South-East Regional Programme ITI Danube Delta: up to €200,000 for micro-enterprises, from 21 December

The Managing Authority for the South-East Regional Programme 2021-2027 has launched the competitive call for proposals dedicated to micro-enterprises in the ITI Danube Delta area, with a total budget of €9,636,132. Eligible businesses can obtain between €20,000 and €200,000 in non-refundable funding, representing 90% of eligible costs, and funding applications are submitted in MySMIS2021 between 21 December 2026 and 29 January 2027.

In brief

• Programme: South-East Regional Programme (PR) 2021-2027, Priority 1, Action 1.6, Operation A.1 — call PRSE/1.6/A.1/ITI/1/2026
• Authority: South-East PR Managing Authority / South-East ADR (Regional Development Agency)
• Beneficiaries: micro-enterprises in urban and rural areas within the ITI Danube Delta area
• Total budget: €9,636,132, of which €8,190,712 from the ERDF
• Value per project / intensity: €20,000–200,000, 90% non-refundable funding (10% own co-financing)
• Submission period: 21 December 2026, 10:00 – 29 January 2027, 14:00, in MySMIS2021
• Status: call launched — the applicant's guide was published on 19 October 2026

Who can apply?

The call is aimed at micro-enterprises — both urban and rural — operating in the ITI Danube Delta area of the South-East Development Region. The ITI area comprises administrative-territorial units in Tulcea and Constanța counties, in line with the Integrated Strategy for the Sustainable Development of the Danube Delta; the exact list of eligible localities must be checked in the applicant's guide published on regiosudest.ro.

This call is separate from the general South-East Region call for micro-enterprises: the budget of nearly €9.64 million is reserved exclusively for businesses in the ITI territory, which means noticeably less competition than in the usual regional calls.

The project must target a single field of activity, corresponding to one CAEN Rev. 3 class, and the technical and financial evaluation requires a minimum score of 50 points to qualify for funding.

Which investments are funded?

The funding covers a broad package of investments to boost competitiveness:

• building, extending or modernising production or service-provision premises;
• purchasing equipment, machinery and fittings;
• energy efficiency investments;
• intangible assets — software, licences — up to 20% of the project;
• marketing and internationalisation activities;
• circular economy and sustainability measures;
• certifications and audit.

One particular feature of this call: the project must include at least one annual activity of a social, educational, environmental or volunteering nature. This is a mandatory condition, not an optional scoring criterion, so it must be planned from the project-writing stage.

How and by when do you apply?

Funding applications are submitted exclusively through the MySMIS2021 IT system. The call opens on 21 December 2026 at 10:00 and closes on 29 January 2027 at 14:00. It is a competitive call: projects are ranked by score rather than funded in order of submission, but submitting early leaves time for any corrections.

After implementation, the investment must be maintained for at least 3 years from the date of the final payment — the standard sustainability period for this type of call.

What this means for your business

Our recommendation: if you have a micro-enterprise in Tulcea or in a locality of Constanța county within the ITI area, this is one of the most generous calls available — a 90% intensity is rare for private-sector funding, where 50–75% is the norm. For a project with €222,000 of eligible costs, your own contribution comes down to around €22,000 for a €200,000 grant.

The two months until opening are exactly the time needed for preparation: check whether your registered office or work location is in an eligible UAT, choose the CAEN class on which you build the project (only one!), request quotes for equipment, and clarify the source of the 10% co-financing plus VAT and ineligible costs. Common pitfalls: overlooking the mandatory social component, ownership or use documents for the premises not clarified in time, and budgets built on vague estimates, which fail the technical evaluation. You can start with the eligibility check, and we are following the details of the call on the programme page.

Frequently asked questions

Which businesses count as micro-enterprises?

A micro-enterprise is a business with fewer than 10 employees and an annual turnover or total assets of no more than €2 million, calculated including partner and linked enterprises. The detailed eligibility conditions (age of the business, authorised activity) are set out in the applicant's guide published by the South-East ADR.

Can I apply if my business is in Tulcea county but outside the Delta itself?

The ITI Danube Delta area is defined by the list of administrative-territorial units in the ITI Strategy, which covers more than the geographical Delta — it includes localities in Tulcea and Constanța counties. Check your exact locality in the annexes to the applicant's guide before you start preparing the project.

How much of the investment must I cover from my own resources?

At least 10% of eligible costs, plus the project's ineligible costs in full. The 90% non-refundable funding comes from the ERDF and the state budget.

What happens if the project does not reach 50 points?

Projects that do not obtain the minimum score of 50 points in the technical and financial evaluation are rejected, even if the call budget has not been exhausted. This is why the quality of the business plan and the alignment of the investment with the guide's scoring criteria matter.

Official sources

• South-East ADR — launch announcement and applicant's guide for PRSE/1.6/A.1/ITI/1/2026
• EU Opportunities (MIPE) — announcement of the call launch

Information checked on 20 October 2026. Conditions may be changed by the managing authority — check the guide in force before you submit.