On Monday 27 July, the European Commission published new guidance to help Member States apply State aid rules to provide social support and make social investments, according to a press release.
This guidance helps Member States design State aid measures in support of social support and social investment, in line with the Clean Industrial Deal.
For the first time, the guidance brings together the information available on State aid devoted to social support and social investments. It presents the main State aid instruments and measures enabling national authorities to support social objectives, such as aid for services of general economic interest (SGEI) to finance public service obligations entrusted to one or more providers.
The guidance provides general information on public support measures that do not constitute State aid and specifies which types of State aid are authorised under EU rules.
An update will follow when the Commission adopts a revised version of the General Block Exemption Regulation.
The document thus explains the Altmark judgment, which sets out four cumulative criteria that must be met for a measure not to be regarded as State aid, as well as the revised 2025 SGEI Decision, which allows Member States to provide financial support more easily for affordable housing and social housing.
Link to the document: https://aeur.eu/f/n19 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)