Legislation
Business Finland's operations are guided by special legislation and national and EU-level state aid regulations.
Business Finland
- Act on the Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation Business Finland and the limited liability company Business Finland (1146/2017)
- Government Decree on the Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland and the limited liability company Business Finland (1147/2017)
- The loans granted by Business Finland are managed by the State Treasury.
EU legislation
- General Block Exemption Regulation
- Commission Regulation on the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid (EU) No 2023/2831 (OJ L, 2023/2831, 15.12.2023)
- European Commission recommendation on the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises
Funding for research, development and innovation activities
- Act on Discretionary Government Transfers (688/2001)
- Act on State Lending and State Guarantees (449/1988)
- Act on the General Conditions for Aid for Economic Activities (429/2016)
- Government Decree on the Funding of Research, Development and Innovation Activities (1444/2014)
- Government Decree amending the Government Decree on the Funding of Research, Development and Innovation Activities (125/2018)
- Government Decree amending and temporarily amending the Government Decree on the Funding of Research, Development and Innovation Activities (549/2020)
- Government Decree amending the provision on the entry into force of the Government Decree amending and temporarily amending the Government Decree on the Financing of Research, Development and Innovation (1131/2020)
- Government Decree amending the Government Decree on the Funding of Research, Development and Innovation Activities, Decree Number (1173/2023)
Financial services-specific regulations
- Government Decree on Rebate for Audiovisual Productions in 2024–2026 (1203/2023)
- Government Decree on Discretionary Government Transfers for Innovations in Shipbuilding (1153/2017)
Business Finland has notified the European Commission of eight support programmes for research, development and innovation funding
- Business Finland's and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment's support programme for innovations in shipbuilding
- Business Finland's support programme for the operations and investments of innovation clusters
- Business Finland's support programme for young companies and young innovative companies
- Business Finland's support programme for testing and experimentation infrastructures
- Business Finland's support programme for innovation activities of SMEs
- Business Finland's support programme for the construction and renewal of research infrastructures
- Business Finland's support programme for research and development projects
- Business Finland's support programme for audiovisual productions
Other significant legislation
- When a company has received more than 50 per cent of the procurement costs from Business Finland or other public support for the procurement, the company must comply with the Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts (1397/2016) in its procurement with a total value of at least EUR 60,000. Read also the instructions on compliance with the Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts in projects funded by Business Finland.
- To determine the size of an undertaking, we use the definition of the size of an undertaking in the EU in Annex 1 of the General Block Exemption Regulation .