Author: SME Chamber

From 1 January
2015, telecommunications, broadcasting and electronic services will always be
taxed in the country where the customer belongs*

– whether customer is a
business or consumer

– whether supplier based in
the EU or outside

* For a business (taxable
person) = either the country where it is registered or the country where it has
fixed premises receiving the service.

* For a consumer (non-taxable
person) = the country where they are registered, have their permanent address
or usually live.

The practical guidelines
published by the European Commission in English in late 2013 can be accessed
from:
http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/vat/how_vat_works/telecom/index_en.htm.

Today the Commission adopted two reports which shed more light
on problems linked to fighting Value Added Tax (VAT) fraud within the EU, and
which identify possible remedies. The first report looks at VAT collection and
control procedures across the Member States, within the context of EU own
resources.

The euro area
seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 12.0% in December 2013, remaining
stable since October. It was 11.9% in December 2012. The EU unemployment rate
was 10.7% in December 2013, down from 10.8% in November. It was 10.8% in
December 2012. These figures were published on 31 January by Eurostat, the
statistical office of the European Union.

Eurostat estimates that 26.2 million
men and women in the EU, of whom 19 million were in the euro area, were
unemployed in December 2013. Compared with November 2013, the number of
unemployed persons decreased by 162,000 in the EU and by 129,000 in the euro
area. Compared with the previous year, December 2012, unemployment decreased by
173,000 in the EU28, but increased by 130,000 in the euro area. The lowest
unemployment rates were recorded in Austria (4.9%), Germany (5.1%) and
Luxembourg (6.2%), and the highest in Greece (27.8% in October 2013) and Spain
(25.8%). Compared with a year ago, the unemployment rate increased in fourteen
Member States, fell in thirteen and remained stable in Sweden.

Malta was recorded as the
5th Member State with the lowest unemployment rate at 6.7% as at December 2013.

Tourism has
been one of the strongholds of the European economy during the economic crisis,
and the positive trend will continue in 2014, with only 11% of Europeans expect
not to go away. According to the new Eurobarometer survey published, the sector
has been an engine of domestic demand-driven economic growth in 2013, with more
people choosing to spend holidays outside of their own country but within the
EU.

This scheme
supports micro enterprises  and the
self-employed (employing up to 30 persons as at 30th November 2012) that invest
in their business, innovate, expand, implement compliance directives and/or
develop their operations. Micro enterprises and self-employed will be supported
through a tax credit representing a percentage of the eligible expenditure and
wages of newly recruited employees and/or apprentices.

The MicroInvest 2013 covers costs 
incurred and paid for between 1st January 2013 and 31st December 2013
for:

Applications
for assistance will be received until the 28th March 2014. 

More info:
www.maltaenterprise.com/en/support/microinvest

GRTU President
Paul Abela and GRTU EU Desk Coordinator Abigail Psaila Mamo welcomed FZZ to
GRTU. The polish representatives from the group of trade unions FORUM said that
like Malta they have a social dialogue based on a tri-partite structure, very
similar to MCESD.

GRTU President Paul Abela has called on future MEPs to stay
close to businesses and safeguard their interest during their work at the
European Parliament. He also emphasized that Access to Finance is of utmost
importance because you can have very valid ideas but if there are no finances
nothing can be done.

He also said that even though we were very disappointed
that marginal dialogue existed with our previous MEPs we look at the future
with much
more hope and invited the candidates to stay in close contact with the GRTU.

This took place this morning at an event organized by the
European Parliament office in Malta where the Maltese Business Manifesto for
the European Parliament elections was presented. The European Parliament Office
did an excellent job in compiling the individual proposals presented by the
business organizations into one comprehensive manifesto.

The Head of the Office Dr Peter Agius said that this was an
exercise aimed at give businesses a voice in the next elections. He continued
saying that in any discussion at EU level on any policies stakeholders are
always involved. In most of these cases business is a main stakeholder.

Various candidates for the EP election were present as well
as one current MEP Dr Roberta Metsola.

GRTU and Europe
Direct, which is an EU funded office hosted within GRTU, have this week held an
information session on Research and Innovation for SMEs. It was a very
successful meeting because SMEs were given a lot of hands on information of how
research and innovation is relevant to them and what funds are available to
carry out actions.

