The ZIM guideline recognises four funding formats: single project, cooperation project (SME–SME or SME–research institution), network project and feasibility study. Choosing between a single and a cooperation project isn't a formality. It determines the funding amount, the cost cap, the responsible project management agency and the coordination effort up to approval.
The four ZIM project types
- Single project: one company carries out the research and development alone. No cooperation partner required. Agency: VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH.
- Cooperation project SME–SME: at least two companies work towards a joint R&D goal. Each partner files its own application; the applications have to arrive together within 14 days. Agency: AiF Projekt GmbH.
- Cooperation project SME–research institution: a company cooperates with a university or a non-university research institution. The research institution receives 100 per cent of its non-economic costs. Agency: AiF Projekt GmbH.
- Feasibility study: an entry format limited in time and cost for a technical pre-check before a full application. Particularly suited to those new to R&D and to projects with high technical uncertainty.
Network projects — the fourth main type — are a format of their own with at least six cooperating companies and their own submission windows; they aren't covered in depth here.
Single project: when it's the right choice
The single project is the fastest way into ZIM. You submit one application alone, coordinate no external partners and aren't dependent on a 14-day deadline. Applications run through VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH's ZIM-Foyer portal.
A single project fits when:
- the R&D project can be delivered entirely within your own company,
- no external partner with its own R&D contribution has to be involved,
- speed of submission is the priority,
- the project goal is clear enough that no technical pre-check (a feasibility study) is needed.
External services — contracts with specialist providers or laboratories — are eligible in a single project too, but capped at 35 per cent of direct staff costs. Pure contract manufacturing with no independent research contribution doesn't count as an external service in the ZIM sense.
Cooperation project: when it pays off
A cooperation project raises the funding rate by five percentage points compared with a single project and lifts the cost cap to up to €560,000 per company partner, with an overall ceiling of €3m per cooperation project. With a research institution as partner, up to €280,000 of its eligible costs come on top.
A cooperation project pays off when:
- the project requires capabilities you don't fully have in house,
- a reliable partner with its own R&D contribution and its own commercial interest is available,
- the project volume exceeds, or should exceed, the single-project cap of €690,000,
- access to specialist academic knowledge produces an advance in knowledge you couldn't achieve internally.
Important: every partner carries its own commercial interest in exploiting the results. A research institution acting merely as an extended workbench doesn't qualify as a cooperation partner in the ZIM sense.
Funding rates and cost caps compared
All figures apply under the 2025 ZIM guideline for applications from 1 January 2025:
- Single project — funding rate: 25 to 45 per cent of eligible costs, depending on company size and location in a structurally weak area. Small companies in structurally weak regions: 45 per cent. Medium-sized companies: typically 35 per cent. Companies with up to 1,000 employees: 25 per cent.
- Single project — cost cap: eligible costs up to €690,000 per project.
- Cooperation project — funding rate: five percentage points more than a single project. In international cooperations through the IraSME initiative, overall rates of 55 to 60 per cent can be achievable.
- Cooperation project — cost cap: up to €560,000 per company partner; an overall ceiling of €3m per cooperation project. Research institutions: up to €280,000, funded at 100 per cent of their non-economic costs.
In state aid terms both sit within Article 25 of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER). The ZIM rates are normally below the GBER's ceilings; the headroom only becomes relevant where other aid is combined.
Coordination effort and the agencies
Since 1 January 2025 two agencies have been responsible, and that has direct operational consequences:
- VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH handles single projects, feasibility studies and network projects. Applications through the ZIM-Foyer portal.
- AiF Projekt GmbH is solely responsible for cooperation projects. Applications through the ZIM-KOOP portal.
Anyone running a single project and a cooperation project in parallel has two agencies with separate status logics, even though the application standard is unified.
The most critical coordination rule in a cooperation project is the 14-day deadline: all partner applications have to reach the AiF within 14 days for the project to count as one. If one partner delays, the arrival date of the whole project shifts, with consequences for the budget period in which approval is granted. That deadline isn't a new invention of the reform, but the split between agencies has made it more important in practice.
Decision matrix: single project or cooperation?
Three questions help with the choice:
- Can the project be delivered entirely in house? Yes → a single project is sufficient and simpler. No, because external expertise is needed → consider a cooperation project.
- Do the planned eligible costs exceed €690,000? Yes → a cooperation project allows a larger volume. No → a single project covers the project entirely.
- Is a partner ready who can submit their own application within 14 days? No, or unsure → the risk of the date shifting is real; consider a single project or a feasibility study as a first step.
A cooperation project brings more funding volume and a higher rate. But it costs coordination effort before submission and ties you to an external partner with its own timetable. A single project is leaner, faster and entirely under your own control, but limited to a project volume of €690,000 in eligible costs.
The two project types don't rule each other out in the same year: since September 2023, up to two approvals per company within twelve months are possible again, provided the projects are clearly separable on the substance and don't touch the same expenditure. A single project and a cooperation project in parallel are therefore feasible, as long as your internal capacity can carry both.
FAQ
What is the difference between a ZIM single project and a cooperation project? In a single project one company submits an application alone; the cost cap is €690,000. In a cooperation project at least two companies, or a company and a research institution, work together; the total volume can be up to €3m. In return the funding rate rises by five percentage points.
What is the funding rate for a ZIM single project? Between 25 and 45 per cent of eligible costs, depending on company size and location. Small companies in structurally weak regions reach 45 per cent, medium-sized companies typically 35 per cent, companies with up to 1,000 employees 25 per cent.
What is the funding rate for a ZIM cooperation project? Five percentage points more than the company's own single-project rate. In international cooperations through IraSME, overall rates of 55 to 60 per cent are achievable. Research institutions receive 100 per cent of their non-economic costs.
What is the 14-day rule in a ZIM cooperation project? All project partners' applications have to reach AiF Projekt GmbH within 14 days for them to count as belonging together. If one partner delays, the decisive submission date for the whole project shifts.
Can I apply for a single project and a cooperation project in the same year? Yes. Since September 2023, up to two approvals per company within twelve months are possible again. The condition: the projects are clearly separable on the substance and don't touch the same expenditure.
ZIM funding: application, eligibility, process
Single, cooperation and network projects, rates between 25 and 45 per cent, applications all year round: an overview of ZIM funding.
ZIM funding rate: what percentage you get, by company size
Whether 25, 35 or 45 per cent: the ZIM funding rate depends on your company size, the project type and your location. Here is what you get, and why.
Filing a ZIM application: the process step by step
No fixed deadline, two project management agencies, one clearly defined process: how to submit a ZIM application properly, from pre-check to statement of use.
ZIM: which costs are eligible
Staff costs form the basis, the overhead flat rate (120% of staff costs) cuts the paperwork, and external services are possible up to 35% of direct staff costs. What exactly is eligible and where the limits sit.
All the detail, eligibility and pitfalls:
- [1]Guideline "Zentrales Innovationsprogramm Mittelstand (ZIM)" — consolidated PDF version— Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), 2024 Source
- [2]ZIM guideline 2025 — publication page with full text and key content— BMWE / ZIM (zim.de), 2025 Source
- [3]Applications open under the 2025 ZIM guideline— BMWE / ZIM office, 2025 Source
- [4]ZIM: two approvals within twelve months are possible again in ZIM— AiF Projekt GmbH (ZIM agency for cooperation projects), 2023 Source
- [5]Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 (GBER), Article 25 — aid for R&D projects— European Commission, EUR-Lex, 2014 Source