Reimbursement requestUnofficial translation
25January 2018

Reimbursement request; instructions and reimbursement request

Business Partnership Support can be paid in no more than two installments. In connection with reimbursement, a final report has to be presented (1) if the reimbursement request exceeds two thirds of the granted support, (2) when the second reimbursement request is submitted, or (3) at the latest when the support expires. The support must be used after the date of registration of theproject and the reimbursement request must be placed within 24 months from the date when the recipient was informed about the discretionary government transfer decision. In other respects, the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Hallintolaki 434/2003) are observed.

Before sending a reimbursement request the companymust submit the commitment to the discretionary government transfer decision (pdf-form available at Finnpartnership webpages) as instructed.

A reimbursement request comprises

1) a reimbursement request(pdf-form)

2) a specification of detailed incurred expenses (expense specification)

Please use the Finnpartnership Excel-form to reportdetailed incurred expenses. The excel should be also downloaded as an attachment to the reimbursement request. In the cost specification, the value added tax (VAT) of the expenses has to be 0%, which means that the expenses are recorded without the VAT. All expenses have to be incurred, paid and entered into the accounts. In addition, they have to be specified in accordance with the instructions given below. Acceptable maximum costs for accommodation (price per night) and for per diem allowances are calculated on the basis of the provisions of the valid State Travel Regulation.

The expenses have to be broken down by phase of project as follows:

Travel expenses:

  • name of passenger, purpose and mode of travel, destination, dates of travel and the price of travel
  • hotels: name of passenger, accommodation, number of nights and price per night.

Per diem allowances:

  • recipients of per diem allowances, number of days and amount per day.

Expenses arising from work by own employees and external experts:

  • name of person, accomplished work/task, per diem allowances, number of days.

The expenses arising from the use of external experts cannot be presented as one unspecified total expense item. Their travel expenses have to be specified in the same manner as the company’sown employees’ travel expenses and they may not be included in the work expenses.

The company’s own employees’ and external experts can be paid wages/fees that exceed the ceilings set for wages/fees. The expense specification has to present the incurred, paid wages/fees. However, the granted support is determined in accordance with the ceilings set for wages/fees as determined in the eligible expenses.

3) the auditor’s statementand audit checklist and

4) final report.

5) In case the project involves special requirements relating to social and environmental impact assessment (SEIA), a clarification of meeting these requirements should be presented in the reimbursement request according to the instructions given to companies when the application was approvedby the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.Reimbursement will not be put into effect if the recipient of Business Partnership Support does not present sufficient documentation to prove that the SEIA has been duly taken into account.

Extension cannot be granted for Business Partnership Support. If the recipient has failed to submit the reimbursement request by the due date mentioned in the discretionary government transfer decision and its appendices, the support expires and will not be paid. However, the recipient can submit a new application for Business Partnership Support if the project is delayed and the granted support expires. It is important to note that eligible expenses concerning the new application cannot accrue until after the new application has been registered.

Instructions concerning storage of receipts

Receipts should not be appended to the reimbursement request. The auditor is responsible for ensuring that the expenses specified in the reimbursement request have incurred to the recipient of the support and that they have been paid for. However, the recipient has to supply the receipts upon request to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland or to a special auditor designated by it. Therefore the recipient should collect copies of the receipts related to the Business Partnership Support and file them separately for the auditor’s statement and possible subsequent requests for examination or provision of receipts. The recipient may also be asked to provide receipts of travel, which show the class of travel and passenger details.

Submitting the reimbursement request

The reimbursement request must be submitted via online service of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

Payment of Business Partnership Support

If the terms and conditions for the disbursement are met, the reimbursement request of Business Partnership Support is handled in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland within 45 days from the date of receipt of the reimbursement request and the aforementioned appendices.

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