Source of Funding: Xjenza Malta

The Intellectual Property Registration (IPR) Voucher provides inventors with essential financial support and guidance to protect their creations against potential infringement. Innovators can apply for national protection through the Malta Industrial Property Registration system. At a European level, the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) offers broader protection across EU Member States, while international registration through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is also available for globally safeguarding Maltese IP rights.

Types of Intellectual Property Rights

There are five main types of intellectual property rights:

1. Trademarks – Unique graphics that distinguish products or services.
2. Copyrights – Automatically granted protection for original works upon creation.
3. Industrial Designs – Protects the aesthetic design aspects of an object, requiring novelty.
4. Trade Secrets – Protects commercially valuable, confidential information under strict conditions.
5. Patents – Exclusive rights for innovative products or processes, granting 20 years of protection from the application date.

IP Registration Process

The IPR Voucher supports a streamlined registration process, which typically takes one to three years from the initial application. During this time, the service provider will:

• Update the IP Check report, recommending specific IP rights to pursue based on an initial 4-week review period.
• Collaborate on timelines for each stage of the process.
• Support the beneficiary through every phase, from updating the IP Check report to patent publication.

Reimbursements will be issued by Xjenza Malta upon submission of payment receipts.

Financial Support for Novel Technologies

The Voucher provides financial support for novel technologies that have reached the prototype stage (TRL 5+) with a Xjenza Malta-approved research grant. This ensures inventors can protect their intellectual property rights and safeguard their inventions from potential infringement.

Information Session and Application Details

An online information session with more details on the IPR Voucher will be held on:

• Date: Tuesday, 25th February 2025
• Registration: Click here to register.

Submission Process: Application forms can be sent electronically to voucher.xjenzamalta@gov.mt, keeping Kyle Bonnici (kyle.bonnici.4@gov.mt) in copy. Use the subject line: “Intellectual Property Registration – Voucher Submission.”

Note: It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure confirmation of receipt is provided.

Contact Information

For further information, please contact:

• Mr. Kyle Bonnici
  • Email: kyle.bonnici.4@gov.mt
  • Phone: (+356) 2360 2209

Visit the below link to download application forms and guidelines.

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Visit the below link to view the 25 funding opportunities on Cascade Funding portal, an instrument by the European Commission. 

Please note that these calls have different deadlines within the month of February 2025.

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Source of Funding: Funds and Programmes Division (FPD), Office of the Prime Minster, European Funds, Equality, Reforms and Social Dialogue (OPM – EES)

The Innovation Fund is the EU’s flagship climate policy initiative that focuses on supporting energy and industrial projects that contribute to Europe’s transition to climate neutrality. It aims to bring to the market solutions to decarbonise European industry and support its transition to climate neutrality while fostering its competitiveness.

The Innovation Fund focuses on highly innovative* technologies and flagship projects within Europe that can bring about significant emission reductions. The projects need to be sufficiently mature in terms of planning, business model and financial and legal structure.

The Innovation Fund is open to public and private legal entities. In general projects must be located in EU Member States or EEA countries (i.e. Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein).

*The Innovation Fund aims to support projects that go beyond incremental innovation. There are varying degrees of innovation ranging from breakthrough (such as completely new technologies, processes, business models, products or services which are likely to lead to significant change that transforms entire markets or industries or creates new ones) to intermediate (such as new or considerably changed technologies or processes or business models for the production or delivery of existing or new products or services).

Further details about what constitutes ‘innovation’ under this Fund can be found in Annex 1 of the call text: "Innovation Fund call 2024 Net Zero Technologies"

Calls for Proposals
On December 3, 2024, the European Commission launched two funding calls under the Innovation Fund:

• IF24 Call: €2.4 billion allocated for Net-Zero technologies.
• IF24 Battery: €1 billion allocated for electric vehicle battery cell manufacturing.
• Eligible categories:
  1. Energy intensive industries
  2. Carbon capture and utilisation
  3. Carbon capture and storage
  4. Renewable energy and battery storage

Eligible entities: Public and private legal entities

Geographical Location: EU Member State or EEA countries

The deadline for submission of Innovation Fund applications is April 24, 2025.

Orientation Dialogues for Applicants
To support potential applicants, the European Commission’s DG CLIMA and the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) are offering one-to-one and high-level orientation dialogue sessions in the first half of February 2025.

The orientation dialogues will be 25-minute sessions offering high-level guidance on the Innovation Fund. These sessions will focus on helping applicants understand the framework of the fund, discuss potential project outlines, and address general queries related to the call for proposals.

Project specific questions must be avoided and will not be answered during the orientation dialogue. Such questions can only be answered via the official helpdesk. This is important to ensure equal treatment of all applicants.

Please note that the orientation dialogues cannot pre-judge the outcome of the official evaluation procedure.

The Funds and Programmes Division (FPD), Office of the Prime Minster, European Funds, Equality, Reforms and Social Dialogue (OPM – EES), is inviting expressions of interest from organisations wishing to participate in the orientation dialogues.

Interested applicants are required to complete and submit a detailed questionnaire outlining their project. Access the questionnaire, and submissions must be made by February 5, 2025.

