Corona Crisis: Additional Federal Short-Term Financial Assistance

The German federal government allocated 25 billion euros in non-repayable subsidies to support SMEs, sole proprietorships, and self-employed professionals impacted by COVID-19.

To qualify, businesses had to demonstrate a minimum 40 percent decline in turnover during April and May 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.

Subsidy tiers covered 40 percent of fixed costs for a 40–50 percent revenue drop, 50 percent coverage for a 50–70 percent drop, and 80 percent coverage for losses exceeding 70 percent.

Eligible fixed costs included rent, interest, utilities, insurance, and personnel expenses not covered by short-time working allowances.

The program capped total reimbursements at 150,000 euros for the June–August 2020 period, with smaller sub-caps of 9,000 euros for businesses with up to five employees and 15,000 euros for those with up to ten employees.

Applicants were required to engage tax consultants or auditors to verify their claims and secure funding before the total allocation was exhausted.