website grant
trading online voucher

The voucher is a financial incentive to small businesses to develop or enhance their ability to trade online.

Under the scheme a qualifying business may apply for funding to a maximum value of €2,500 or 90% of eligible expenditure (exclusive of VAT), whichever is the lesser.

Following approval of their application, a successful applicant can engage suppliers and upon completion of the work, submit a request for payment to the LEO in line with the terms and conditions of their voucher.

Information seminars will be made available online or by conference call to prospective applicants to support them in their application process and it will be a condition of applying for the vouchers that applicants participate in one of these seminars.

At each seminar attendees will be informed of the purpose of the scheme and how best to use and get value from the application of the voucher. The application process for the vouchers will be a competitive process.

The vouchers are targeted at businesses with the following profile:

1. Limited or no e-commerce presence
2. Ten or less full time employees (2 part time equals 1 full time)
3. Turnover less than €2m
4. Applicant business must be trading for at least 6 months
5. Business must be located in the area covered by the LEO to whom they make their application i.e. LEOs cannot accept applications from businesses located outside their jurisdiction.  Note that businesses within the Gaeltacht should contact Údarás na Gaeltachta as Údarás for their range of supports and not apply for this scheme via the LEO
6. Previous voucher recipients may apply for a second voucher
7. If voucher used for a website it must include a booking function or direct selling
8. Business must be located in the area covered by the LEO to whom they make their application i.e. LEOs cannot accept applications from businesses located outside their jurisdiction
9. Any Expenditure prior to date of approval is not eligible, grant aid cannot be retrospective
10. Eligibility does not guarantee approval

1. Go to the website of your Local Enterprise Office
2. Register for and attend online, a Trading Online Seminar (about 90 mins. duration) to be eligible to apply. You are free to attend a seminar online hosted by any L.E.O., not just your own L.E.O.
3. Get three quotes for the work you wish to carry out
4. Apply online or by email for the Trading Online Voucher (TOV) including the three quotes you obtain
5. Within 10 to 15 working days of applying you will receive contact informing you of the outcome of your application
6. If approved you will receive a letter of offer which you must sign and return, you then have 4 months to have the work completed from the approval date
7. The business (not the L.E.O.) chooses which web agency/developer of the three quotes it wishes to work with. It does not have to be the cheapest quote.
8. Once the work is completed and you have paid the web developer(s) you can apply for the grant payment to your bank account

• IT consultation;
• Development or upgrade of an e-commerce website;
• Implementing Online payments or booking systems;
• Purchase of Internet related software;
• Developing an app (or multiplatform webpages);
• Development of a digital marketing strategy;
• Implementing a digital marketing strategy;
• Training/skills development specifically to establish and manage an online trading activity.
• Subscriptions (excluding transaction costs) to low cost online retail platform solutions, which would allow applicants to quickly establish a retailing presence online.
• Purchase of online advertising (this purchase cannot make up any more than 30% of all other approved Voucher costs and can only be drawn down in one payment phase);
• Purchase of Professional Photography (this expenditure cannot make up any more than 80% of all other approved voucher costs and can only be drawn down in one payment phase)

• Voucher approval must be gained prior to incurring any expense;
• Third party costs only will be considered. Own labour is not an eligible expense (labour of spouse or children also considered own labour);
• Claims can be made in either one or two installments, and only made in respect of actual work completed (i.e. in respect of the components of the project works completed at the time the claim is being made). Expenditure on the various project components can only be claimed once.
• All third party/supplier invoices must contain proper business details (e.g. tax or business registration details or proof that the supplier is a registered business in the territory in which the supplier is located).
• Applications must be accompanied by written/ emailed quotes for project works from three suppliers.

* A brochure website is digital version of a printed brochure. They show the products or services your company provides, however, unlike an e-commerce website, they do not sell the product or service online or have an interactive booking function. With a brochure website, the goods and services are only displayed, so customers will have to contact the company to place an order.

• Development of brochure websites*;
• Purchase of non-internet related software;
• Anything other than e-commerce trading related activity.

* A brochure website is digital version of a printed brochure. They show the products or services your company provides, however, unlike an e-commerce website, they do not sell the product or service online or have an interactive booking function. With a brochure website, the goods and services are only displayed, so customers will have to contact the company to place an order.

1. Businesses with more than 10 full time employees and an annual turnover in excess of €2m.
2. Companies with charitable status, commercial semi-state companies, trade associations and company representation bodies such as Chambers of Commerce are not eligible to participate in the scheme;
3. “Not for profit” and social entrepreneurship applicants unless they operate in a commercial domain;
4. Professional services specialising in IT type services who are already capable of trading online using existing in-house systems;
5. Conferences and Seminars;
6. Projects which are contrary to public policy;
7.  Duplication of support for projects which would be eligible for assistance from other State Agencies of EU funded Operational Programmes;
8.  Projects with employees in excess of 10 people;
9. Projects deemed to be capable of proceeding in any event without scheme assistance i.e. deadweight;
10. Projects essentially comprising importation and distribution