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Order 1979/hfp/2016, Of 29 December, Which Approved The Rules On Eligible Expenditure Of The Operational Programmes Of The European Regional Development Fund For The Period 2014-2020.

Original Language Title: Orden HFP/1979/2016, de 29 de diciembre, por la que se aprueban las normas sobre los gastos subvencionables de los programas operativos del Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional para el perĂ­odo 2014-2020.

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TEXT

The Community regulatory framework applicable to the European Structural and Investment Funds in the 2014-2020 programming period is basically constituted by Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the European Parliament. Council Decision of 17 December laying down general provisions concerning the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Regulation (EC) No 415/2009 1083/2006 (hereinafter referred to as Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013). Article 65 (1) of this Regulation lays down that the eligibility of expenditure shall be determined on the basis of national rules, except as or on the basis of the Fund-specific rules referred to in that Regulation. establish specific rules.

The content of Article 65 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 does not constitute a complete novelty with regard to the regulatory regulation for the programming period 2007/2013. Thus, Article 56 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11 July 2006 provides in paragraph 4 that the eligibility rules for expenditure shall be established at national level and that these rules shall cover all expenditure declared in the the framework of each operational programme.

In application of the aforementioned precept, Order EHA/524/2008 of 26 February adopted the rules on eligible expenditure of the operational programmes of the European Regional Development Fund and of the Cohesion Fund.

Giving compliance to the regulatory mandate contained in Article 65 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 and in order to adapt to the requirements of the new period, in which the Kingdom of Spain is not a beneficiary of the Cohesion, it is necessary to draw up a provision establishing national eligibility rules for the European Regional Development Fund for the programming period 2014/2020. This is a more extensive and detailed rule than the one in the previous programming period, given the wide range of rules laid down at Community level where specific aspects affecting the expenditure of the Member States are limited, specified or regulated. co-financed operations and, therefore, the eligible nature of the operations.

In the preparation of the rules adopted, the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, in particular Articles 37 and 42 thereof and in Chapter III of Title VII, have been taken into account. Regulation (EU) No 1301/2013 of 17 December 2013 on the European Regional Development Fund and on specific provisions relating to the objective of investment in growth and employment for which it is based have also been taken into account. repeals Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006; the specific rules on eligible expenditure as set out in Chapter V of Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 laying down specific provisions on support from the European Regional Development Fund for the objective of European territorial cooperation; Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 480/2014 of 3 March 2014 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down common provisions relating to to the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general provisions for the European Fund Regional Development, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime Fund of the Fisheries; Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 481/2014 of 4 March 2014 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the specific provisions on the the eligibility of expenditure for cooperation programmes; and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 964/2014 of 11 September 2014 laying down detailed rules for the application of the conditions for the implementation of the programme for cooperation programmes general for financial instruments, to quote the most representative ones.

As a result, new developments have been incorporated with respect to the previous normative text that translate into a different structure and the incorporation of normative precepts concerning previously untreated questions of form specifies.

Of all the above, and in order to comply with the mandates set out in the above mentioned normative texts, this ministerial order is created by which the rules on the eligible expenditure of the the operational programmes of the European Regional Development Fund, with its 19 rules being structured, in four titles.

The first of the titles, divided into three precepts, details the general rules regarding the eligibility of the expenditure; the expenditure which is not eligible for the ERDF is listed and the conditions are set specific to the eligible costs depending on their location.

The second of the titles, which consists of eleven standards, refers to the rules applicable to grants and repayable assistance. As more significant developments introduced in the new regulation, the sections on staff costs, in-kind contributions and the regulation of so-called "simplified costs" can be highlighted.

The third of the securities, under the heading of rules applicable to financial instruments, develops, from the perspective of the eligibility of expenditure, the specialities to be met by the financial instruments which receive support from the Funds as well as the limits and how to determine the eligible expenditure of the Funds.

