Lithuania

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Commission has adopted support measures under the state aid Temporary Framework and EU state aid rules. These measures aim to help citizens and companies and mitigate the significant economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic:

• On 9 February 2022, the Commission approved a €435 million extension of a previous scheme to support companies affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The public support, in the form of loans with subsidised interest rates, aims to finance the acquisition of specific tangible and intangible assets and help the beneficiaries continue their economic activity. 

• On 4 January 2022, the Commission approved a €125,000 tax deferral scheme to support businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The assistance, in the form of interest-free deferrals or staggering of payment of excise duties and VAT on imported goods, combined with the suspension of tax debt recovery, aims to enhance the liquidity of the beneficiaries and help them continue their activities during and after the pandemic.

• On 25 May 2021, the Commission approved a €6.8 million scheme to support companies active in the pig and poultry sectors in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the public support, in the form of direct grants, is open to all enterprises active in pig and poultry farming and processing sectors. The purpose of the scheme is to help the beneficiaries to cover their uncovered fixed costs, and to continue their activities during and after the coronavirus outbreak. 

• On 12 April 2021, the Commission approved a €120 million aid scheme to support companies that had to suspend or reduce their activities due to government-imposed restrictive measures aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the scheme is open to companies active in the sectors most affected by the outbreak except the agriculture, forestry, fishing, credit, insurance, pension funding, and the financial ones. The aim of the scheme is to help the beneficiaries address their liquidity needs and continue their activities during and after the outbreak.

• On 19 January 2021, the Commission approved a €156 million Lithuanian aid scheme for enterprises affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the public support, in the form of tax deferrals and tax-related liquidity measures, aims to address the liquidity needs of the beneficiaries and help them continue their activities during and after the outbreak.

• On 23 December, the Commission approved a €150 million Lithuanian aid scheme to support companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the public support, in the form of direct grants, is open to companies active in all sectors of the economy, except the agricultural, fishery, aquaculture and financial ones. The scheme aims to mitigate the liquidity shortages faced by the beneficiaries due to the coronavirus outbreak, and help the beneficiaries continue their activities during and after the pandemic.

• On 23 December, the Commission approved a €30 million Lithuanian scheme to support companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the support makes available loans of up to €100,000 with subsidised interest rates provided by Investicijų ir verslo garantijos (Invega), a Lithuanian promotional institution. The scheme is open to companies active in all sectors of the economy except the agricultural, fishery, aquaculture and financial ones. The scheme aims to enhance access to financing for the beneficiaries, helping them continue their activities during and after the outbreak. 

• on 22 December, the Commission approved, under EU state aid rules, a €90 million Lithuanian guarantee scheme to support the trade credit insurance market in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The guarantee scheme ensures that trade credit insurance continues to be available to all companies, avoiding the need for buyers of goods or services to pay in advance, therefore reducing their immediate liquidity needs. 

• on 18 December, the Commission found the modification of several existing Lithuanian State aid schemes to support certain sectors affected by the coronavirus outbreak to be in line with the state aid Temporary Framework. The original schemes, approved by the Commission (SA.57514, SA.57529, SA.57823, SA.58856, SA.57008 and SA.57665), were modified as requested by Lithuania, in particular by extending the aid until 30 June 2021, modifying the aid eligibility conditions, to include small and micro enterprises in difficulty, and increasing the budget for loans for the scheme SA.57823, from EUR 90 million to EUR 135 million.

• on 18 November, €100 million Lithuanian scheme enabling the deferred payment of social security contributions for enterprises affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the scheme is open to businesses active in sectors affected by the emergency measures ordered by the Lithuanian government to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The aim of the measure is to address the liquidity needs of the eligible enterprises, and help them continue their activities during and after the outbreak.