European
Commission Head Mr Martin Bugelli and GRTU President Paul Abela opened the
session. Mr Bugelli that Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation
programme that was ever created. Not only there are a large amount of funds
specifically targeted for SMEs but this programme is different from FP7 because
it is simpler and more streamlined, making it easily accessible for SMEs. Mr
Paul Abela stated that we hold these kind of information sessions that are
tailor made for SMEs so that SMEs are given the right information in a manner
they can easily understand it and after the meeting have a clear idea of what
is available and from where to start.

COST – Networking in the EU made easy

COST
gives any business owner the opportunity to choose a discussion topic, called
‘Action', under a specific sector to become involved in. This involvement would
consist of meeting other stakeholders (another business owner, researcher,
university, etc…) around twice a year and remain in contact with them to
discuss and share ideas on this topic. There are no funds for research as such
but participants get reimbursed for expenses in conjunction with flights and
accommodation to COST meetings – it also leads to excellent contacts and can
also lead to preparation for future grant proposals as in Horizon2020. Minimal
administration is involved!

Horizon 2020

Horizon 2020 is
the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation implementing the
Innovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative aimed at securing Europe's
global competitiveness. Horizon 2020 will run from 2014 to 2020, with circa €79
billion budgeted for its 7 years duration. Horizon 2020 has a number of key novelties
that make it fit for purpose to promote growth and tackle societal challenges.

Horizon 2020 provides a unique opportunity to share knowledge,
experience and facilities across Europe. It also:

Helps you get
your first pick at licensing patents since all knowledge generated by you
during the project is yours!

Commercialisation voucher programme

The scheme
provides support with the aim of assisting SMEs in assessing the commercial and
market potential of their ideas. The intention is to determine the commercialisation
potential of the proposed innovative solutions before actually undertaking any
R&D. The inventor would already be informed about the possibility of
protecting the idea through intellectual property as well as gain awareness
about the market potential and the economic wealth it can generate for the good
of society at large.

One or more of
the following activities would be supported sequentially: IP Check, Market
Research, Product Development Costing, Economic Impact, Risk Profile, Initial
Patent Application, Business Plan and Investors Meetings.

Technology
Development Programme

The programme
focuses on technology transfer between academia and industry with specific
focus on priority sectors identified in the National R&I Strategy.

Project
proposals submitted through this Programme should typically have a duration of
between one and three years and are of a value between €50,000 and €200,000.

Applicants need
to have undertaken feasibility studies which show that the research proposal is
dealing with an innovative or step change improvement solution, as well as
having commercialisation potential for eventual launch into the market. In
order to facilitate matters, these feasibility studies and assessments could be
paid through the first 5 activities of the Commercialisation Voucher Programme.

Europe Enterprise Network

The Enterprise
Europe Network hosted at Malta Enterprise is the gateway to competitiveness and
innovation.   Maltese SMEs can get access
to all the information they need to develop business and find the right
business partners.

The Network
offers support and advice to businesses across Europe and helps them make the
most of the opportunities in the European Union. Our services are specifically
designed for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) but are also available to all
businesses, research centres and universities across Europe.

The Enterprise
Europe Network is made up of close to 600 partner organisations in 54
countries, promoting competitiveness and innovation at the local level in
Europe and beyond. Whether you need information on EU legislation, help with
technology transfer or finding a business partner, want to benefit from
innovation networks in your region or need information on funding
opportunities, this is the place to start.

EXPLORE is a series of six information sessions, each session
targeting a different thematic area, which will include different Managing
Authorities and National Contact Points delivering a presentation on the
different funds under the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020.

Participants will also have the opportunity to participate in a brokerage
session, whereby the representatives from Managing Authorities and National
Contact Points will be present in an adjacent room to answer queries on a
one-to-one basis. 

After the success of the first EXPLORE session,
Culture and the Arts, MEUSAC is holding another 
EXPLORE session promoting EU funding programmes related to the Education
and Training sector for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and businesses
active in the area, as well as local councils.

Should you be interested in taking part, kindly fill
in the form below and reply on by not later than Tuesday,
February 18, 2014. Further information on the main speakers and the agenda will
be available in the coming days.

 Date: Thursday, February 20, 2014 

Time: 17:00 hrs – 19:00 hrs

Venue: The
Waterfront Hotel, Gżira