Luxembourg has published, on 13 March 2020, a draft law (n°7532) with purpose to assist small and mid-sizes businesses (“SMBs”) facing temporary financial difficulties following the repercussions of an unforeseeable national or international event.

This new measure is an addition to the already existing measures put into place by the law of 9 August 2018 relating to an aid scheme for SMBs or the measures in case of partial unemployment in case of “force majeure”.

The granting of an aid under this new measure is subject to 3 conditions:

1) an unforeseeable event has been officially recognized by the Government as having a harmful impact on the activity of certain companies during a specified period,

2) the company meets temporary financial difficulties, and

3) there is a causal link between these difficulties and the unforeseeable event in question.

The draft law mentions as examples of such unpredictable event : acts of terrorism, epidemics or eruptions of a volcano.

Certain sectors are specifically excluded from this new measure (among others agricultural or agricultural related businesses)

Eligible costs are calculated by taking into account the loss of income between the result achieved during the three preceding years for the same period compared to the expected results for the months following the unforeseeable event in question.

The amount of the aid is also capped, among others, to a maximum of 50% of eligible costs as defined above.

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