Interest in participation in orientation dialogues is assessed according to eligibility and level of maturity of project proposals. While only eligible and sufficiently advanced projects will be considered for participation in the orientation dialogues, early-stage projects are still encouraged to apply. These projects will receive tailored guidance from the FPD or SEM on alternative funding opportunities.

Interested applicants will be notified of the result by COB February 7, 2025.

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Source of Funding: Xjenza Malta

Xjenza Malta is pleased to announce the opening of the Second Malta PECS Call under the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Plan for European Cooperating States (PECS). This call provides opportunities for companies and organisations based in Malta to submit proposals for a variety of space-related research and development activities.

How to Apply

All applicants must register on the ESA Star Platform to submit their proposals:
Create an ESA Star account

Available Funding Types:

Type A – Research and preparatory activity such as feasibility studies/demonstrators, conceptual design work, competitive landscape survey, user requirements and breadboard demonstrators aimed at preparation for participation in ESA optional programmes or the initial steps of a product development for Space.

Potential Applicants are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 125,000 Euro;

• TRL Requirement: Minimum start TRL 1 and Maximum end TRL 3;
• Prime Contractorship: may be led by either industry, universities/research organisations or other national entities depending on the context;
• Expected Duration of the activity: 9-15 months.

Type B – Flight and Ground segment related research and development activities in the form of equipment (including ground communication or space science payload) to build competences and capabilities centred on products or generic technology development with potential for re-use on ESA or commercial missions. Ground equipment and mission operation systems (EGSE, MSC, OGSE, ground stations or test equipment related) may also be considered if it is clearly demonstrated that it would lead to a recurring product/ service.  This includes mid-TRL downstream application developments as ‘non-hardware’ developments.

• Potential Applicants are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 350,000 Euro for hardware development activities, for all other activities 250,000 Euro;
• TRL Requirement: Minimum start TRL 3 and Maximum end TRL 5;
• Prime Contractorship: should preferably be led by Industry and preferably include a potential end customer. Cooperation with Academia is encouraged;
• Expected Duration of the activity: 15-24 months.

Type D – Space science activities – Supporting the involvement of Maltese researchers in ESA Space Projects leading to potential of future involvement in ESA science mission core team and publication of peer reviewed scientific papers.

• Potential Applicants are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 75,000 Euro;
• Prime Contractorship: must be led by Academia and must include a non-Maltese entity with ESA core science team experience;
• Expected Duration of the activity: 36 months;

Type F – Space (downstream) applications – Products and services making use of ESA/European space infrastructure that is already existing or scheduled for operation in the near term. The goal is to ensure the introduction of a product to a first customer and to enter into customers supply chain.

• Potential Applicants are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 200,000 Euro;
• TRL Requirement:  End TRL must be TRL 8;
• Prime Contractorship: must be led by Industry with the capability to commercialise the service. Must include an end user customer as subcontractor. May include academia for technical support; must be co-funded to a minimum level of 25% of the total cost of the activity (e.g. if ESA pays 150k EUR, the total cost is at least 200k EUR). No profit is allowed. Cannot be used for repetitive product uptake scenarios only first customer.
• Expected Duration of the activity: 15-24 months.

Type G – Education activities

G1. University courses (development of additional modules to an existing BSc or MSc degree) leading to a qualification in space-related topics that correspond to the needs of Maltese space industry and to encourage career in space and answer to national space industry needs.

• Tenderers are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 70,000 Euro;
• TRL Requirement: not applicable;
• Prime Contractorship: must be led by Academia.
• Expected Duration of the activity: maximum of 36 months;

G2. PhD Thesis that corresponds to a clear need from the Maltese Space Industry and would lead to a new industrial product or service being able to be developed. Industry is required to present a letter of intent for the PhD Thesis to ensure the future commercial uptake of the funded work.

Tenderers are invited to submit Proposals for the following maximum price: a price not higher than 75,000 Euro for each PhD. A maximum number of 5 proposals shall be funded.

• TRL Requirement: not applicable;
• Prime Contractorship: must be led by Academia. Industry must be involved as a partner in the definition of the courses, practical lessors and/or topics.
• Expected Duration of the activity: maximum of 36 months;

Important Notice

• Proposals are open to companies or organisations based in Malta. Non-Maltese entities may be involved, but their tasks must not exceed 20% of the total project price.
• Each proposal must meet the required TRL (Technology Readiness Level) and other criteria as outlined for each type.

Visit the below link to read further.

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Source of Funding: Xjenza Malta

The Go To Market Accelerator Programme is designed to support the final stages of Technology Readiness Level (TRL) advancements, helping innovators deploy their product or service into operational environments. This grant facilitates optimization, verification, and validation activities, ensuring that prototype-stage innovations are ready for real-world applications.

Programme Overview

• Target TRL: From TRL 5-6 to TRL 7-8
• Funding: Up to €150,000
• Project Duration: 24 months

The programme supports projects that build on previous development efforts to complete the innovation’s development cycle.

Eligibility & Requirements

Applicants must first complete a Feasibility Study under the Commercialisation Voucher Programme (CVP). This includes:

1. Intellectual Property Check: Identifying novel elements of the technology.
2. Commercial Viability Test: Assessing market research and economic impact.

