“Competence Voucher”: returning State measure reimbursing the costs of employee qualification training

The national development agency Investicijų ir verslo garantijos (INVEGA), together with the Republic of Lithuania Ministry of Economy and Innovation, is announcing the second call for businesses to submit applications under the Global Grant measure “Competence Voucher”, which is financed from the European Social Fund. From today, i.e. 1 September, until 30 November, businesses can again apply to INVEGA for reimbursement of part of the expenses incurred for the improvement of employee qualification.

“For companies wishing to survive in a competitive environment, skilled workers are becoming the main advantage over competitors. Companies using this measure will be able to receive support without a greater administrative burden, invest in the knowledge of their employees, and thus ensure the survival of their business in a highly competitive market,” says Kęstutis Motiejūnas, Head of INVEGA. “After the quarantine, businesses that are slowly standing firmer on their feet, but are still struggling without State aid, will be able to apply for partial reimbursement of employee qualification training by the end of November.”

For part of the reimbursement, private legal entities and state or municipal enterprises, operating for at least one year, can apply to INVEGA. The employees of the applicants who have received funding will be given a period of 15 months to improve their qualifications. The reimbursement of part of the training costs will be calculated by applying the flat rate, so the maximum possible part of the training costs (per employee) can reach 70% of the estimated costs. Within 15 months of the entry into force of the Grant agreement and of the decision on the amount of funding, the maximum reimbursement amount per applicant may be up to €4,500.

Employers who have received funding will be able to apply for additional employee training and qualification improvement services to educational institutions that are included in the list of training and service providers and their programmes, administered by VŠĮ Versli Lietuva. Applications for reimbursement of training costs may be submitted to INVEGA until 30 November 2020.

“These non-refundable subsidies have already helped companies improve their employee qualifications and competences – they were able to adapt to the changing requirements of the labour market, to retain their employees, and even to allow those who are professionally improving grow in their careers” says K. Motiejūnas. “The ‘Competence Voucher’ attracted a lot of attention from small companies belonging to the trade, construction and manufacturing sectors. A total of 701 agreements were signed at the end of the Grant measure in March, and the total reimbursement amount at that time amounted to the maximum budget of €3.1 million.”

The European Social Fund currently receives €500 thousand for the implementation of the measure.