Finally, in its Title IV, it has been considered appropriate to lay down specific provisions applicable to programmes in the framework of European territorial cooperation. It is clear that the rules included in the order will be applied in an extra way to those that can be approved for each operational programme within the framework of European territorial cooperation.

The order is issued in accordance with the provisions of article 12.2 of Law 6/1997 of 14 April, of the Organization and the Functioning of the General Administration of the State, which attributes to the ministers the exercise of the power of In accordance with the provisions of Law 38/2003, of 17 November, General of Grants.

Under its virtue, on a proposal from the Directorate-General for Community Funds and in agreement with the Council of State, I have:

Single item. Approval of the rules on eligible expenditure.

The rules on expenditure eligible for the European Regional Development Fund and which are financed under the terms of Council Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of 17 December 2013 on the financing of the European Regional Development Fund are hereby approved. laying down common provisions concerning the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, and establishing the general provisions concerning the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006, the text of which is inserted below.

Single transient disposition.

This order shall not affect the continuation, modification or cancellation of all or part of the operations approved by the Commission or included in operational programmes approved by the Commission, on the basis of the Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006, for whose expenditure the EHA/524/2008 Order of 26 February, approving the rules on the eligible expenditure of the operational programmes of the European Regional Development Fund and the Fund of the European Regional Development Fund, shall continue to apply. Cohesion.

Single repeal provision.

Without prejudice to the provisions of the single transitional provision, Order EHA/524/2008 of 26 February is hereby repealed.

Single end disposition. Entry into force.

This ministerial order shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Gazette of the State. However, the rules on eligible expenditure set out therein shall apply to expenditure actually paid from 1 January 2014.

Madrid, December 29, 2016. -Minister of Finance and Public Service, Cristobal Montoro Romero.

RULES ON ELIGIBLE EXPENDITURE FOR OPERATIONAL PROGRAMMES FINANCED BY THE EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND (ERDF)

TITLE I

General Rules

1. Eligible expenses. General rule

1. The ERDF Funds shall be used to provide support in any of the forms referred to in Article 66 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013

2. The eligible expenditure shall correspond in an undoubted manner to the co-financed operation, without further limitations than those resulting from the applicable Community legislation and national legislation, and those covered by these rules.

3. Expenditure shall be eligible only if the beneficiary has incurred it and paid it between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2023, without prejudice to the provision for technical assistance at the initiative of the Commission or the exceptions expressly covered by the Commission and by the rules which might affect the date of completion and closure of the operational programmes.

4. Only expenditure shall be deemed to be paid when the actual disbursement occurs. When using promissory notes, exchange letters or other currency effects, expenses shall only be considered to be paid when the payment of the bills has been made effective before the end of the eligibility period.

5. It shall not be necessary to justify the actual disbursement in the case of contributions in kind, amortisation of inventoried assets, aid which is in any form of simplified costs as referred to in Article 67 (1), (b), (c) and (d) of Regulation (EU) 1303/2013 and in cases where there are exceptions to the financial instruments. However, in the case of simplified costs, it will be necessary to justify the disbursement of those expenditure actually incurred as a basis for the application of the fixed rate.

6. In the case of simplified costs referred to in Article 67 (1) (b) and (c) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, expenditure in respect of which the actions constituting the basis for its implementation shall be eligible. reimbursement has been carried out within the period referred to in paragraph 3 of this Standard.

2. Uneligible expenses

The expenses listed below will not be eligible:

(a) Debtors ' interest and other financial expenses, other than interest rate subsidies or guarantee fee subsidies included in the aid schemes and the exceptions allowed for the instruments financial.

b) Expenses related to currency exchange rate fluctuations.

