technical, organisational and management skills; the innovative nature of the idea; economic and financial sustainability; technological and operational feasibility. The circular sets a minimum threshold for each one: a weak point cannot be offset by a strong one. You earn bonus points if you work with research bodies, incubators or accelerators, or if qualified investors fund the plan for at least 30% of the loan requested.

Disbursements: advance and progress payments

The loan is paid out against progress reports (SAL), up to five of them. You can request an advance of up to 40% of the incentives within 4 months of signing, backed by a guarantee of the same amount. Each progress report can include unpaid invoices up to 30% of approved costs; the final report must be fully paid. Alternatively, you can use an escrow account at a partner bank, depositing the share not covered by the incentives. Employee costs can be reported at standard rates.

Why applications get rejected

Invitalia does not appear to publish statistics on the reasons for rejection, but the weak points can be inferred from the requirements and evaluation criteria:

• missing requirements: company older than 60 months, not registered in the special section, no longer small or in difficulty;
• weak innovation: a traditional business with a marginal digital component;
• incomplete team: key skills missing or left entirely to outside consultants;
• fragile numbers: revenue without a market basis, underestimated costs, no cover for the unfunded share;
• ineligible costs: used goods, costs incurred before applying, marketing above the limit;
• a weak interview: vague answers on market, technology and financial plan.

If you receive grounds for rejection, use the 10 days to clarify with data and documents. And before applying, measure your starting point with the investor readiness test.

Smart&Start and private investors

Smart&Start does not replace equity: it complements it. Three rules connect the incentive and your round:

• Bonus points. You get them if a qualified investor contributes, before the contract is signed, capital equal to at least 30% of the loan requested, through cash contributions to share capital and share premium. Qualified investors include, for example, banks and authorised intermediaries, certain large companies and institutional investors.
• Conversion into a grant. If within five years of the award you receive an equity investment of at least 80,000 euros, you can apply to convert part of the loan into a grant: up to 50% of the investment, within 50% of the incentives. The third-party investor must not obtain a majority, and the stake must be held for at least three years.
• Locked shareholder base. Until the contract is signed, the shareholders cannot change, except for force majeure or crowdfunding with new minority shareholders. Plan your round accordingly.

To build the right sequence, read our guide to raising capital for a startup in Italy. If you are short on time, the two-week Fundraising Sprint also includes a Smart&Start plan.

Frequently asked questions