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At Carbery Fingleton & Co we believe that one of the most overlooked sources of funding for Irish SMEs is not a bank, an investor or a new customer. It is the extensive network of grants and supports already available, waiting to be claimed. Every year, a significant number of Irish businesses leave money on the table simply because they do not know what exists or assume they will not qualify. The reasons are understandable. Owners are busy, application processes can seem daunting and the funding landscape is fragmented across multiple agencies. Yet the sums involved are far from trivial, and unlike loans, grants do not need to be repaid. Below are five of the supports we believe too many Irish SMEs are failing to claim in 2026.

Before applying for anything, it is worth checking eligibility and deadlines directly with the relevant body, as schemes open, close and change regularly. We can help you identify which supports fit your circumstances.

1. Local Enterprise Office Grants

For smaller businesses, the Local Enterprise Office network remains the most accessible starting point, and yet many eligible businesses have never made contact with theirs. Supports include Feasibility Study Grants of up to €15,000 for researching market demand for a product or service, Priming Grants of up to €150,000 for micro enterprises within their first eighteen months of trading, and Business Expansion Grants of up to €150,000 to assist growing businesses with capital investment, salary costs and consultancy.

These are substantial sums for a small business, and LEOs also provide mentoring and training alongside the funding. If your business employs a small team and has never explored LEO support, this should be the first call.

2. Innovation Vouchers

Innovation Vouchers are perhaps the simplest support in the entire system, and still they go underclaimed. These vouchers, worth €5,000 or €10,000, allow SMEs to work with publicly funded Knowledge Providers, such as universities and institutes of technology, to solve business challenges.

In practice, this means a business can have a technical problem, product idea or process question investigated by researchers largely at the State’s expense. Many owners assume “innovation” means laboratories and patents. In reality, improving a process, testing a material or developing a prototype can all qualify. For the modest effort of an application, the return is significant.

3. The R&D Tax Credit

The research and development tax credit is one of the most valuable reliefs available to Irish companies, and it remains persistently underclaimed by the SMEs most likely to benefit.

The myth is that R&D relief belongs only to pharmaceutical companies and software giants. In truth, companies across manufacturing, engineering, food production and technology routinely qualify through everyday problem-solving: developing new products, improving processes or overcoming technical uncertainty in their work. Because the credit is claimed through the tax system rather than an application portal, businesses that never ask the question never receive the answer. A conversation about whether your activities qualify could be one of the most profitable meetings of the year.

4. Energy and Sustainability Supports

With energy costs remaining a major pressure on Irish businesses, supports in this area deserve far more attention than they receive. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland provides funding towards energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades for businesses, reducing both the upfront cost of improvements and the ongoing bills that follow.

Alongside grant support, larger sustainability and growth investments can be financed through State-backed lending. The Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme makes competitively priced loans of between €25,000 and €3 million available to SMEs for terms of up to ten years, with amounts up to €500,000 available unsecured. The scheme operates for a limited period and until its funding is fully subscribed, so businesses considering equipment upgrades, retrofits or expansion should not delay in exploring it.

5. Enterprise Ireland Growth Supports

Finally, businesses with export ambition or scaling plans frequently overlook Enterprise Ireland, assuming it exists only for high-tech start-ups. In fact, Enterprise Ireland offers a wide range of supports for established companies, including the Key Manager grant of up to €150,000 towards the salary costs of a critical management hire, and LeanPlus support of up to €50,000 to engage external expertise in improving operational efficiency.

For an SME trying to strengthen its management team or streamline how it operates, these supports directly subsidise exactly the investments that drive the next stage of growth.

Money Left Unclaimed Is Margin Left Behind

Every unclaimed grant is funding a business must instead generate through sales or borrow at a cost. The application effort is real, but so is the return. For Irish SMEs facing rising costs in 2026, checking what you are entitled to is not an administrative chore. It is a financial decision with one of the best returns available, and it starts with a single conversation.

If you would like to discuss your business, contact us on robert@carberyfingleton.ie or visit carberyfingleton.ie

Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available information and is intended for general guidance only. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy at the time of publication, details may change and errors may occur. This content does not constitute financial, legal or professional advice. Readers should seek appropriate professional guidance before making decisions. Neither the publisher nor the authors accept liability for any loss arising from reliance on this material.