The Official State Gazette (BOE) has published the rules that will govern the granting of an initial call for applications for subsidies to enhance the digitalisation of companies operating in the tourism sector, with a budget allocation of €25 million aimed at the development and implementation of outstanding, transformative technological projects. These grants, to be awarded by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism are part of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan financed by European funding.
“The digitalisation of the tourism sector is key if we are to continue attracting tourists who are ever more hyper-connected, and provides stays with greater added value. It is also one of the areas where there is the greatest room for improvement in Spain, according to the tourism competitiveness indicators measured by the World Economic Forum. And competitiveness today is closely linked to the development of new digital capabilities that can help us attract customers and improve their experience. This is why the plan to modernise the tourism sector and make it more competitive, which is being financed via Next Generation EU funding, places special emphasis on the digitalisation of tourism companies and destinations”, explained the Secretary of State for Tourism, Fernando Valdés.
Grants of between €300,000 and €5 million
The Official State Gazette (BOE) has published the regulations regarding these subsidies, based on competitive calls for proposals for “last mile” digitalisation projects from companies operating in the tourism sector who will be able to apply for grants ranging from €300,000 to €5,000,000 from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan “Spain Can” as part of a grouping of businesses.
This programme is part of the plan to modernise the tourism sector and make it more competitive (component 14), which incorporates the Recovery Plan and is structured around two lines of action:
- Line 1: For innovative technological development projects that integrate emerging or newly developed medium/low risk technologies, and that improve the competitiveness of the tourism sector by incorporating emerging or newly developed technologies in the field of the internet of things, 5G, big data, cybersecurity or mobile applications, with no limitation on the number of projects that can be funded.
€20 million has been allocated to this line of action, and funding will be available for projects with a minimum budget of €500,000, and a maximum of €5 million.
- Line 2: For projects focused on the implementation and take-up of new technologies that incorporate low-risk technologies previously tested on the market. €5 million has been allocated to this line of action, and funding will be available for projects with a minimum budget of €300,000, and a maximum of €750,000.
The deadline for applying for these grants is one month, starting from the publication of the call for proposals in the Official State Gazette (BOE). The Ministry has set up the following mailbox for queries: consultas.ayudas@segittur.es.
The full terms and conditions for this call can be found via the following link: https://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2022/01/08/pdfs/BOE-A-2022-331.pdf.
