Self-Employment Scheme: over 3,200 businesses set up by young people under the age of 35
Around 3,500 young people have been involved in the ‘Resto al Sud 2.0’ and ‘Autoimpiego Centro-Nord’ schemes. 39 per cent of applications have been submitted by women. To access the support schemes, applications can still be submitted via the Invitalia portal.
Key points
Over 3,200 projects have been approved to support the launch of new businesses or professional ventures, benefiting from incentives, with €260 million in investment mobilised, €215 million in subsidies granted, and the involvement of around 3,500 young people aged 35 or under. 39 per cent of applications are submitted by women.
This is a review one year on from the launch of the application portal for grants to support the start-up of new businesses or professional practices, as part of the Integrated Self-Employment Plan launched by the Ministry of Labour under the Cohesion Decree to support the creation of new business ventures, self-employment and freelance professional activities promoted by young people under 35. The initiative, co-funded by the European Union through the National Programme ‘Youth, Women and Work’ – ESF+ 2021–2027, is implemented through a partnership between the National Microcredit Agency, Invitalia and Sviluppo Lavoro Italia.
Beneficiaries and the two types of incentive
Decree-Law No. 60/2024 (the Cohesion Decree), converted into Law No. 95/2024, introduced two measures to support young people in setting up new businesses: Resto al Sud 2.0 (covering Southern Italy and areas of the Single Special Economic Zone) and Self-Employment in Central and Northern Italy. Young people aged between 18 and 35 (not yet having reached their 35th birthday) who are unemployed, economically inactive or have never been in employment, and who are registered with the GOL active labour market programme, or the so-called ‘working poor’, are eligible for these benefits.
There are two types of support available: the first takes the form of a non-repayable start-up voucher of up to 30,000 euros for businesses in Central and Northern Italy and up to 40,000 euros in the Southern regions (Resto al Sud 2.0), which may be increased by a further 10,000 euros for expenditure on digital innovation or environmental sustainability. The second scheme consists of an investment grant: up to 65 per cent as a non-repayable grant for investments of up to 120,000 euros (75 per cent in Special Economic Zones), and up to 60 per cent as a non-repayable grant for investments between 120,000 and 200,000 euros (70 per cent in the South).
The application window for the two incentive schemes is still open: applications can be submitted via the Invitalia website until funds run out.