(c) Value added tax that is recoverable under national law and the recoverable indirect general tax, as well as taxes of a similar nature that are recoverable under the rules national, without prejudice to the provisions of the financial instruments.

d) Personal income taxes.

e) Interest in late payments, surcharges, fines and financial penalties and expenses incurred for litigation and legal disputes.

f) In the procurement of goods and services through public contracts:

1. The discounts made.

2. Payments made by the contractor to the Administration in respect of the rate of work address, quality control or any other concepts involving revenue or discounts resulting from the performance of the contract.

g) Those incurred in relation to areas excluded from ERDF assistance under Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 1301/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on the European Development Fund Regional and specific provisions concerning the objective of investment in growth and employment and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006 (hereinafter the EU Regulation No 1301/2013).

h) Those that, for a particular operation or category of operations:

i. They are declared ineligible by the managing authority or the intermediary body responsible for their selection, taking into account the criteria laid down by the monitoring committee.

ii. They shall be executed outside the period for the eligibility of expenditure to be expressly set out in the document setting out the conditions of the aid, or in its amendments.

3. Eligible expenses based on location

1. Expenditure incurred in operations supported by the ERDF which are located in the area of the corresponding programme shall be eligible. In case the same program covers the territory of different types of regions, each type of region will be considered an area of the different program.

2. The location of an operation depends on how it is defined. For the purposes of determining the location of an operation in a given program area, the following rules apply:

(a) Operations defined as investment in infrastructure, real estate, equipment or other items shall be understood as being in the place where the investment is physically located. In the case of operations consisting of investments for which it is not possible to determine the physical location, the criteria set out in paragraph (c) shall apply.

(b) Operations consisting in the development of a particular activity or the provision of an identifiable service shall be understood to be located in the place where the activity is carried out or the service is provided. The activities carried out by the staff of the beneficiary in the performance of his/her duties shall be understood as being developed in the territory where the centre to which the said staff is assigned is located without prejudice to the part of the Material actions required to perform the operation are performed outside the operation. Services which are generally provided to all or part of the citizens of one or more territories shall be understood as pro rata in the different areas concerned.

(c) Operations defined as the support, promotion or promotion of a beneficiary or of all or part of its activity shall be considered as located at the beneficiary's headquarters. The location of the beneficiary shall be the centre where it carries out its business or functions. Where the beneficiary has several sites or develops its activity in different centres, the operation shall be located in the place where the centre is in which the part of the activity being promoted or promoted is developed. If the operation consists of the support or promotion to the beneficiary or to the whole of its activity without distinction, it shall be understood as pro rata among the various centres concerned. If, in the light of the nature of the operation, it is not possible to identify the centres concerned, the operation shall be understood as being located at the beneficiary's registered office.

3. Expenditure relating to an operation which is executed outside the programme area in accordance with Article 70 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 shall be eligible. For these purposes, the document setting out the conditions of the aid shall be expressly provided, where appropriate:

(a) The justification that the operation benefits the area of the programme and the estimation of the benefits to be concentrated on it, in percentage terms on the total expected.

(b) The authorisation of the managing authority or the body in which it has delegated functions.

c) Reference to the consent of the monitoring committee to the operation or type of operation in question.

4. In the case of operations included in multi-regional programmes whose benefits are likely to affect different regions or areas of the programme, the expenditure may be eligible for pro rata.

In the case of allocations to support technical assistance operations, when the expenditure related to the operations is executed within the framework of a priority axis combining different categories of region, this may be allocated among them pro rata as a percentage of the total allocation to the Member State.

5. In the case of operations related to technical assistance or promotional activities, expenditure may be incurred outside the Union, provided that the conditions of Article 70 (2) (a) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 are met and the obligations relating to the management, control and audit of the operation.

6. These provisions apply without prejudice to the exceptions allowed for financial instruments as well as to operations under the European territorial cooperation objective.

TITLE II

Rules applicable to grants and reimbursable assistance

4. Forms of grants and repayable assistance

1. Grants and reimbursable assistance may, subject to the limitations laid down in this Standard and any other national or Community provisions resulting from the application, take any of the forms referred to in this Regulation. Article 67 (1) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/1303.

2. The options referred to in the previous paragraph may be combined only if each of them comprises different categories of eligible costs, used for different projects which are part of an operation or are used for phases successive of an operation.