• on 16 November, the Commission approved a €5 million Lithuanian scheme to support companies active in the fur farming sector affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the state aid Temporary Framework, the aid will take the form of direct grants allocated to address the liquidity needs of fur-trading companies, as auctions are closed and all production is stored in farms. The scheme will also help businesses continue their activities and preserve jobs during and after the outbreak, and is expected to benefit around 150 companies.

• on 16 October, under the State aid Temporary Framework, the Commission approved a €12 million Lithuanian scheme to support around 1,000 companies active in the poultry production and processing sectors that have been particularly affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The public support, which will take the form of direct grants, aims to ensure sufficient working capital for the primary producers that suffered losses in their total average income. The purpose of the scheme is to help the beneficiaries address their liquidity needs, continue their activities and preserve jobs during and after the outbreak.

• on 11 September 2020, a €1 million Lithuanian scheme to support tour operators that had to repatriate travellers in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The public support will take the form of direct grants and will amount to 75% of the expenses incurred by the operator to repatriate travellers from abroad between 26 February and 31 March 2020. The purpose of the measure is to mitigate the sudden liquidity shortages that the affected tour operators are facing because of the repatriation costs.

• on 30 July 2020,  a €20 million Lithuanian scheme to compensate Lithuanian companies active in the processing of agricultural products in the poultry and eggs sectors for the loss of revenue caused by the coronavirus outbreak. About 25 enterprises are estimated to be entitled to compensation for the damages suffered under the scheme. The support, in the form of grants, will be financed by the general budget of Lithuania.
• on 15 July 2020, a €47.5 Lithuanian scheme to support companies active in the production and processing of pig, vegetable and aquaculture products affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the scheme, the public support will take the form of (i) direct grants, with a budget of €7.5 million; and (ii) subsidised interest rates for loans, with a budget of €40 million. The purpose of the scheme is to address the liquidity needs of farmers and to help them continue their activities during and after the outbreak.
• on 26 June 2020, two Lithuanian measures, with an estimated total budget of €50 million, to support travel agencies, tour operators, accommodation and catering businesses which were affected by the measures adopted by the Lithuanian authorities to face the coronavirus health emergency. The public support will take the form of: (i) individual guarantees to ensure that tour operators can respect their contractual obligations, in particular in case of insolvency or bankruptcy; and (ii) loans to tour operators, accommodation and public catering service providers. The first measure will provide guarantees to tour operators established in Lithuania, with a maximum amount not exceeding €800,000 per beneficiary. The second measure will provide loans to tour operators to finance the reimbursement of travellers for trips that did not occur as a result of coronavirus-related travel restrictions, as well as to accommodation and catering service providers for the costs incurred as a result of the same restrictions. The purpose of the measures is to facilitate access to finance and to mitigate the sudden liquidity shortages that the affected companies are facing.
• on 16 June 2020, a €59 million Lithuanian scheme to support companies active in the agricultural, food, forestry, rural development and fishery sectors that are affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Framework adopted by the Commission on 19 March 2020, as amended on 3 April 2020 and 8 May 2020. Under the scheme, public support will be provided as follows: (i) €9 million in the form of direct grants; and (ii) €50 million in the form of guarantees on loans. The purpose of the scheme is to address the liquidity needs of companies active in the agricultural, food, forestry, rural development and fishery sectorsand help them to continue their activities during and after the outbreak. The scheme is expected to benefit approximately 1,300 companies of all sizes active in those sectors.
• on 8 June 2020, a €30.5 million Lithuanian scheme to support bovine animal and milk producers affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The support will take the form of direct grants and will be accessible to farmers and companies active in the primary production of bovine animal products and milk. €12 million will be available for bovine animal producers and €18.5 million for milk producers. The purpose of the scheme is to support the Lithuanian agricultural sector in response to the coronavirus outbreak and to address liquidity and solvency problems caused by the outbreak, thus contributing to the preservation of the viability, production infrastructure and social stability in rural areas. The scheme is expected to benefit approximately 28,000 producers of bovine animal products and 28,000 producers of milk. The aid will not exceed €100,000 per beneficiary. 
