Innovation Norway Grants & SkatteFUNN: 2026 Founder's Guide

Norway pays a real share of the cost of developing a new product, mostly without taking equity. But 2026 changed the map: Innovation Norway cut and renamed its startup grants, removed pre-project grants, and took over the incubator programmes from Siva. A guide written a year ago will send you to schemes that no longer exist.

We have worked with Innovation Norway, SkatteFUNN, Kongsberg Innovasjon and Norsk Katapult, on our own products and with clients. This guide is written from the engineering side: what each scheme pays for, at which stage of a hardware project it fits, and how to scope the work so the costs count.

The short version: which funding fits which stage

Hardware moves through stages, and each scheme is built for one of them:

Idea and first proof of concept: Innovation Norway Startup Grant 1 (up to NOK 150,000) and SkatteFUNN from day one.
Working prototype to engineering validation (EVT): Startup Grant 2 (up to NOK 1M at 50%), SkatteFUNN, and Norsk Katapult for testing you cannot do in your own workshop.
Design validation and pilot production (DVT, PVT): Norsk Katapult centres and pilot lines such as Factor47 in Kongsberg, an innovation contract with a pilot customer, or an IPN project if there is a real research question.
Scale-up and international growth: the EIC Accelerator (grant plus equity) and Eurostars for cross-border R&D.

If the stage names are new to you, the five gates from prototype to shipping explains what gets decided at each one.

Which funding fits which stage: SkatteFUNN runs throughout, startup grants come early, Norsk Katapult, IPN and innovation contracts cover prototype to validation, and the EIC and Eurostars come at scale-up.

Innovation Norway grants in 2026

Innovation Norway (Innovasjon Norge) is the state agency for business development and usually the first public money a Norwegian hardware startup gets. For 2026 the government cut its grant budgets, removed the pre-study and pre-project grants, and dropped the third phase of startup funding. What remains for product companies:

Innovation NorwayThe Norwegian government agency for innovation and development of Norwegian enterprises.innovasjonnorge.no

Startup Grant 1 (Oppstartstilskudd 1)

What you get: up to NOK 150,000, covering up to 100% of invoiced costs, for a project of about nine months.
Who can apply: limited companies (AS) under five years old with an innovative idea.
Timing: rolling applications; Innovation Norway states a processing time of three to four weeks.
Use it for: testing whether the problem is real and whether the technical idea holds up, before you spend on hardware.

Startup Grant 2 (Oppstartstilskudd 2)

What you get: up to NOK 1 million, covering up to 50% of approved costs. The other half must come from your own or private capital.
Who can apply: limited companies under five years old, typically after a validated first step.
Be aware: the 2026 budget for this grant was cut by 60%, so competition is harder than the rules alone suggest.
Use it for: the first real prototype: electronics, firmware, enclosure and the tests that prove it works.

Innovation contracts (Innovasjonskontrakter)

You develop a new product together with a demanding pilot customer. The customer contributes actively and covers at least 20% of the project costs; the intellectual property stays with you. The minimum application is NOK 1 million and applications are rolling. Innovation Norway first capped support at 25% in 2026, then in May 2026 lifted that cap for established companies. Small companies are listed at up to 45%; read the current page for your case.

This is the best fit for B2B hardware: the pilot customer gives you real test conditions, and the assessors see that someone wants the product.

Environmental technology (Miljøteknologi)

For products with a clear environmental benefit; check the scheme page for which project costs it covers. The minimum application is NOK 1 million. The 2026 budget was cut, and Innovation Norway expects SkatteFUNN in the financing plan.

Startup loan

Not a grant, but worth knowing: up to NOK 2 million, no collateral, a six-year term with the first two years interest-free. Useful when grant money is not enough to reach a sellable product.

SkatteFUNN: 19% back on your R&D costs

SkatteFUNN is the R&D tax deduction scheme, run by the Research Council (Forskningsrådet) together with the Tax Administration. In English it is usually called the SkatteFUNN R&D tax incentive. It is the first scheme most hardware companies doing real development should check.

SkatteFUNNTax deduction for companies with R&D projects. Approved by the Research Council of Norway.forskningsradet.no

How much: 19% of approved R&D costs, on a cost base of up to NOK 25 million per company per year. That makes the largest possible deduction NOK 4.75 million a year.
What counts: your own staff hours on the project, purchased R&D (when the supplier carries out R&D that is part of the project), and other project costs such as components and test equipment.
Pre-revenue companies: if you pay no tax, the amount is paid out to you through the tax settlement.
Timing: apply any time. Applications sent by 1 September are processed in the same income year; that date has passed for 2026, so check with the Research Council what a new application can cover.
Approval: it is a rights-based scheme, not a competition, but the Research Council still assesses each project. It must aim at new knowledge or a new solution for your company, with clear goals.

