Minimal Financial Assistance

Minimal Financial Assistance is a subsidy control exemption that allows small amounts of funding to be awarded to an enterprise within a three year period.

Public authorities should note that the information on this page is only applicable when a ‘subsidy’ is being provided to a service sector enterprise. If you are providing support to an enterprise which is within the scope of the Article 10 of the Windsor Framework please refer to the De minimis aid webpage.

Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) is a type of subsidy and is defined in Chapter 2 of Part 3 of the UK Subsidy Control Act 2022 (the Act).

The MFA provisions in the Act allow small amounts of funding, up to a financial threshold of £315,000, to be awarded to an enterprise within an applicable period of up to 3 financial years. This means that no enterprise can receive more than this amount in the applicable period.

The Act defines a financial year as a period of 12 months ending on 31 March. The applicable 3-year period is the elapsed part of the current financial year (i.e. from 1 April), and the previous two financial years immediately preceding the current financial year.

Granting Minimal Financial Assistance

Sections 36 and 37 of the Subsidy Control Act 2022 exempts low risk subsidies with minimal effect on competition and trade from the main subsidy control requirements.

Chapter 7 of the UK Government Statutory Guidance for the UK Subsidy Control Regime explains when Minimal Financial Assistance can be used, the relevant threshold and cumulation rules and reporting requirements. It also explains the procedures that need to be followed by a public authority when giving an MFA subsidy.

Reporting on Minimal Financial Assistance

Any award of MFA that exceeds £100,000 must be reported to UK Government and published on the UK’s transparency database, which is accessible by the public.

If you need to report a MFA subsidy to an enterprise please contact DfE Subsidy Control Advice Unit for advice and assistance on how to report to the UK government.

Please note: If your scheme is offering support to service sector enterprises, and enterprises which fall within the scope of the Windsor Framework, you should contact DfE SCAU for further advice on how this should be handled.

Further information

MFA / State aid Decision Tree (This decision tree covers the majority of outcomes but not all. For more information please contact: DfE Subsidy Control Advice unit)
State aid and subsidy control after EU Exit
De minimis aid

Contact

Please contact DfE Subsidy Control Advice unit if you require advice or assistance.

Minimal Financial Assistance