5. Indirect costs

1. Indirect costs shall be eligible provided that the following requirements are met:

(a) It is expressly stated that they are eligible, as well as the method for their calculation, in the document setting out the conditions of the aid, in accordance with the criteria approved in the monitoring committee.

b) Which are based on actual costs attributable to the execution of the transaction in question in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and standards, or in costs calculated in accordance with any of the methods simplified estimation referred to in standard 12 of this order.

2. All costs which, even if they cannot be directly linked to the subsidised operation, are necessary for their implementation shall be considered as indirect costs.

6. Staff costs and service costs provided by external personnel

1. Staff costs shall be eligible in so far as they are actually incurred and are justified by the corresponding expenditure and payment supporting documents. It shall also be those which are eligible under a simplified cost system in accordance with rules 12 and 14 of this order. Only those personnel costs related to activities that the entity would not carry out shall be eligible if it does not perform the operation in question.

2. Eligible staff costs are the gross employment costs of the staff of the beneficiary. These expenses include:

(a) wages and salaries fixed in a contract of employment, in a decision of appointment ("labour agreement") or in law, which are related to the responsibilities specified in the job description corresponding;

b) and other expenses incurred directly by the employer as social contributions, contributions to pension schemes, as well as other benefits in favour of workers who are compulsory under law or convention or common to the uses of the sector and as long as they are not recoverable.

The costs of travel, allowances or allowances are not in the nature of staff costs, without prejudice to their eligibility.

3. Costs arising from service contracts provided by external staff shall be eligible, provided that such costs can be clearly identified.

7. Land and Real Estate

1. The acquisition of land and immovable property where there is a direct relationship between the purchase and the objectives of the operation shall be eligible, provided that the limits laid down in this standard are not exceeded.

2. The acquisition of unbuilt land and land built for an amount not exceeding 10% of the total eligible expenditure of the operation in question shall be eligible.

3. Notwithstanding the above, in the case of abandoned areas and those with an industrial past that comprise buildings, this limit will increase to 15%. The possibility of applying this option should be expressly set out in the criteria for the selection of operations approved by the monitoring committee, which should include those to justify abandonment or the past. industrial area in the area concerned. The percentage that is finally considered eligible must be included in the document setting out the conditions for the aid.

4. In duly justified cases, the managing authority may authorise that percentage to be increased for operations relating to the conservation of the environment, and the justification and the percentage in the the document setting out the conditions for the aid.

5. The above percentages shall not apply in those cases where the operation consists, having regard to its object and purpose, in the acquisition of existing buildings to be rehabilitated or put into use for a new purpose, (a) how the land on which they settle does not constitute the principal element of the acquisition. The building shall not be considered as the principal element of an acquisition, whatever the object or purpose of the operation, when the market value of the land exceeds the market value of the building at the time of the acquisition. purchase, except in the case of operations intended to purchase buildings, including second hand dwellings, intended to rehouse persons in a situation of social vulnerability for which the managing authority so authorizes. The authorisation of the managing authority shall set the minimum time limit for affectation of the building to that purpose, which shall not be less than 15 years.

6. The acquisition of immovable property must be used for the purposes and for the period expressly provided for in the document setting out the conditions of the aid and in any event during the period provided for in Article 71 of the Treaty. Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2013

down detailed rules for State aid

7. The eligible amount may not exceed the market value of land and property, which shall be credited by a duly accredited independent assessor's certificate and registered in the relevant official register or a duly authorised public body. This certificate shall not be required in the case of acquisitions by means of compulsory expropriation, provided that the procedure laid down in its specific rules for fixing the price is followed.

8. The acquisition of land or immovable property belonging to or belonging to the body responsible for the implementation or to another body or entity, directly or indirectly linked, shall not be eligible for eligibility. or related to it.

8. Depreciation costs

The depreciation cost of depreciable assets that are affected to the development of the operation shall be eligible provided the following conditions are met:

a) That the purchase cost of the asset is duly justified by documents of evidentiary value equivalent to that of invoices.

