THE ITALIAN STARTUP AGENDA POLICIES AND STRATEGIES FOR STARTUPS STEFANO FIRPO ITALIAN MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, HEAD OF THE MINISTER S TECHNICAL SECRETARIAT LAST UPDATE: 10 FEBRUARY 2015
#RESTARTITALIA ENTREPRENEURSHIP JOB CREATION MERITOCRACY INNOVATION SOCIAL MOBILITY GROWTH
#RESTARTITALIA BUILDING A NEW POLICY PUBLIC TASK FORCE (12 TOP EXPERTS) OPEN CONSULTATION WITH +2,000 KEY PLAYERS
LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
INNOVATIVE STARTUP DEFINITION LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
INNOVATIVE STARTUP ESTABLISHED FOR NO LONGER THAN 48 MONTHS RESIDE OR BE SUBJECT TO TAXATION IN ITALY TURNOVER LOWER THAN 5 MILLION (6.4 MILLION $) IT DOES NOT DISTRIBUTE PROFIT ITS CORE BUSINESS CONSISTS OF INNOVATIVE GOODS OR SERVICES OF SIGNIFICANT TECHNOLOGICAL VALUE IT DOES NOT ORIGINATE FROM A MERGER, DEMERGER OR DIVESTMENT PROCESS LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
INNOVATIVE STARTUP MEETS AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA: 1. R&D EXPENDITURE: 15% OF ITS COSTS CONCERN R&D ACTIVITIES 2. QUALIFIED TEAM: AT LEAST 1/3 OF THE TEAM IS MADE UP OF PEOPLE WHO EITHER HOLD A PHD OR ARE PHD CANDIDATES AT AN ITALIAN OR FOREIGN UNIVERSITY OR HAVE CONDUCTED RESEARCH FOR AT LEAST 3 YEARS OR AT LEAST 2/3 OF THE TEAM IS MADE UP OF PEOPLE HOLDING A MASTER S DEGREE 3. IP: IT IS THE OWNER OR THE LICENSEE OF A REGISTERED SOFTWARE OR PATENT LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ACT MAIN SUPPORT MEASURES LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ACT CUTS IN RED TAPE ONLINE REGISTRATION THROUGH SELF-CERTIFICATION NO FEES DUE TO THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR ANY DOCUMENT FLEXIBLE CORPORATE MANAGEMENT TOOLS LTD. = INC. ZERO TAX REGIME FOR COMPANIES SUFFERING FROM SYSTEMATIC LOSSES FAIL FAST MECHANISM FLEXIBILITY IN CAPITAL REPLENISHMENT AFTER LOSSES LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ACT TAILOR-MADE LABOUR LAW FIXED-TERM LABOUR CONTRACTS APPLICABLE FOR THE WHOLE STARTUP S LIFE CYCLE VARIABLE PAY DEPENDING ON THE STARTUP S PERFORMANCE WORKERS & CONSULTANTS PAID WITH STOCK OPTIONS AND WORK FOR EQUITY (TAXABLE AS CAPITAL GAIN!) 35% TAX CREDIT ON ALL COSTS FOR HIRING HIGHLY QUALIFIED PERSONNEL LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ACT INCENTIVES FOR FUNDING & INVESTMENTS ROBUST TAX RELIEF (FROM 19 TO 27%) ON INVESTMENTS INTO STARTUP S EQUITY BY ANGEL INVESTORS, VCS AND CORPORATES POSSIBILITY OF RAISING MONEY THROUGH EQUITY CROWDFUNDING ONLINE PORTALS (FIRST TAILOR-MADE LAW ON AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL ) FREE, FAST-TRACK PUBLIC GUARANTEE ON BANK LOANS, COVERING 80% OF THE LENT SUM FOR MORE INFO, HERE IS A SUMMARY OF ALL SUPPORT MEASURES LAW 221/2012 ITALY S STARTUP ACT
Italia Startup Visa THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT POLICY TO ATTRACT INNOVATIVE ENTREPRENEURS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD
Italia Startup Visa VISA FOR EXTRA-EU CITIZENS WILLING TO SET UP AN INNOVATIVE STARTUP IN ITALY CENTRALIZED, ONLINE PROCEDURE (ISV TECHNICAL COMMITTEE) THE COMMITTEE EVALUATES THE APPLICATION (CV + BUSINESS MODEL) WITHIN 30 DAYS FINANCIAL RESOURCES FOR AT LEAST 50,000 ARE REQUIRED PROCESS ENTIRELY MANAGED ONLINE, THROUGH A DEDICATED WEBSITE: HTTP://ITALIASTARTUPVISA.MISE.GOV.IT/ #ItaliaStartupVisa
