Getting financial support for your business faster with the launch of the digitised SME declaration tool
The EIMIN initiative is launching an automated and digitised SME declaration tool for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which will make it faster and easier to complete the declaration. The tool is already available to businesses via the Centre of Registers' self-service by logging into the Register of Legal Entities.
"We are reducing the administrative burden on businesses and want to digitise as many processes as possible. The SME declaration tool will be particularly helpful for medium-sized companies and companies with subsidiaries and partners, which find it difficult to transfer data to the SME declaration form. This will not only speed up the declaration process, but also ensure that the data is accurate and up-to-date," said Aušrinė Armonaitė, the Minister of the Economy and Innovation.
The need for this tool has grown with the emergence of more and more financial support instruments that require companies to prove their SME status. The SME status declaration form is submitted to the state aid administration authorities together with other documents required for applications for state funding.
"As a partner of a progressive state, the Centre of Registers aims to digitise as many services as possible to facilitate the daily life of citizens and businesses. This SME declaration tool is an excellent example of how data and expertise can help businesses in the country to reduce bureaucratic burdens. We have no doubt that this tool will be useful for both entrepreneurs seeking support and institutions providing support," says Diana Vilytė, Director of Service Management at the Centre of Registers.
The purpose of the SME declaration is to help businesses and entrepreneurs to identify themselves in order to benefit from state support. The digitalised tool is not mandatory for the SME declaration, but will allow the use of the regular declaration form.
Prior to the development of this digitalised tool, a survey was carried out in which SMEs identified time constraints, the lack of clarity of the existing table and the transfer of data from related and partner enterprises as the main difficulties in filling in the traditional SME declaration form. Around 67% of respondents indicated that they would use a digitised paid service.
It is estimated that the submission of data using the new tool significantly reduces the time needed to complete the SME declaration. If the data is submitted by an entrepreneur who has no contact with other businesses, the process can take up to 5 minutes. If the ownership structure of the enterprise is complex and the enterprise has submitted data correctly to the information systems, it can take up to 15 minutes, and up to 25 minutes if the data is not submitted correctly.
In the survey conducted so far, respondents have reported that it takes them between 1 and 10 hours to complete a standard electronic SME status declaration form, with 1-2 hours being the most common time.