(b) That the depreciated assets have not been acquired with the aid of public subsidies or the acquisition has been the subject of co-financing by the funds.

c) That the amortization be calculated in accordance with the national public and private accounting rules.

d) That the depreciation cost relates exclusively to the eligibility period of the operation.

9. Second-hand equipment assets

The acquisition costs of second-hand equipment will be eligible as long as they meet the following requirements:

(a) A declaration by the seller on the origin of the goods and on the fact that they have not been the subject of any national or Community grant; and

(b) The price is not higher than the reference market value or the cost of similar new goods, by crediting these extremes by means of independent appraiser certification.

10. Contributions in kind

1. Eligible contributions in kind made by third parties other than the beneficiary in the form of land or immovable property which are part of the investment may not have been the subject of any cash payment documented with invoices or documents of equivalent probative value provided that the programme so provides and all of the following criteria are met:

(a) that public support paid to the operation involving in-kind contributions does not exceed total eligible expenditure, excluding in-kind contributions, at the end of the operation.

(b) The value attributed to contributions in kind does not exceed the costs generally accepted in the relevant market.

c) That the value and execution of the contribution can be independently evaluated and verified.

(d) As provided for in the document setting out the conditions of the aid, where the need to respond to the admission of the contributions in kind should be justified.

(e) a cash payment may be made for the purposes of a lease whose annual nominal amount does not exceed a single unit of the currency of the Member State.

2. If the in-kind contribution consists of the transfer of ownership of the land or property, the registration document justifying the change of ownership shall be provided.

3. The value of land or immovable property constituting the contribution in kind subject to co-financing shall be certified by a qualified independent expert or a duly authorised official body and shall take account of the conditions of the contribution made.

4. For the purposes of determining the value of the actual rights of enjoyment and the property in which the contribution consists, the criteria of Article 10 of the recast of the Law on the Tax on Heritage Transmissions shall be followed. Legal Acts approved by Royal Legislative Decree 1/1993 of 24 September. If the contribution consists of a transfer of the use of the good without consideration but is not a real right, the value of the same shall be the one resulting from the application of the Value Added Tax rules to determine the basis of the taxable amount of the transaction. If the beneficiary or the transaction is not subject to VAT, the valuation shall be the same as that which would be made in the case of a usufruct. The resulting value may not be higher than the generally accepted value in the relevant market. Contributions in kind of land and immovable property shall, where appropriate, comply with the limits laid down in standard 7 of this order.

11. Expenditure on public administrations and bodies relating to the preparation or execution of operations

1. In addition to the technical assistance for the operational programme in accordance with Article 59 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, the following expenditure shall be eligible for expenditure by public authorities during the preparation or implementation of an operation:

(a) the costs of professional services provided by a public authority other than the beneficiary during the preparation or execution of an operation;

(b) the costs of services relating to the preparation and execution of an operation provided by a public authority where the latter is the beneficiary and is executing an own-account transaction without recourse to external service providers.

2. The public authority concerned shall either invoice the beneficiary for the costs referred to in point (a) of paragraph 1 or certify those costs on the basis of documents of equivalent value which permit the identification of the actual costs paid by the authority in respect of the operation.

3. The costs referred to in point (b) of paragraph 1 shall be eligible where they are additional costs related to actual expenditure and directly paid out of the co-financed operation.

4. For the purposes set out in this Standard, the public authority or body shall be deemed to be an entity which carries out "public expenditure" as defined in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 1303/2013.

12. Simplified cost options. General rule

1. Without prejudice to the provision of indirect and personnel costs, the managing authority, in accordance with the criteria approved by the monitoring committee, may authorise one or more categories of operations, which are determined costs to be justified by means of the simplified cost arrangements referred to in points (b) (c) and (d) of Article 67 (1) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 are eligible. The authorization must include:

a) The applicable simplified form or mode of costs.

b) Cost categories to be justified through such mode, if any.

c) The method to be applied to determine the costs of the operation.

d) The justification and audit trail requirements to be met by the beneficiaries.

e) Conditions for the payment of the grant.

f) A verification plan on the correct application of the cost estimation method and the correct quantification of costs.

