Programme Category
Programme Name
Programme Description
The third Policy Axis aims to improve the competitiveness and resilience of the Cypriot economy. In addition to the other axes, it includes measures that contribute to the promotion of a new model of development and international competitiveness of the Cypriot economy, based on the results of the relevant study of the Cyprus Economy and Competitiveness Council.
Includes investments and reforms to expand the productive base by strengthening the primary and secondary sectors of the economy, improving competitiveness and the business environment, mainly by supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), diversifying and strengthening the tourism product, modernizing public administration and local authorities, reform and improve the efficiency of the judiciary, fight corruption and enhance transparency, enhance research and innovation, and the resilience of the financial sector and the financial situation.
Identifier Code
Call
Summary
Objective of this Scheme is to provide incentives in the form of government funding to owners or tenants of existing buildings (with the signed consent of the owners) in the area covered by the Scheme. Purpose of the Scheme is the renovation or conservation of their properties with the primary goal of converting them into student residences or student rooms.
The Department of Town Planning and Housing (DTPH) has been designated as the Implementing Agency of the Scheme.
Detailed Call Description
The Scheme of incentives for the renovation or conservation of existing building/s with the aim of creating student accommodation in the inner city of Nicosia, is implemented under the Cyprus Recovery and Resilience Plan for the period 2021-2026 and it is financed by the Recovery and Resilience Facility of the European Union, the largest component of the Next Generation EU. The Scheme is implemented within the framework of the component C3.4I6, “Regeneration and Revitalisation of Nicosia Inner City”.
The total budget of the Scheme is €15 million. The current, 2nd Call for Proposals concerns a total budget of €14.3 million.
The funding will be provided as state aid in the form of compensation for providing a public service, granted to certain undertakings entrusted with the operation of Services of General Economic Interest (SGEI). This is contingent on the successful completion of the Project and involves non-refundable grants for eligible expenses, provided that commitments/ obligations of the Beneficiary deriving from the Grant Funding Agreement (GFA), to be signed between the Beneficiary and the DTPH, are adhered to.
For the conversion of an existing building into student accommodation and for an expansion area reaching up to 30% of the existing building, the grant amount will be up to 75% of the eligible expenses of the proposal, while for an expansion area beyond 30% of the existing building, the grant will be 50% of the eligible expenses. According to EU Regulations on state aid, in the form of public service compensation for the provision of SGEI, the calculated grant will ONLY apply to the part of the building that will operate exclusively and solely as Student Accommodation and to directly connected auxiliary spaces/uses.
Upon the completion of the construction works, the Beneficiary is obliged to, for a total duration of at least sixty (60) months within eight (8) years and simultaneously, for at least six (6) months/ year, to rent each properly configured student room in the building to students with controlled rent, as determined by the Ministry of Finance.
The implementation of each Investment Project within this Scheme, construction works must start within three (3) months at the latest from the date of signing the GFA and to be completed within twenty (20) months of the date of commencement of construction works, with the possibility of a six (6) months extension in exceptional cases, provided that the reasons for the delay are objective and reasonable, and are submitted in a timely and written manner for approval by the DTPH. In case the above schedules are not adhered to, the approval of the funding is cancelled.
Call Total Budget
Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan
The Applicant/ Potential Beneficiary will be able to choose one (1) of the following Scenarios:
- Scenario A: Grant as de minimis aid, for the provision of SGEI, the maximum amount of funding will amount to €500.000 based on the terms of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 360/2012, or
- Scenario B: Grant as state aid in the form of public service compensation for the provision of SGEI, the maximum amount of funding will amount to €2.000.000. It is noted that, in this Scenario, undertakings will be subject to financial controls and any profit beyond what is defined as “reasonable profit,” will have to be returned to the Implementation Body, based on Commission Decision 2012/21/EU.
The minimum amount of investment (eligible expenses) for the retrofitting of existing building/s is defined at 140.000 Euro.
The maximum grant amount (cumulative) per beneficiary is defined to Two Million Euro (2.000.000 Euro).
Thematic Categories
- Land Development
- Other Services
- Other Thematic Category
- Rehabilitation of Architectural Heritage
- Urban Development
- Youth
Eligibility for Participation
- Large Enterprises
- Other Beneficiaries
- Private Bodies
- Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
Call Opening Date
Call Closing Date
National Contact Point(s)
The Department of Town Planning and Housing – https://www.moi.gov.cy/moi/tph/tph.nsf/home/home?OpenForm
Persons to Contact:
Elina Triantafyllidou
Officer, Department of Town Planning and Housing
Telephone: 22408205
Email: etriantafyllidou@tph.moi.gov.cy
Fax: 22677570
Maria Xenophontos
Officer, Department of Town Planning and Housing
Telephone: 22409505
Email: mxenophontos@tph.moi.gov.cy
Fax: 22677570
Emilia Siandou
Officer, Department of Town Planning and Housing
Telephone: 22409819
Email: esiandou@ tph.moi.gov.cy
Fax: 22677570