Receiving training or support to acquire company-creation skills

You can benefit from the business start-up training voucher if you are : 

• a job-seeker;
• an employee;
• a freelancer as a secondary activity;
• or a company that primarily operates in Wallonia.

• You have a project that primarily operates in Wallonia;
• You have a project which is not part of one of the excluded sectors outlined in the attached list;
• As a project leader, you agree to undertake training, or to receive personalised support, in regards to company creation;
• As a company, you agree to undertake training, or to receive personalised support, for the creation of a new activity;
• As a company, you must declare, by means of a sworn statement signed by the company’s manager, that the project for which the training is required relates to the creation of an establishment, or the diversification of an establishment’s activity, and that the new activity is not identical or similar to the previous activity carried out within the establishment.

The SPW Economy, Employment, Research finances up to 80% of the cost for services that fall within the remit of the creation theme, excluding VAT.

The remaining costs and the VAT are borne by you.

Registration on the platform:

• In order to use the platform, you must create a “citizen” account beforehand.
• To do this, you can register via the registration module available on the home page, or activate the account via an email that is sent following the creation of your account by a third party (service providers, contacts at a previously registered company, etc.).
• Registration/activation is only possible via the secure authentication module with an electronic identity card (eiD Belgium). 

The application process:

• For the first application submitted via the platform, we invite you to contact an approved/accredited service provider of your choice directly. They will then take care of the application process for you. Find the list of certified service providers on the Chèques-entreprises portal. 
• Subsequently, when submitting later applications, you will be able to file the application for the cheque yourself.
• This application is submitted via the platform www.cheques-entreprises.be and will be processed electronically.
• Two documents are required to submit your application:
  • The service agreement between you and your service provider
  • The business voucher application

These two documents are automatically generated by the platform. You must sign them and attach them to your application. Several other attachments will also be requested.

Validation of the application:

• We have five working days to verify that your file is complete and complies with the regulations in place. If this is not the case, we will ask you for additional information.

Payment of the share:

• Once your application has been approved, you will be asked to pay the 25% of the service cost that you are responsible for (the co-payment). This co-payment must be paid within 30 days, otherwise the application will be deemed inadmissible.
• Once the payment of the share has been received, an electronic cheque equivalent to the total amount of the aid will be placed in your electronic portfolio, which can be consulted on the platform www.cheques-entreprises.be. The service can then begin.

Service:

• The expert you work with must be a certified service provider, i.e. a company or individual who has been authorised to provide services for this scheme.
• The service can begin once the co-payment has been received. You and your service provider will receive an email.
• The service must be carried out within the period specified in the service agreement.

Payment for the service:

• At the end of the service, the service provider sends their invoice and a service report via the platform www.cheques-entreprises.be.
• You then validate the service provider’s invoice and the service report via the same platform within 15 working days. If validation does not take place by the deadline, the invoice and the report will be deemed valid and the file will be submitted to us.
• We check the file within 15 working days, before paying the service provider. If validation does not take place by the deadline, the application for aid will be considered admissible.
• If the application is approved, we will pay the entire invoice, i.e. the share to which the Wallonia contribution is added.
• You pay the VAT directly to the service provider.

Requests for additional information:

• While processing your application, we may send you a request for additional information.
• You, or your service provider, must respond within one month from the date on which the information is requested; otherwise the application will be deemed inadmissible.

A posteriori checks:

• Your application may be checked after the fact by the Walloon Region, based on random sampling.

Disputes:

• If the decision is disputed, you can contact the Business Cheques team or file an appeal, in accordance with the conditions available at this link.

• Decree of 21 December 2016 concerning the granting of aid, by means of a portfolio of aid in the Walloon region, to project leaders and small and medium enterprises
• Decree from the Walloon Government of 23 February 2017 concerning the execution of Chapters 1, 3 and 4 of the Decree of 21 December 2016
• Ministerial Decree concerning the partial execution, in terms of professional training, of the Decree from the Walloon Government of 23 February 2017.
• Ministerial Decree of 4 April 2019 amending the Ministerial Decree of 21 December 2016