The information referred to in points (a) to (e) of this paragraph shall be expressly stated in the document setting out the conditions of support for each operation.

2. The amounts referred to in the preceding subparagraph shall be established in one of the ways referred to in Article 67 (5) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013

3. If an operation or a project forming part of an operation is carried out exclusively by means of a public contract, whether or not above the thresholds laid down in the Community procurement directives, costs cannot be reimbursed by the simplified cost options. The price paid to the contractor which has been set in accordance with the rules governing the procurement procedure is a real cost even if its determination is made on the basis of previously defined unit costs or overall sums.

4. In the case of recruitment in a project implemented by the beneficiary itself, which means that it fully controls its management and implementation, the simplified cost options may be applicable, even if some are subcontracted. of the cost categories of the project, provided that such a possibility is expressly provided for in the document setting out the conditions of support for each operation.

13. Fixed-type financing of indirect costs

1. The indirect costs eligible under Article 5 of this order may be calculated at a fixed rate of up to 15% of the direct costs of eligible personnel without being obliged to carry out any calculation. to determine the type and without requiring the authorization of the managing authority. For the purposes of determining the basis for which this fixed percentage shall apply, account may be taken of the costs arising from service contracts provided by external staff or provided that such costs can be identified. clearly.

2. Eligible indirect costs may also be calculated, subject to the authorisation of the managing authority, to a fixed rate meeting the requirements laid down in Article 68 (1) (a) and (c) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013.

14. Simplified cost options applicable to staff costs

1. The costs of eligible personnel for an operation may be determined by the application of a tariff on the number of hours actually spent on the operation of that operation, without the need for authorisation by the authority. management. The applicable hourly rate shall be calculated by dividing the most recent gross annual employment costs, corresponding to the previous immediate reference period of 12 consecutive months, by 1,720 hours. The number of hours will be considered the standard annual working time and can be used without any calculations required.

2. For the determination of the gross annual employment costs in the 12-month period referred to in the preceding paragraph, only those costs related to the person or persons working directly in the operation and justified shall be included. the dedication of part of their activity to the same, either on the basis of their actual salary, or on the average of the labour costs of the employees surveyed in the same category or professional level. Indirect employment costs, understood as those related to personnel carrying out activities of a general nature, shall not be taken into account.

3. The document setting out the conditions of the aid shall, in addition to the elements referred to in Rule 12, collect the resulting hourly rate for each worker or category of worker and, where appropriate, the frequency with which the aid is to be paid. This should be reviewed. The method and calculations used for the determination of the gross annual employment costs to determine the tariff shall be available to the managing authority or intermediate body and to be auditable.

TITLE III

Rules applicable to financial instruments

15. Contributions made to financial instruments and eligible expenditure at closing

1. The amount of the contribution of the programme paid to the financial instruments created at Union level, as well as the instruments managed directly or indirectly by the Commission, with the requirements and the limitations, is eligible. laid down in Community legislation and in the provisions and agreements governing those instruments. In the case of financial instruments related to the joint unlimited guarantee and securitised financial instruments in favour of SMEs implemented by the EIB, as referred to in Article 39 of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, the State Member States may use the ERDF to make a financial contribution by implementing the rules on eligible expenditure laid down in this order only if the financing agreement is referred to it.

2. It is also eligible, subject to the requirements and within the limits laid down in Regulation (EU) 1303/2013 and its implementing rules, to the amount of the contribution of the programme paid to the financial instruments created at the level national, regional, transnational or cross-border, managed by the managing authority or under its responsibility in which:

a. Invest in the capital of existing or newly created legal entities dedicated to the implementation of financial instruments consistent with the objectives of the Fund, and which will take on implementation tasks.

b. Implementing tasks for the EIB are entrusted to international financial institutions from which a Member State is a shareholder, or financial institutions established in a Member State with an end of public interest and under the control of a Member State. public authority; or a body governed by public or private law.

