It is often observed that the existence of debts to the State or even to third parties (e.g. banking institutions) prevents companies from participating in state aid programs, whether these are financed by the NSRF, national funds or other sources.
The truth is that there is no general rule for excluding companies with debts from the programs with which state aid is provided in the form of a grant, unless the exclusion is expressly provided for in the basic conditions for inclusion of each program. As each program advertised has case-specific terms and conditions, it is possible that some of these programs require the business to be debt-free before applying for membership. However, a general and universal exemption for businesses with debts does not exist.
In particular, the following should be noted: if a company with debts to the public, specifically to the tax office and/or the insurance funds, applies for a grant and is approved, then there is a possibility that the grant will be assigned to the competent body (DOU, EFKA) for repayment of the debt . This depends on whether the program requires you to provide tax and insurance information at the stage of disbursement of the grant amount.
The same does not apply to businesses with debts to third parties, private individuals or even banking institutions, as no assignment of debt takes place nor the presentation of supporting documents on the existence or non-existence of debts. The only necessary condition for the disbursement is that the account of the beneficiary-debtor is not blocked, so that he can collect the amount of the grant.
On the contrary, companies that have been characterized as problematic by European Legislation are always excluded from the programs. A problematic business is one that is unable to stop its loss-making course with its own financial resources or with resources it secures from its owners, shareholders and/or creditors. Such an enterprise without external intervention from the state, will be driven towards almost certain economic extinction in the short or medium term.
