The Innova Invest programme of ICEX España Exportación e Inversiones, a public business entity attached to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business through the Secretariat of State for Trade, aims to promote investment in Spain by foreign companies with a strong innovative component. It seeks to facilitate their integration into the national productive and research ecosystem, contribute to improving the competitiveness and productivity of the Spanish economy, and encourage investment in research and development (R&D).

Innova Invest was created within the framework of Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, co-financed by the European Union’s Next Generation funds. It has an initial budget allocation of €10.8 million for the period 2021–2027, intended for investment projects exceeding €500,000, with a maximum grant of €800,000 per beneficiary. The intensity of the grant will depend on the type of project and the size of the company, ranging from 25% to 50% of the investment carried out. Beneficiary companies are selected through a competitive process based on criteria set out in each call (business capacity, employment impact, contribution to the green and digital transition, etc.).

The following entities may qualify for the grants:

• Companies classified as SMEs, and small mid-cap enterprises, with their own legal personality, which have at least one permanent establishment or branch in Spain.
• Companies with at least 50% foreign ownership of their share capital. Foreign shareholders may be either legal entities domiciled abroad or natural persons not resident in Spain.

The aid will be granted for expenditure on industrial research or experimental development projects falling within the following categories:

• Staff costs: researchers, technicians and other supporting personnel, insofar as they are engaged in the project.
• Costs of equipment and materials, to the extent and for the duration that they are used for the project.
• Costs of buildings and land, to the extent and for the duration that they are used for the project.
• Costs of contractual research, knowledge and patents acquired or licensed from external sources on an arm’s length basis, as well as consultancy costs and equivalent services used exclusively for the project.
• Overheads and other additional operating expenses, including the costs of materials, supplies and similar products directly arising from the project.​