Germany will received 20% less European funds in the new Multiannual Financial Framework. According to preliminary estimates, the the country will receive 17.6 billion EUR per year in the new programming period.

One of the areas where a reduction is expected is the co-financing of projects.

At present, European funds can co-finance between 50% and 85% of the value of the projects. However, the latest changes shrink that possibility for wealthy regions, so some projects in Germany will be able to get up to 15% funding from European funds.

“If this subsidy becomes significantly lower, it will be unattractive, especially for small municipal projects, to apply for EU funds”, criticises German MEP Kerstin Westphal (S&D), who sits on the EU’s Regional Committee.

The document states that the abbreviation will be “painful” but could have been heavier, and now all German provinces will have access to European funds, even the richest. Moreover, the transition regions, mainly in the eastern parts of the country, will be expanding.

Moreover: the middle category of the “transitional regions” – which in Germany comprises 31 out of 38 regions – is set to become broader. This leaves the eastern German states with the exception of Leipzig inside this category, and theoretically, they will benefit from higher subsidy rates.

Outside this definition, only the Leipzig region will remain. So these provinces will be entitled to higher subsidies.