NURTURING HIGH-TECH STARTUPS 220 MILLION MADE AVAILABLE FOR ZERO INTEREST RATE STARTUP LOANS LENDING COVERS UP TO 80% OF INVESTMENT PROGRAMS AMOUNTING UP TO 1,5 MILLION TARGET: INNOVATIVE STARTUPS AND INDIVIDUALS WILLING TO SET UP ONE WITHIN 60 DAYS, INCLUDING EXTRA-EU CITIZENS HOLDING A STARTUP VISA FAST-TRACK FOR PROGRAMS FINANCED FOR AT LEAST 30% WITH CAPITAL PROVIDED BY QUALIFIED INVESTORS KICK-OFF DATE: 16 TH OF FEBRUARY 2015 (HTTP://WWW.SMARTSTART.INVITALIA.IT/SITE/SMART/HOME.HTML) #SmartStart2
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM MORE THAN 3,200 HIGH-TECH REGISTERED STARTUPS: 57% LOCATED IN NORTHERN, 21% IN CENTRAL AND 22% IN SOUTHERN ITALY SECTORS: 77% OPERATE IN SERVICES (ICT, SOFTWARE, APP, MEDIA ETC.), 18% IN INDUSTRY & CRAFTSMANSHIP, 4% IN TRADE 700 MILLION EURO TURNOVER WITH OVER 13,000 PARTNERS AND EMPLOYEES ONLINE DATABASE: HTTP://STARTUP.REGISTROIMPRESE.IT/
ITALY S TOP STARTUP INCUBATORS 29 CERTIFIED INCUBATORS (20 IN NORTHERN ITALY) 30 EMPLOYEES AND 3 MILLION EURO TURNOVER PER COMPANY
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM RESULTS SO FAR 3,212 NEW REGISTERED STARTUPS (+40 PER WEEK) 351 BANK LOANS TO 279 INNOVATIVE STARTUPS (TOTAL AMOUNT: 128 MILLION; AVERAGE SIZE: 366.000 ) THANKS TO PUBLIC GUARANTEE FUND 29 CERTIFIED INCUBATORS 20 STARTUP VISA APPLICATIONS UNDER EVALUATION 14 EQUITY CROWDFUNDING PORTALS
THE ITALIAN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM STRENGTHS MADE IN ITALY: A KEY DRIVER FOR THE SCALING-UP OF STARTUPS HIGH-QUALITY AND COMPETITIVE SKILLS GRASSROOTS MANUFACTURING CULTURE (FAST AND CHEAP PROTOTYPING) ARTISTIC AND CULTURAL HERITAGE, AN UNTAPPED ASSET ITALY IS A GATEWAY TO STRATEGIC MARKETS ADVANCED CONSUMPTION HABITS, WITH OPPORTUNITIES FOR EXPANSION FOR INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
RECENT INTERNATIONAL EVENT ITALIARESTARTSUP - 9-10 DECEMBER 2014, MILAN THE ITALIAN MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND THE ITALIAN TRADE AGENCY (HTTP://WWW.INNOVATIONITALY.IT/EN/) HAVE TEAMED UP TO CREATE THE FIRST DEDICATED EVENT FOR CO-FINANCING OPPURTINITIES ITALIAN AND +50 INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS ON A POOL OF 60 HIGHLY SELECTED HI-TECH, BIOTECH & CLEANTECH STARTUPS
UPCOMING INTERNATIONAL EVENTS GEC 2015 16-19 MARCH 2015, MILAN THE GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP CONGRESS (HTTP://GEC.CO/) IS AN INTER-DISCIPLINARY GATHERING OF STARTUP CHAMPIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD WHERE ENTREPRENEURS, INVESTORS, RESEARCHERS, THOUGHT LEADERS AND POLICYMAKERS FROM +140 COUNTRIES WORK TOGETHER TO HELP BRING IDEAS TO LIFE, DRIVE ECONOMIC GROWTH AND EXPAND HUMAN WELFARE
UPCOMING INTERNATIONAL EVENTS EXPO MILANO 2015 1 MAY - 31 OCTOBER 2015 EXPO MILANO 2015 (HTTP://GEC.CO/) IS A NON- COMMERCIAL UNIVERSAL EXPOSITION WITH VERY UNIQUE AND INNOVATIVE FEATURES. IT IS AN INCREDIBLE SOCIAL AND ENTREPRENEURIAL PROCESS WHICH GATHERS A LARGE NUMBER OF IMPORTANT PLAYERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE THEMES OF FEEDING THE PLANET AND ENERGY FOR LIFE
EXTEND THE APPLICABILITY OF THE STARTUP ACT TO ALL ITALIAN INNOVATIVE SMES (DONE!) REFINANCING OF VC FUND OF FUNDS HELD BY THE ITALIAN INVESTMENT FUND (DONE!) FACILITATE NETWORKING BETWEEN TRADITIONAL COMPANIES AND STARTUPS VIA TAX CREDIT ON CONTRACTED R&D ACTIVITIES (DONE!) DEVELOP AND INTERNATIONALIZE VC AND CORPORATE VC FINANCING, ESPECIALLY FOR MATURE INVESTMENT ROUNDS (UNDER WAY)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION WEB: WWW.MISE.GOV.IT EMAIL: STARTUP@MISE.GOV.IT TWITTER: @MINSVILUPPO