How to describe a hardware project for SkatteFUNN

The project has to be about something you do not yet know how to do. In hardware that is rarely hard to find, but it must be written as a technical uncertainty, not a product feature. Examples of the kind of goal that works:

Reach 18 months of battery life on a coin cell with a sensor that samples every minute.
Keep a sealed enclosure below 60 °C with a 4 W load and no fan.
Hold a reliable Bluetooth link at 30 metres from a device worn on the body.

Then keep time sheets from the first day. Most SkatteFUNN trouble comes from missing hour records, not from the technical description.

Norsk Katapult: test and pilot-produce before you pay for tooling

Norsk Katapult (the Norwegian Catapult) is a national network of test and pilot centres, run by Siva with Innovation Norway and the Research Council. Instead of money, you get access to equipment, facilities and specialists to prototype, test and simulate before you commit to production.

Norsk KatapultTest and pilot centres for prototyping, testing, simulation and pilot production.norskkatapult.no

The five catapult areas:

Manufacturing Technology: automation, robotics, additive manufacturing and production processes.
Future Materials: metals, composites, battery technology and circular materials.
DigiCat: AI, digital twins, autonomous systems and IoT.
Sustainable Energy: offshore wind, green fuels and carbon storage.
Ocean Innovation: aquaculture, subsea and marine technology.

Eight regional nodes extend the network, including Kongsberg Klyngen in Buskerud and Proventia at Herøya in Vestfold og Telemark.

How the money works

The cost is shared. Small and medium companies can get support of up to NOK 100,000 for a catapult project, applied for through an incubator or business garden, or through Stiftelsen Teknologiformidling. The incubator programmes moved to Innovation Norway on 1 April 2026, so confirm that this route and the limit still apply. As an example, Future Materials supports clarification projects with up to NOK 72,000 at up to 60% of the cost. You register a project at norskkatapult.no or contact katapult@siva.no.

Kongsberg Innovasjon and Factor47

Kongsberg Innovasjon is an industry-backed incubator and investor in Kongsberg, focused on B2B deep tech: energy, advanced manufacturing, ocean technology and sustainable cities. Two of its offers matter most to hardware founders:

Factor47: a pilot production facility of about 1,000 m² in Kongsberg Technology Park, opened in January 2025 and connected to Norsk Katapult. It handles complex and electro-mechanical products up to 300 kg, with manual and robotic stations and a digital twin. You pay per use, with funding support available; prices are not published, so you book a call or a visit.
Bloom Accelerator: a six-month, non-dilutive accelerator for deep-tech teams with at least one female founder or equity-holding team member. The fee is NOK 21,600 excluding VAT, subsidised by Innovation Norway.

Incubators like Kongsberg Innovasjon are also the usual door to Norsk Katapult support. Since 1 April 2026 the national incubator and business garden programmes are run by Innovation Norway instead of Siva.

Research Council of Norway: Innovation Projects for the Industrial Sector (IPN)

The Research Council of Norway (Norges forskningsråd) funds company-led R&D through IPN, Innovasjonsprosjekt i næringslivet. It fits when your product depends on solving a genuine technical problem, not only on good engineering.

Amount: from NOK 1 million to 10, 16 or 20 million per project, depending on the theme of the call.
Support rate: up to 50% for industrial research; for experimental development 45% for small, 35% for medium and 25% for large companies.
Partners: you need at least one Norwegian business partner, or you buy R&D services from at least one research supplier. A research institute as partner is not required.
Timing: the 2026 calls are rolling, with projects of 12 to 48 months.

EU funding: EIC Accelerator, Eurostars and Horizon Europe

Norway takes part in Horizon Europe as an associated country, so Norwegian companies can apply on equal terms with EU companies.

EIC Accelerator

The EIC Accelerator funds startups and SMEs with breakthrough technology from late prototype to scale-up: a grant below EUR 2.5 million for technology at readiness level 6 to 8, plus EUR 1 to 10 million as equity or quasi-equity. Short proposals can be sent any time and are collected at six cut-offs in 2026; the next is 4 November. After that come a full proposal and an interview with a jury. It is very competitive: plan for several rounds.

EIC AcceleratorGrant below EUR 2.5M plus EUR 1–10M equity for breakthrough innovations.eic.ec.europa.eu

Eurostars

Eurostars funds cross-border R&D led by an innovative SME, with partners from at least two Eurostars countries. The Research Council funds the Norwegian partners, up to 50% of approved costs for SMEs, and Norwegian companies need at least NOK 500,000 in equity when they apply. Both 2026 calls have closed (March and September), so check the Research Council page for the next one. It is a good first step before larger EU projects.

