Frequently Asked Questions

• 1 Who can benefit from the Kayist Grant Program?
  Small, medium and large-sized companies located in the selected project provinces, having legal entity, fully privately owned, established at least 2 years before the Call for Proposals Announcement date can apply for the grant. For more detailed information on the eligibility of the applicant, you can review the "2.1. Eligibility of the Applicant: who can apply" section of the Application Guideline.

• 2 What is the upper limit of the grant support?

  The upper limit of the financial support to be provided within the scope of the grant varies between EUR 15,000 and EUR 300,000 on the basis of the size of the enterprise. The requested sub-grant amount must be between 50% - 70% of the total eligible cost of the sub-project. In addition, Human Resources costs cannot be less than 70% and more than 90% of the total eligible cost of the sub-project. The Human Resources cost shown in the budget should be prepared in accordance with the "2.3.1.1. Human Resources" heading of the Application Guideline.

• 3 In which language will the applications be made?

  The applications can be submitted either in Turkish or English.

• 4 Is there a minimum and maximum number of employees to be employed?
  The number of personnel to be employed should be determined by making an evaluation specific to the application. No minimum number of employment has been determined. However, in order to get a full score in the Evaluation Grid “3.4. Does the proposal include sufficient number of additional formal employment?” section, small-scale enterprises must create 4 and more, medium-sized enterprises 16 and more, and large-scale enterprises 40 or more new employments.

• 5 Is refugee employment compulsory?

  In line with the objectives and priorities of the Grant Program, 50% of the people to be employed additionally within the company are expected to be refugees or SuTPs. As can be seen from the Evaluation Grid, in terms of the purpose of the Grant Program, the evaluation score will be higher in case of employment of refugees. Within the scope of the sub-project, it is aimed to create employment both for Turkish citizens and refugees.

• 6 Is female employment compulsory?

  It is not mandatory. As can be seen from the Evaluation Grid, in terms of the purpose of the Grant Program, the evaluation score will be higher in case of female employment.

• 7 Do "refugees" term only include SuTPs?

  The definition of “refugee” used within the scope of the sub-project includes both Syrians under Temporary Protection and other refugees. While creating the Employment Plan in the Application Form on the platform where the applications are made, the citizenship information of the personnel to be employed should be specified in detail.

• 8 What should be the qualifications of the personnel to be employed?

  There is no qualification restriction for the personnel to be employed within the scope of the sub-project, and different personnel may be employed in different departments within the firm.

• 9 How is the size of the applicant firm determined?

  Within the scope of the sub-project, firm sizes are determined according to the number of employees of the firm. Small-scale enterprises are the firms that have less than 50 employees, medium-sized enterprises have between 50 and 249 employees, and large-scale enterprises have 250 employees or more. The number of employees of the Applicant should be determined on the basis of the current (end of 2021 or closer to the application) Withholding Tax and Monthly Premium Service Statement showing the number of employees of the applicant.

• 10 Can Sole proprietorships apply for the grant?

  If the applicant company is a company with a legal entity, it can apply for the grant program. The types of companies that can apply for the Grant Scheme are as follows: joint stock company, limited liability company, limited partnership company and limited liability company whose capital is divided into shares.

• 11 In which currency and how will the grant payments be paid?

  For the cost estimation in the sub-project budget, the foreign exchange selling rate of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) on the relevant date (the date the sub-project was prepared) will be used. Sub-grant amounts will be paid in Euro. Losses arising from the exchange rate are not considered as eligible costs and it is essential that the applicant does not make a profit due to fluctuations in the exchange rate. The Euro amount will be determined on the basis of the conversion rate on the day of the sub-project implementation period, and the payments will be made to the beneficiaries in Euro at 6-month intervals, subject to the condition of creating formal employment. Sub-project payments in the four tranches will be linked to fulfillment of the sub-project's employment commitment. The first tranche payment will be 10% and in the form of advance payment. Employment records regarding Human Resources costs submitted by firms will be periodically cross-checked with official SSI reports to verify the employment condition for other payments. The second and third tranche payments will each be 40%, the fourth (final) payment will be 10%, and an expense confirmation report will be requested.

• 12 Can companies with investment incentive certificate benefit from the grant program?

  Yes, they can. However, it is not an eligibility requirement for the applicant company to have an investment incentive certificate within the scope of the Formal Employment Creation Grant Program.

• 13 Can the employment commitment start to be fulfilled after the project application is made?

  Items of expenditure under the sub-project should not be incurred before the sub-grant contract is signed. Expenditures (including human resources cost) incurred after the submission of the project application and before the sub-grant contract is signed will not be counted as eligible costs.

• 14 Can grant support be used for existing employees within the applicant firm?