3. In the case of financial instruments consisting solely of loans or guarantees in which the managing authority or an intermediary body directly takes over as the beneficiary performing tasks, any request for interim payment or the balance final reference shall relate to payments made by the managing authority or the intermediary body for investments in the final recipients as referred to in Article 42 (1) (a) and (b) of Regulation 1303/2013.

4. The eligibility of the contributions referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 shall be conditional on the authorisation of the financial instrument being set up by the managing authority through, in the case of instruments constituted by intermediate bodies, from the mandatory addendum to the allocation of functions agreement.

5. However, the eligible expenditure of the financial instrument at the end of the operational programme shall be the total amount of the programme's contributions actually paid or, in the case of guarantees, committed by the instrument (a) the amounts referred to in Article 42 (1) (a) to (d) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, as well as the amounts referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 of that Regulation, within the eligibility period, Article for instruments based on social capital and micro-credit, always within the limits and in compliance with the requirements laid down in the Regulation as well as in its implementing rules, in particular Delegated Regulation (EU) No 480/2014.

16. Particular rules applicable to investments made by final recipients of financial instruments

1. Investments to be supported by financial instruments shall not have been materially concluded nor shall have been fully implemented at the date of the investment decision.

2. For the purposes of determining the eligibility of expenditure under a financial instrument, the treatment of VAT at the level of investments made by the final recipients shall not be taken into account. However, where financial instruments are combined with grants, the grant shall be applied to the grant provided for in standard 2 (c) of this order.

3. Contributions in kind shall not constitute eligible expenditure in relation to financial instruments, except contributions in the form of land or real estate related to investments intended to promote urban development or urban regeneration, where the land or real estate is part of the investment. Such contributions from land or real estate shall be eligible if the conditions laid down in standard 10 of this order are met.

4. Provided that the conditions laid down in Article 37 (4) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 are met, both in respect of the eligibility of the undertaking to which the aid is addressed and the target to which the investments are directed, it shall be eligible expenditure including investments in both tangible and intangible assets as well as operating capital within the limits laid down by the applicable Union rules on State aid and with a view to promoting the Private sector provides finance to enterprises; investments may also include the the costs of the transfer of ownership rights of undertakings provided that such transfer takes place between independent investors.

5. For the purposes of this Article, operating capital is defined as the difference between the current assets and the current liabilities of a company under national accounting rules. The requirements to consider eligible operating capital as well as the criteria and procedures to justify its amount shall be expressly set out in the financing agreement for each category of operations.

TITLE IV

Specific rules applicable to operational programmes in the framework of European territorial cooperation

17. Regulatory Hierarchy

The rules contained in this order shall be of application to the rules of particular eligibility that may be approved for each of the operational programmes of the objective of European territorial cooperation approved in accordance with Council Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013.

18. Rules applicable to certain categories of expense

1. Grants of the amount not exceeding EUR 50 per donation, related to promotion, communication, advertising or information, shall be eligible.

2. The following costs shall be eligible under the conditions and with the limits laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) No 481/2014 and the rest of the applicable Community legislation:

a) personnel expenses;

b) office and administrative expenses;

c) travel and accommodation expenses;

d) expenses for external services and knowledge, and

e) team expenses.

19. Simplified cost options for staff costs

1. In addition to the option referred to in Standard 14 of this order, the personnel costs of an operation may be calculated as a lump sum of up to 20% of the direct costs other than the costs of the staff of the operation. operation, provided that such a possibility is provided for in the call for aid, and that it establishes the method for determining the type finally applicable according to the following options:

a) a fair, equitable and verifiable method;

(b) a method applied to a similar category of operation or beneficiary in grant schemes financed entirely by the Member State;

(c) an existing method, with its corresponding rates, applicable in Union policies to a similar category of operation and beneficiary.

2. Such circumstances shall be expressly stated in the document setting out the conditions of the aid for each operation.