Horizon Europe collaborative projects

Horizon Europe (EUR 95.5 billion for 2021–2027) funds large consortium projects. An innovation action needs at least three independent organisations: one in an EU member state and two more in different member states or associated countries. It pays 70% of eligible costs for companies. Hardware companies usually find their calls in Cluster 4 (digital, industry and space) or Cluster 5 (climate, energy and mobility). Building the consortium takes months, so this is rarely the first grant for a startup.

Regional money in Vestfold and Buskerud

Counties run their own smaller schemes, and they are easy to overlook. In Vestfold, FORREGION gave up to NOK 200,000, at up to 70% of the cost, to companies with little R&D experience who want to work with a research partner; its page shows the call as completed, so check for a new round. The county also lists grants for business networks and the regional research fund. In Buskerud, the county funds business development and innovation projects at up to 50%, but the applicant is usually an incubator, business garden, network or similar, with your company as a partner; the autumn 2026 deadline (24 September) has passed. Calls open and close during the year, so check the county pages and apply through regionalforvaltning.no.

What grants pay for in a hardware project

Across these schemes, the costs that usually count:

Hours spent on development by you and your team
Prototype components, PCBs, 3D prints and test equipment for the project
Testing and pre-compliance measurements
Purchased R&D: engineering work bought from a studio or consultant, when that work is R&D inside the approved project

And what usually does not:

Rent, accounting and other running costs
Marketing and sales
Production beyond pilot quantities
Costs from before you applied (confirm for each scheme)

How we scope a fundable hardware project

Funding follows a good project plan, not the other way round. When we plan a product with a founder, we build the plan in a way that also works as the core of an application:

Name the technical risks. List what could make the product fail: battery life, heat, radio range, cost of goods, certification. Each real risk becomes a work package.
Make every goal measurable. "Better battery life" is not a goal; "18 months on one CR2032" is. Assessors fund numbers they can check.
Budget from real quotes. PCB assembly, enclosure prototypes and test-lab time all have prices you can get in a week. A budget built on quotes reads as credible.
Stack the schemes in order. SkatteFUNN runs under everything. A startup grant or innovation contract funds the prototype. Norsk Katapult covers testing and the pilot run. The EIC comes when there is something to scale.
Apply before the work starts. Startup Grant 1 does not cover costs from before you applied, and SkatteFUNN is proposed to move the same way. Treat every scheme as forward-looking and apply first.

For how grants compare with crowdfunding, venture capital and bootstrapping, see Kickstarter vs VC vs bootstrapping.

Frequently asked questions

What is Innovation Norway?

Innovation Norway (Innovasjon Norge) is the Norwegian state's agency for business development. It gives grants, loans and advice to companies, and since April 2026 it also runs the national incubator and business garden programmes.

How do I get a grant from Innovation Norway?

Pick the scheme that fits your stage, then apply through the online portal on innovasjonnorge.no with a project plan, a budget and a description of what is new. For a young company that is usually Startup Grant 1 first and Startup Grant 2 after. Apply before you start the work.

What is SkatteFUNN in English, and how much can you get?

SkatteFUNN is a Norwegian R&D tax incentive: 19% of approved R&D costs come back as a tax deduction, or as a payout if you have no tax to pay. The cost base is capped at NOK 25 million a year, so the most you can get is NOK 4.75 million a year.

Can a design or engineering studio be included in a grant budget?

Often, when the work is R&D within the project. SkatteFUNN accepts purchased R&D when the supplier carries out R&D that is part of the approved project. IPN lets you buy R&D services from a research supplier, which is not automatically the same as a design studio. Check with the scheme before you put a studio in the budget.

What is the EIC Accelerator success rate?

The EIC page gives no single figure. Independent estimates put it in single-digit percentages, so plan for several rounds. Treat it as a scale-up grant, not your first one.

Sources

The amounts and rules above come from these pages, last checked on 2 October 2026. Where a rule changes often, we say so in the text.

Need help planning a fundable product?

We design and engineer hardware products, from electronics and PCB design to embedded firmware, and we plan the project so the technical work and the funding application tell the same story. If you are about to apply, book a short call and we will look at the plan with you.

The short version: which funding fits which stage

Hardware moves through stages, and each scheme is built for one of them:

Idea and first proof of concept: Innovation Norway Startup Grant 1 (up to NOK 150,000) and SkatteFUNN from day one.
Working prototype to engineering validation (EVT): Startup Grant 2 (up to NOK 1M at 50%), SkatteFUNN, and Norsk Katapult for testing you cannot do in your own workshop.
Design validation and pilot production (DVT, PVT): Norsk Katapult centres and pilot lines such as Factor47 in Kongsberg, an innovation contract with a pilot customer, or an IPN project if there is a real research question.
Scale-up and international growth: the EIC Accelerator (grant plus equity) and Eurostars for cross-border R&D.

If the stage names are new to you, the five gates from prototype to shipping explains what gets decided at each one.