  The grant under the Formal Employment Creation Project will be used for new employment that companies commit. The existing human resources costs for those that are already working within the company are not eligible in the project budget. The cost of personnel employed before the sub-grant contract is signed will not be included in the scope of eligible costs. For the aforementioned eligible and non-eligible costs, you can find detailed information in the Application Guideline, "2.3. Eligibility of Costs: costs that can be included” section.

• 15 Is it obligatory to submit a Capacity Report in applications?

  For the detailed information about the Capacity Reports; You can visit http://sanayi.tobb.org.tr/kapasite_raporu.php. The said document is not requested from the applicants who are not required to issue a Capacity Report within the scope of the relevant legislation. Companies that are not subject to the Capacity Report are required to submit a document declaring that they are not subject to the said document in the Supporting Documents section on the Kayist Platform.

• 16 Firms in which sectors can apply for grant?

  The subject of the sub-project should be in line with the World Bank’s Safeguard Regulations and should not be included in the Exclusion List of TKYB and the World Bank. Apart from these, there is no categorical restriction regarding the sector and the companies. The Exclusion List can be found in TKYB's Environmental and Social Policy document in the Project Documents section of the Grant Program website.

• 17 Is it possible to apply for grant with more than one project?

  Each applicant firm as a legal entity can submit only 1 (one) sub-project proposal within the scope of the Call for Proposals.

• 18 What will be the result if the additional employees leave the job during the sub-project implementation period?

  Formal employment must be maintained for at least 18 months, within a maximum of 21 months of sub-project period, and in case of dismissal or leave of employment, new employment is expected to be replaced. Since the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th tranches of the financial support will be made based on the  SSI records, if the employment commitment is not fulfilled, the grant support will be cut.

• 19 Can changes be made on the completed applications on the Kayist Platform?

  No changes or updates can be made on the completed applications on the Kayist Platform. However, the applicant may save his/her incomplete application on the Platform as a draft and revise it until the deadline of the Call for Proposals. Applicants will not be able to access the Kayist Platform to make revisions after the deadline. In this regard, in order to cancel the application made erroneously, a request must be made in an official letter to kayist@kalkinma.com.tr, stating the reason, within the period that the call is open. A new application can only be made after the approval of TKYB.

• 20 Are E&S Assessment Documents mandatory?

  Documents required to be submitted at the application stage within the scope of the E&S Preliminary Compliance Check are specified in the "3.2 Application Documents" section of the Application Guideline. Accordingly, the 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd documents among the E&S Documents in question must be submitted for administrative and eligibility check at the application stage. Documents ranked from 23rd to 40th in the list of E&S Documents will be requested during the E&S Assessment stage.

• 21 Is it possible to purchase machinery and equipment within the scope of the project?

  Yes, it can be done. However, as explained in the Application Guideline, although the purchase of machinery-equipment is an appropriate item within the scope of the sub-project, an application consisting only of machinery-equipment will not be suitable.

• 22 For documents specified as signed and stamped in the documents requested during the application, can documents with barcodes obtained from the e-government address be sent?

  Of the documents required for the grant application, documents requested to be signed and stamped are expected to be submitted as signed and stamped. Documents received via e-government including a barcode can be accepted.

• 23 Can firms with tax and SSI debts apply?
  Companies applying for a grant should not have overdue or unpaid debts, should not have overdue social security and tax payments , and should not have defaulted loans. If applicable, the document showing that the debt has been structured should be submitted.
• 24 Is there a 2-year term requirement for companies that have undergone a type change?

  The two-year term requirement means that firms applying for a sub-grant must have been established at least 2 years ago as of the date of application completion. For this, the first registration date of the company in the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette is taken as a basis. The two-year rule does not apply to the companies that have undergone a type change.

• 25 If the Euro/TL exchange rate determined at the project preparation stage changes during the project process, will the project budget be updated?

  The foreign exchange gains/losses arising from the exchange rate movements during the project period are not subject to any budget revision. However, the payments to be made to the beneficiary firms will be within the budget limits and limited to the expenditure realization amount.

• 26 Which procurement rules will apply within the scope of the project?

  Purchases to be made within the scope of the sub-project are subject to the rules specified in the "5. Conditions for Implementation" main heading of the Application Guideline. The beneficiaries should comply with the procurement rules which are formulated in accordance with the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers in order to ensure a smooth and thorough procurement process throughout the sub-project implementation phase. During the implementation phase, detailed information and documents regarding the procurement procedures will be included in the Implementation Guideline.

• 27 Is it possible to log in to the Kayist Platform with more than one phone number in the project application?

  Applications made through the Kayist Platform are made with a single phone number for each project.

• 28 Is there a legal restriction at the rate of 10% of Turkish employees in the employment of foreign personnel?

