Innovation Credit (Innovatiekrediet)
Funds high-risk Dutch innovation projects through a repayable government credit instrument.
The Innovatiekrediet (Innovation Credit) is a repayable government loan instrument operated by RVO on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK), designed to bridge the financing gap for high-risk innovation projects that commercial banks will not fund. It targets companies in the Netherlands — predominantly SMEs and scale-ups — that are developing technically novel products or production processes at an advanced development stage, typically beyond proof-of-concept and approaching market introduction. The instrument is structured as a loan rather than a grant: recipients repay from product revenues once commercialisation succeeds, and the state bears a share of the technical risk if the project fails under defined conditions.
Eligibility is restricted to for-profit companies registered in the Netherlands; non-profits, universities, and research organisations are not eligible as lead applicants. Applications are submitted in Dutch to RVO on a rolling basis; no annual hard deadline is published, though RVO assesses applications in periodic review rounds. The loan covers a portion of eligible project costs — personnel, equipment, materials, and contracted R&D services — with loan amounts and interest rates set per application based on project scope and risk profile. Exact loan ceilings and current interest rates are published by RVO and subject to change each fiscal year.
The Innovatiekrediet is particularly relevant for companies at late-TRL development stages (prototype validation through clinical or field trials) where the cost base is substantial but revenue is not yet available to service conventional debt. Applicants must demonstrate a credible commercialisation path within the Netherlands and provide financial projections. Policy authority rests with EZK; all operational terms are administered and published by RVO.
Repayable government loans for Dutch companies developing high-risk, commercially novel products or production processes at advanced development stages that cannot secure conventional bank financing.
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