Feasibility Study Details:

• Value: €14,000 (excluding VAT)
• Duration: 16 weeks
• Support: Conducted with Xjenza Malta’s pre-approved service providers.

Important Dates

• Online Information Session:
  Monday, 3rd February 2025 at 10:00 CET
  Register here
• Submission Deadline:
  Friday, 14th March 2025, by 23:59 CET

Visit the below link to download application form and guidelines.

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Source of Funding: Women TechEU

Women TechEU is a 2-year EU-funded project supporting women leading deep tech startup companies from Europe.

Our mission is to create a more gender-balanced entrepreneurship ecosystem. We believe that diversity drives innovation, and we are here to provide women in deep tech with more opportunities, resources, and support to thrive.

The project consortium is launching 4 calls for applications over the span of 2 years which, following a rigorous evaluation process, will result in a total of 160 beneficiaries. Each beneficiary will receive €75k grants (non-dilutive finance) as well as a personalised business development programme which includes mentoring, coaching and targeted training among other options.

Visit the below link to read further:

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Source of Funding: Xjenza Malta

Xjenza Malta is receiving proposals under the Horizon Internationalisation Partnership Award Scheme (HIPAS). The Scheme will support Maltese eligible entities intending to submit a Horizon Europe proposal (including Partnerships indicated in the Scheme Rules), as a Coordinator entity to engage a service provider (local or foreign) who will be supporting the applicant entity through proposal writing and submission. The support is limited to € 8,000. More details can be seen the rules.

Interested Applicants are to submit their application form electronically to horizon.malta@gov.mt keeping Lili Kankaya lili.vasileva@gov.mt in copy with “HIPAS – Application 2025” as a subject heading. The call will be open throughout the year (until 7th November 2025) with the following cut offs:

• 15 April 2025
• 27 June 2025
• 7 November 2025 (final deadline)

Visit the below link to download application forms and guidelines.

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Source of Funding: Cascade Funding Hub

Visit the below link to view the 21 funding opportunities on Cascade Funding portal, an instrument by the European Commission. 

Please note that these calls have different deadlines within the month of January 2025.

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The applications for our much-anticipated Cohort 4.0 are now open in Malta! This is your chance to accelerate your journey with an equity-free program designed to elevate your project within the EdTech sector.

Why Malta?
Malta offers a thriving ecosystem backed by strong EU funding opportunities and an innovative community that supports growth and development.

Join Our Strong EdTech Ecosystem
Become a part of a vibrant network that fosters collaboration and innovation.

EU Backed Funding Opportunities
Access to exclusive funding opportunities supported by EU initiatives to help fuel your growth.

Team Expansion Grants
Receive grants aimed at helping you scale your team and expand your operations efficiently.

R&D Packages
Take advantage of tailored R&D packages designed to boost your product development and research capabilities.

The application process takes approximately 30 minutes.

You can either:

1. Start the application now
*You can complete it within 7 days using the same browser

2. Filling in the short form to register your interest link

Application Deadline: 09th December, 2024
Interviews: Ongoing
Programme Start: April, 2025

SuperCharger's application is a competitive process. If you are not selected, you will also hear from us on how our ecosystem can help you.

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Source of Funding: https://xjenzamalta.mt/2024/11/14/technology-development-programme-tdp-2024/

Xjenza Malta is receiving proposals under the Technology Development Programme (TDP).

The Technology Development Programme is a national funding programme which enables the drastic improvement of a product or service via extensive collaboration in consortia composed of public entities and industry players. 

TDP provides financial support up to €500,000 for research, development, and innovation, within the SMART Specialisation Areas:

• Aviation and Aerospace
• Future Digital Technology
• Health and Wellbeing
• Marine and Maritime Technology
• Smart Manufacturing
• Sustainable Use of Resources

To apply for this funding programme, the technology must be at Technology Readiness level (TRL) 4 and must increase to TRL 7 by the end of the project. The Technology Development Programme cover a time span between 24 to 36 months, and it builds on the outcome of the two stages feasibility study (the Commercialisation Voucher Programme or CVP) conducted within the project:

• Intellectual Property Check (identification of novel elements of the technology)
• Commercial Viability Test (assessment on market research and economic impact)

Projects in which the CVP is required can receive an additional funding up to €14,000 and perform CVP activities prior to the start of the TDP project.

All projects are evaluated by a selection board set up by Xjenza Malta on the basis of evaluation criteria outlined in call text. Interested Applicants are to submit their application form electronically to rtdi.xjenzamalta@gov.mt keeping in copy Dr. Alessandra Loria at alessandra.loria@gov.mt with “TDP 2024 – Application” as subject heading. The deadline for submission is Friday 31st January 2025 at 11.59pm. The application must be dated and signed by the applicant and the legal representative. All received applications shall be acknowledged by email. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

An online information session with more details on the TDP 2024 call will be held on Thursday, 28th November 2024 at 10.00am. Click here to register for this info session. Additional information can be accessed from the link below. Alternatively, interested parties may contact Dr. Alessandra Loria on 23602111.

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