Innovation Vouchers: September 2026 call
How can a £10,000 Innovation Voucher benefit your business?
Businesses in Northern Ireland can apply for Innovation Vouchers worth up to £10,000 from Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI). The vouchers help you access specialist expertise from universities and colleges in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland to develop new or improved products, services, business models or processes.
Innovation Vouchers do not provide direct cash payments to businesses. The voucher covers the cost of working with an approved public sector knowledge provider.
What the vouchers can be used for
Typical eligible projects include:
- developing or improving products, services, business models or processes
- accessing specialist expertise in new materials
- drawing on research and scientific knowledge
You can use a voucher to resolve a specific business issue where you do not have the in‑house expertise, technology or facilities to deal with it. For full details on what is and is not eligible, see the Innovation Vouchers FAQs (PDF, 384KB).
Who can apply
To be eligible to apply for Innovation Vouchers, you must be one of the following:
- A small business, social enterprise or third sector organisation with fewer than 50 employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet total of no more than €10 million.
- A medium-sized business, social enterprise or third sector organisation with at least 50 but fewer than 250 employees, an annual turnover of no more than €50 million or a balance sheet total of no more than €43 million. You must not have received support through Invest NI's Grant for R&D programme in the past five years.
Before you apply, find out more and check your eligibility on the Invest NI website.
The deadline for applications is 3pm on Friday 16 October 2026.
To help prepare for your application, download guidance for applicants (PDF, 237KB) and a sample application form (PDF, 1.3MB) from Invest NI's website.
If your application is successful, you will need to complete an Innovate NI Innovation Assessment before an Innovation Voucher can be issued.
This project is funded by the UK government.
First published 21 September 2026