First, what POCIDIF actually funds
Many companies search for "POCIDIF" when they mean any EU grant for a website, an ERP or a CRM. The programme is narrower than that. Here is the situation as checked on 23 October 2026 in the official sources:
| Programme | Who can apply | What it funds |
|---|---|---|
| POCIDIF, Action 2.1 | IT SMEs and IT start-ups with one of the authorised CAEN codes (2611, 2612, 2630, 5821, 5829, 6210, 6220, 6290, 6310) and a positive operating profit in the last closed year | Developing a new innovative product, service or application. Grants of €200,000 to €1,500,000 for a software result. Call closes 30 October 2026, 17:00 |
| POCIDIF, Action 2.4 (EDIH) | The European Digital Innovation Hubs | Digitalization services the hubs deliver to SMEs. The money goes to the hubs, not to your purchases |
| Regional Programmes 2021-2027 | SMEs in each region, outside IT too | General SME digitalization. According to announcements, the Bucharest-Ilfov call 1.7 offers €25,000 to €200,000 with at least 10% own contribution; the Centru draft guide set €15,000 to €200,000 |
| PNRR, SME digitalization | Closed to new projects | Nothing new; see digitalization with or without PNRR |
So if your company sells, distributes or manufactures and wants a website, an ordering portal or an ERP integration, the call to watch is the one from your regional development agency. Every guide has its own list of eligible expenses and its own calendar. Read the guide of your call before planning anything.
Why funded projects end up with websites nobody uses
The list of eligible expenses becomes the shopping list. A website, a few licences, laptops, a CRM, each because it fits the budget. Nobody asks which process gets faster or who will use the new tool on Monday. Then the obligations start: POCIDIF 2.1, for example, requires keeping the investment for three years and paying its maintenance from your own money. A system nobody uses becomes a cost you are bound to keep.
Start from one or two processes
- Name the process: "orders arrive by email and phone and are re-typed into the ERP".
- Measure the baseline: orders per week, minutes per order, errors per month, who does the work.
- Write what must be true after the project: customers order on their own, the order lands in the ERP without re-typing.
- Only then map each component to an eligible expense category.
We worked in this order for Eventer.NET, where speaker details were gathered by email and spreadsheets. The process was redesigned around a self-service portal and one back-office we built. See the Eventer.NET case.
Component by component: include or leave out
| Component | Worth including when | Not worth it when |
|---|---|---|
| Presentation website | It is where a process starts: quote requests that reach a named person, product data customers search | It is a brochure you want refreshed and nobody owns its content |
| E-commerce or B2B ordering portal | Customers already order repeatedly and you can name the volume | You have a few large accounts who prefer to call |
| CRM | Several people sell to the same customers and lose track of offers | One person sells and a spreadsheet works |
| ERP integration | The same data is typed twice, in the ERP and somewhere else | The ERP itself is being replaced in the same year |
| Custom software | The process is specific to you and no product covers it without workarounds | A standard product covers 90% of it |
| Cloud and SaaS | Your guide accepts it in the form you buy it (in POCIDIF 2.1 only if booked as an intangible asset) | It is a monthly subscription the guide does not accept |
| Training | Always, for the people who will run the process | Never leave it out |
| Security audit | Mandatory in POCIDIF 2.1; useful anywhere personal data moves | Treated as paperwork at the very end |
| Hardware | A device is part of the process: scanners in a warehouse, tablets for field agents | It replaces office laptops that still work |
POCIDIF 2.1 rules that change the budget
- Operation and maintenance after implementation are not eligible. Budget the running cost from your own funds.
- Sustainability lasts three years: keep the investment working and maintained at your cost.
- Consultancy and internal project management together are capped at 10% of the grant.
- A technical audit covering security and GDPR is mandatory, by a certified auditor. The software needs documented requirements, architecture, tests and security.
- SaaS counts only if it can be booked as an intangible asset.
- At submission you need at least two price quotes per eligible expense, with minimum technical specifications. Quotes that look formal are rejected.
- Outsourcing all technical work is not allowed, but custom software development, testing and validation can be bought from third parties.
These are POCIDIF 2.1 rules. Regional guides have their own lists, often similar, never identical. Check the guide of your call.
Illustrative example: a distributor's orders
Illustrative example, not a client. A distributor receives orders by email and phone; two people re-type them into the ERP. The project for a regional call starts from that one process. Shares are of the digital part of the budget:
| Component | Share of the digital budget | Why |
|---|---|---|
| B2B ordering portal for existing customers | 45% | Removes the email and phone step for repeat orders |
| Integration with the existing ERP | 30% | Orders go in, stock and prices come back, no re-typing |
| Data migration, configuration and testing | 15% | Customer and product data cleaned once, before launch |
| Training and documentation | 10% | The two people who re-typed orders now run the portal |
Cut, and why: a new presentation website (the current one gets a link to the portal), a full CRM (a later stage, once order data exists) and AI reading of email orders (worth checking after a year, when the remaining email volume is known).
Where we fit, and where we do not
We do not write funding applications. We are the supplier that scopes and builds the digital part, working alongside your funding consultant: we start from the process, we quote each component with its specifications, and we keep the running costs visible. We work in four stages, Diagnose, Design, Build and Scale, described on our approach. For IT SMEs applying to POCIDIF 2.1, custom development and testing is the part a third party may deliver. More on digital transformation.
Summary
- POCIDIF 2.1 funds IT SMEs building an innovative product; general SME digitalization goes through the Regional Programmes.
- Start from one or two processes, with a measured baseline, and only then match components to eligible expenses.
- Budget maintenance and operation from your own funds: in POCIDIF 2.1 they are not eligible after implementation.
- Each guide has its own rules. Check the guide of your call.