• on 26 May 2020, Lithuanian plans to set up a fund with a target size of up to €1 billion that will invest through debt and equity instruments in medium-sized and large enterprises active in Lithuania affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Under the scheme, the support will take the form of subsidised debt instruments and recapitalisation instruments. The State will provide an initial investment of €100 million in the fund, and will guarantee bonds up to €400 million that will be issued to raise additional capital for the fund. The State's total investment in the fund may therefore increase up to €500 million. The fund will also aim to attract private investments for up to additional €500 million. Private investments will be made on different terms with respect to the State: the risk-sharing arrangements will be determined through an open, transparent, non-discriminatory call in order to minimise any possible aid to private investors.
• on 25 May 2020, a Lithuanian scheme, with an estimated budget of €10 million, to support of cultural and art institutions and organisations, in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The measure, which will take the form of direct grants, is intended to support the creation of new products and/or services by cultural and art institutions and organisations in the period between 19 March and 31 December 2020. The objective of the scheme is to help ensure the continuation of activities of these organisations during and after the outbreak. It also aims at promoting the creation of digital cultural products and services, in view of the physical restrictions and other adjustments introduced by the Lithuanian government to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
• Lithuanian's plan to modify a previously approved subsided loan scheme to further support the Lithuanian economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The amendment was approved under the State aid Temporary Framework adopted by the Commission on 19 March 2020, as amended on 3 April and 8 May 2020. On 9 April 2020, the Commission approved two Lithuanian aid schemes to provide liquidity to companies affected by the outbreak in the form of subsidised loans. The present amendment concerns only one of the two existing schemes, namely the measure - offered to SMEs via financial intermediaries - aiming at facilitating access to finance in the form of subsidised loans to companies facing cash shortages as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. Lithuania notified the following modifications to this existing scheme: (i) an increase in the estimated total budget of the scheme from €100 million to €200 million; (ii) the maximum duration of the loans will be increased from 36 months to 72 months; and (iii) the maximum underlying loan amount per beneficiary will be increased to €1 million (from the original €100,000).
• on 30 April, a Lithuanian rent compensation scheme to support tenants operating in certain sectors, including retail, hotels, restaurants, culture and sports. The scheme will be accessible to companies operating in certain sectors defined by Lithuania, including retail, hotels, restaurants, culture and sports and whose annual turnover in the previous year does not exceed €50 million. The public support will take the form of direct grants to cover part of the rents due by those companies. The scheme aims at mitigating the sudden liquidity shortages that tenants operating in certain sectors are facing due to the measures imposed by the Lithuanian State to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
• on 24 April 2020, a direct grant scheme to support the Lithuanian economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. This latest Lithuanian support measure is a scheme to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in road freight transport in managing financial risks, paying loans and maintaining financial stability and, thus, remedy a serious disturbance in the Lithuanian economy. The scheme is intended to cover interest on existing debt obligations until 31 December 2020 and for a maximum period of six months. It will apply to the whole territory of Lithuania and will be open to SMEs active in road freight transport, a sector negatively affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
• on 10 April, two Lithuanian aid schemes to support the Lithuanian economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The Lithuanian support measures, offered by the national promotional institution INVEGA, aim at providing liquidity in the form of subsidised loans to companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak, in particular: (i) The first measure, which is offered to SMEs via financial intermediaries, will facilitate access to finance in the form of subsidised loans for enterprises facing cash shortages. (ii) The second measure, which is directly provided to companies, concerns loans for outstanding invoices.
• on 8 April, a Lithuanian aid scheme to support the Lithuanian economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The Lithuanian support measure is a guarantee scheme for working capital and investment loans granted by commercial banks to support companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The support under the Lithuanian scheme will be open to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large companies facing difficulties as a result of the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak. The aim of the scheme is to help businesses to cover their immediate working capital or investment needs, thus ensuring the continuation of their activities.