Is my company classified as a Small & Medium-sized Enterprise (SME)?

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are defined in the EU recommendation 2003/361.

The major goal of this recommendation is to make sure that subsides are granted exclusively for those companies which really need them. Accordingly, SME definition applies to all programs, policies and measures developed by the European Commision (EC) and aimed at these companies. The EC publishes the User Guide to the SME definition  where this criteria as well as detailed information about the SMEs are set.

The main factors determining whether an enterprise is an SME are:

• Staff headcount
• Either turnover or balance sheet total

In order to determine company size several factors should be considered: the property, voting rights and inter-enterprise relations. Only Representative companies should take into account the company size of their represented company.

What data do I use?

According to the EU recommendation, when making the calculations, you should use the data contained in the last approved annual accounts. Newly established enterprises that do not yet have approved annual accounts should make a declaration that includes a bona fide estimate (in the form of a business plan) made over the course of the financial year. This business plan should cover the entire period (financial years) until the entity will generate turnover.

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