  The relevant rate is explained in detail in the "Regulation on Work Permits of Foreigners Under Temporary Protection" published in the Official Gazette on 15.01.2016. For detailed information, please review the relevant document at the link https://www.mevzuat.gov.tr/mevzuatmetin/3.5.20168375.pdf.

• 29 What is the minimum wage for refugee employment?

  Additional employment supported under the Formal Employment Creation Project must be registered and paid a wage within the applicable legal limits without discrimination for Turkish citizens and refugees.

• 30 Is the 2019, 2020 and current 2021 independent audit report required to be submitted for every company?

  An audit report must be submitted for companies that require independent auditing in accordance with the legislation they are subject to. Firms that do not have an independent audit obligation can submit their financial documents approved by Certified Public Accountant or Independent Accountant and Financial Advisor.

• 31 If there is a decrease in the current employment of the firm between the submission of the project proposal and the announcement of the project result, how will this affect the firm?

  The classification of the applicant according to the number of employees should be determined on the basis of the Latest Withholding Tax and Monthly Premium Service Statement showing the number of employees of the applicant and latest SSI Statement submitted to Revenue Administration. The maximum and minimum grant amount that the company can receive according to the size of the business will be based on the size of the company determined according to the number of employees stated on the application date.

• 32 Will the "Workplace Opening and Operating Permit" be requested from the businesses operating in the OIZ or Technopark?

  Even if the company is located in an OIZ or Technopark, it has to get a Workplace Opening and Operating Permit. If the applicant is exempt from Workplace Opening and Operating Permit for any reason, the applicant can share the relevant document, or the applicant can start the application process immediately and share a letter stating that the application process for the Workplace Opening and Operating Permit have been started. The application for a Workplace Opening and Operating Permit is valid for the preliminary eligibility check at the Environmental and Social Assessment stage and is expected to be submitted during the application.

• 33 Is there a different method to access the document in question other than the KİK Prohibited Inquiry Screen?
  Among the supporting documents, the document regarding the Prohibited Inquiry Screen is accessible via the below links.

  • https://www.turkiye.gov.tr/kik-yasakli-sorgula
  • https://ekap.kik.gov.tr/EKAP/Yasaklilik/YasakliSorgu.aspx
• 34 Is it possible to benefit from both loan and grant support within the scope of the Formal Employment Creation Project?

  Firms applying for grant must not have received a loan within the scope of the loan component of the Formal Employment Creation Project. It is not possible to benefit from both components of the project at the same time.

• 35 Is it possible to benefit from different grant programs with the same project?

  As it is stated in Application Guideline's ''2.3.3. Ineligible Costs" section, the costs declared by the beneficiary(ies) and financed by another sub-grant or work program funded by a  European Union (including European Development Fund) grant are ineligible costs. In this context, sub-items of the budget for which support is requested in the application to the Formal Employment Creation Project Grant Program can benefit from financial support if they have not received support from other grant programs.

• 36 How can we reach foreign employees that we can employ?
  The procurement of the personnel planned to be employed within the scope of the sub-project belongs to the companies and TKYB will not guide the beneficiary firms. Firms can contact institutions such as Red Crescent Community Centers and İŞKUR in this regard. Regarding refugee employment, the legislation of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, General Directorate of International Labor Force can be followed.
• 37 If the employees to be employed cannot be provided during the employment period, will an extension be possible?
  Formal employment is required to be created for at least 18 months, and in case of dismissal or leave, new employment is expected to be replaced within a total of 21 months of sub-project period. Since sub-project payments will be based SSI records, grant support will not be available if the promised employment condition is not met.
• 38 Can companies with no employees apply for the grant?
  In order to apply within the scope of the project, the applicant company must be a company with legal personality and be a small-sized (1-49 employees), medium-sized (50 to 249) or large-scale (250 employees or more) company. Firms that already have a record of sustainable job creation are expected to apply. Firms with no employees are not eligible in this context.
• 39 Can a company with facilities in different cities apply for separate grants for these facilities?

  In order to be eligible for grant, the applicant company must be a legal entity and each applicant firm can submit only 1 (one) sub-project proposal within the scope of the Call for Proposals. The applicant company should prepare its project accordingly, in which facilities it plans to create employment, provided that they are in the selected project provinces.

• 40 Which issues should be considered while preparing the Human Resources budget item?
  The additional employment amount included in the sub-project budget should be consistent with the business plan. The total cost of each additional employment should be given in detail in the sub-project budget and the “Cost Justification” section for each budget item must be filled in. Human Resources costs written in lump sum will not be considered as eligible costs. When calculating human resources costs, only the cost of additional employees should be included. For each additional employee, the total employer cost for 18 months should be taken into account, the cost of each additional employee should be prepared in Euros and shown on a separate line.

  For detailed information and calculation display, you can review the "Budget Preparation" document.