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Economics Minister Reinhard Meyer (SPD) has urgently appealed to defaulting companies to submit accounts for the Corona emergency aid they received. 10,000 recipients have not yet responded to explain how the funds granted have been used, as required.

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Anyone who fails to do so by September 30, four years after the grant was made, will have to repay the full amount including interest, warned Meyer. In total, the 10,000 cases involve a sum of 88 million euros. Experience has shown that in every second case there is a claim for repayment.

Meyer emphasized that the federal government’s emergency Corona aid, introduced in March 2020, was intended to bridge impending liquidity aid and not to compensate for lost income. It was clear from the start that emergency aid would have to be repaid in the event of overcompensation. The deadlines for billing have been extended several times. September 30 is now the final deadline.

According to the responsible state funding institute in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, around 40,000 applications for emergency aid were submitted in 2020, of which 36,000 were approved. By summer 2023, however, only 9,000 recipients had reported back with an invoice. As of August, the number is now 26,000. If there are any claims for reimbursement and the money is repaid, the amounts will go back to the federal government.

Reclaims in 18,000 cases

The managing director of the State Promotion Institute, Robert Fankhauser, stressed that the billing is not “rocket science” and can be prepared within an hour. Most of the companies in default are small businesses, which he advised to get in touch. “Doing nothing doesn’t help,” said Fankhauser. So far, there have been demands for reimbursement in 18,000 cases. Of 1,307 objections, 1,250 had been resolved as of August 15. In no case has the objection been upheld. Nor has any case been lost before the administrative court.

Economics Minister Reinhard Meyer (SPD) has urgently appealed to defaulting companies to submit accounts for the Corona emergency aid they received. 10,000 recipients have not yet responded to explain how the funds granted have been used, as required.

Anyone who fails to do so by September 30, four years after the grant was made, will have to repay the full amount including interest, warned Meyer. In total, the 10,000 cases involve a sum of 88 million euros. Experience has shown that in every second case there is a claim for repayment.