You want to make your product or your processes more sustainable, but you lack the time and budget for the concept work? The FFG's new Öko-Scheck covers 80% of the costs, up to €12,000, and allocates by lottery instead of first come, first served. Also: Heinke is joining our team.
What to expect in this issue
- Deep Dive - Up to €12,000 for your sustainability project
- StartMatch News - Heinke is joining our team
- FörderRadar - New and expiring grants
In the Deep Dive we regularly present a financing or funding topic in detail. Today: the FFG Öko-Scheck 2026, up to €12,000 for your sustainability project.
You want to make your product, your processes or your business model more sustainable, but you lack the time and budget for the concept work? That is exactly what the FFG's new Öko-Scheck is for: unbureaucratic funding for climate- and environmentally friendly innovation, open to every industry. A total of €4 million is available.
Projects with measurable ecological added value: making products, services or processes more environmentally friendly, transforming business models toward sustainability or developing new circular models. Specifically eligible are problem and system analyses, the design and development of suitable solutions as well as pilot trials and testing. The effect has to show up in metrics, such as CO₂ reduction, material savings per unit or the share of recycled content in the product.
This is where the 2026 call has become stricter: standard measures are explicitly excluded, among them switching to green electricity, off-the-shelf LED lighting, a standard photovoltaic system, series-production electric vehicles or commercially available software without a sustainability benefit. The same applies to costs: no investments or acquisitions, no material costs, no travel costs, no marketing.
SMEs of any legal form with a place of business in Austria (no civil-law partnerships, no companies still being founded, sole proprietorships only with a company register or VAT number). A special feature: non-profit organizations, NGOs and associations are eligible as well. Anyone who has already received an Öko-Scheck is excluded, and affiliated companies count as one organization. Submission runs through the eCall until 05.10.2026 at 12:00 noon, and the project must start by 31.03.2027 at the latest.
The Öko-Scheck has a feature that hardly exists anywhere else: if applications exceed the budget, a random lottery procedure decides, explicitly not first come, first served. Every application submitted on time therefore has the same chance, whether it is filed on the first or the last day. On top of that: the call has only been open since 01.09. and has barely been noticed yet, and with a budget of €4 million there is room for more than 330 vouchers. The real hurdle is the level of innovation: anyone submitting nothing but standard solutions will be filtered out during the review. A cleanly described project with a measurable ecological effect gets you most of the way there.
All information is available here: FFG Öko-Scheck 2026 on StartMatch
Our team is growing: as of today, Heinke is helping us bring even more companies to the funding they are entitled to.
We are thrilled to have you on board, Heinke! 🎉
FFG Talente regional 2026
Connecting educational institutions with industry and research, a consortium of at least one scientific institution, two companies and five educational institutions is required. Up to €130,000, funding rate up to 100%, open since 09.09.2026, submission until 02.12.2026.
Women TechEU
Equity-free grant plus mentoring for deep-tech startups with female founders. Up to €75,000 as a lump sum, eligibility submission on a rolling basis with weekly cut-offs until 13.07.2027.
FFG Multilaterale Eureka Leichtbau Ausschreibung
Transnational R&D in lightweight construction, in Austria only with a mobility focus. Up to €750,000, funding rate up to 80% for startups and small companies, submission until 12.10.2026, the international Eureka application must already be on file by 08.10.2026.
FFG Go!Tech Praktika
Lump-sum funding for internship placements for high school graduates in scientific and technical fields. €3,800 for three months, €7,100 for six months, continuous submission until 04.11.2026 at 12:00 noon.
FFG AI Ökosysteme
Cooperative R&D in the focus areas Hybrid AI and Green AI, a cooperation between the partners is mandatory. Up to €1 million, submission until 06.10.2026 at 12:00 noon.
FFG Energieforschung
R&D around generation, storage, hydrogen, CCUS and flexible energy systems, open to companies of all sizes, startups and research institutions. Up to €2 million, submission until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.
FFG Mission Klimaneutrale Stadt
R&D and demonstration projects for climate-neutral, resilient cities, districts and buildings. Up to €2 million for demonstration projects, submission until 01.10.2026 at 10:00.
FFG Mobilitätswende: Mobilitätstechnologie
Vehicle technology, automated mobility and digital solutions in line with the Mobility Master Plan 2030. Up to €4 million for flagship projects. Submission deadline only until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.
FFG Energieforschung
R&D around generation, storage, hydrogen, CCUS and flexible energy systems. Up to €2 million. Submission deadline only until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.
FFG AI Ökosysteme 2026
Cooperative R&D projects in Hybrid AI and Green AI, a consortium of at least two companies is required. €100,000 to €1,000,000, funding rate up to 85%. Submission deadline only until 06.10.2026.
Best of luck with your projects!
Best regards,
Robert & your StartMatch Team 👋
Robert Kopka
StartMatch Founder & CEO
Women-led deep-tech companies are still heavily underrepresented in Europe. Women TechEU awards €75,000 equity-free plus a personal business development program, now with a two-stage application process. Also: 100 companies are already working with StartMatch.
You have an innovative idea but no research staff of your own? The Innovationsscheck mit Selbstbehalt covers 80% of the costs when you bring in know-how from a research institution, up to €10,000 and with no fixed deadline. Also: BERGFÜRST is now working with StartMatch.
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