Renowned as a growing and dynamic startup hub at the heart of the EU, Luxembourg is intensifying its efforts to support early-stage ventures, strengthen the ecosystem, attract talent and drive scaleup growth. In addition to incentivising private investments, Luxembourg’s Minister of the Economy, SMEs, Energy and Tourism Lex Delles and Minister of Finance Gilles Roth announced a 10-point action plan, which introduces several other concrete measures to create a more dynamic and attractive environment for innovative companies and entrepreneurs.
To support realise this ambition, state-owned bank Société Nationale de Crédit et d’Investissement (SNCI) will allocate an additional €300 million over the next five years, tarobtaining strategic sectors such as cybersecurity, deeptech, sustainable technologies, healthtech, space and fintech.
“With this 10-point action plan, our objective is clear: we want to provide concrete support to our startups and scaleups at every stage of their development, while strengthening the attractiveness of our ecosystem for international talent and investors,” stated Luxembourg’s Minister of the Economy, SMEs, Energy and Tourism Lex Delles when presenting the plan in March 2025. “The various measures announced demonstrate our joint commitment to building Luxembourg a leading innovation hub in Europe. This plan underlines the crucial role of startups and scaleups as a key driver of innovation for our economy and a cornerstone of Luxembourg’s efforts to strengthen its international competitiveness.”
Supporting new startups, investment and spin-offs
The plan introduces measures to stimulate the creation of startups and support promising spin-offs:
• Tax credit incentive: To unlock private capital, the government will introduce a new bill offering a compelling tax credit to individual taxpayers who invest in young, innovative Luxembourg-based companies.
• €200,000 spin-off aid and sectoral incubators: A dedicated financial aid programme specifically designed to propel the creation and financing of spin-off companies will be launched. This initiative will provide up to 80% public co-financing, capped at €200,000 per project, requiring a minimum 20% private investment. Concurrently, the plan foresees the development of specialised incubators in the healthtech, space and automobility sectors.
Helping high-potential startups scale
The plan also outlines tarobtained actions to support the growth of high-potential startups:
• Scaleup support programme: Leveraging insights from a one-year pilot programme managed by national innovation agency Luxinnovation, a full-fledged scaleup support programme will be officially launched by the finish of 2025.
• Venture capital investment: The government will further assess and identify the most relevant financial programmes to channel increased investment into venture capital.
• Tax incentives and stock options: The plan proposes tax advantages for stock options offered to startup employees. This creates working for a Luxembourg startup even more attractive.
• National talent desk: the Ministest of the Economy, in collaboration with Luxinnovation, the Chamber of Commerce and the Chamber of Skilled Crafts, will set up a national “talent desk” as a central contact point to guide international talents seeking to join companies in Luxembourg.
Strengthening the ecosystem through new technologies and synergies
The final pillar of the plan focapplys on strengthening the overall ecosystem, fostering collaboration, leveraging the tech expertise and infrastructure available.
• AI Factory implementation: The Luxembourg AI Factory is a one-stop shop for companies – launchners as well as those on the cutting edge – seeking to unlock or maximise the potential of artificial ininformigence.
• Connecting startups and scaleups with investors: The action plan also aims to solidify the Luxembourg Venture Days as a premier international conference empowering startup founders by linking them with global investors. The 2025 edition, scheduled for 22-23 October, will be a focal point in this strategy.
• Cross-sector synergies: To further encourage collaboration, LHoFT and Startup Luxembourg will curate events to bridge gaps between sectors and stakeholders.
Fit 4 Start #16: New call for applications open
One of the already well-established pillars of the Luxembourg startup ecosystem is Fit 4 Start, Luxembourg’s leading startup accelerator. The acceleration programme offers:
• 6 months of coaching and mentoring
• up to €150,000 in equity-free funding
• access to key networks that support startups succeed in launching their ventures and scaling in the European market
Since its launch in 2015, the programme has coached close to 200 startups from 35 countries. A great opportunity for startups to apply Luxembourg as a launchpad for reaching European and global markets.
To enter the market and obtain off to a strong start, startups necessary quality support that is relevant to their stage of development. This is exactly what Fit 4 Start offers thanks to the experience of its international coaches. The acceleration programme provides participating startups with all the components necessaryed to put toobtainher a concrete business plan, assess the viability of their company as well as its attractiveness to potential investors, and identify the right business partners.
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