The Official Gazette of the Government of Catalonia publishes the requirements of the new aids of the Ministry of Business and Knowledge, which includes €19 million to guarantee the continuity of the tourism sector, affected by Covid-19 pandemic.

If affected economically by Covid-19 crisis, freelancers and tourism companies of Catalonia will be eligible for the subsidies, which will be available soon. This call means the Government will have invested €32.5 million in three direct subsidies to guarantee the continuity of the sector.

Who is eligible for the subsidy?

The regulations include that the aid is a single payment for official tourist guides of Catalonia, owners of tourist accommodation establishments (hotels, apartments, camping, rural tourism housing), travel agencies, tourist housing companies, tourist establishments and activities. This group includes the following activities: tourism of congresses and meetings; guided, cultural, heritage discovering and nature guides and excursions; trekking; bike touring; wine tourism; ecotourism; water and nautical activities; and activities developed in natural, aquatic and thematical parks.

The amount is doubled

The amount of this call doubles the amount of the previous one. Therefore, official tourist guides of Catalonia will receive an amount of €2,000. The rest of the beneficiary groups will receive the following amounts: freelancers and companies with up to 5 employees, €5,000; companies with up to 6 to 49 employees, €10,000; and companies with more than 50 employees, €20,000. Tourist housing companies with up to 10 employees, €5,000; companies with 11 employees or more, €10,000.

Previous aids 

The economic sector is living a drastic reduction of its turnover as a result of Covid-19 effects. Therefore, the Government activated in April the first subsidy for professionals and microcompanies affected by the situation. It consisted of a single payment of €2,500.

When the situation aggravated, a second subsidy was offered to its beneficiaries. The official tourist guides of Catalonia received €1,000. The rest of the beneficiary groups received the following amounts: freelancers and companies with up to 5 employees, €2,500; companies with up to 6 to 49 employees, €5,000; and companies with more than 50 employees, €10,000.

This third subsidy is also a single payment and it will cover 3,000 to 4,000 applications. The subsidy doubles the amount of the previous call and it is compatible with the two previous aids managed by the Catalan Tourist Board.  

The first aid (€3.5 million extended to a total of €5 million) was allocated to 1,890 companies and professionals. The second aid (€8.5 million) accepted 2,167 applications.