# GİGEP (Entrepreneur Business Development Program): What KOSGEB Offers and Who Qualifies

> GİGEP is the name circulating for KOSGEB's Entrepreneur Support Program: up to TRY 1.5 million in repayable support, eligibility and covered costs.

Source: https://sinemyavuz.com.tr/en/blog/gigep-entrepreneur-support-program-turkey
Category: Incentives
Published: 2026-10-01
Updated: 2026-10-01
Author: Sinem Yavuz, Certified Public Accountant (SMMM) — SMMM Sinem Yavuz: Finance, Accounting & Advisory Office

## Key Takeaways

- "GİGEP" is the name used on social media for KOSGEB's Entrepreneur Support Program; the official documents never use that acronym. The Business Development Support reaches TRY 1,500,000 and is an interest-free repayable support, not a grant.
- It is not open to every business: the Business Development Support requires a company in manufacturing, telecommunications, software, information services or R&D, no more than 3 years after its establishment.
- Applications open only in call periods and are scored by a panel and a jury. Applying does not create an entitlement, and the 2026 second call closed on 8 May 2026.

Graphics circulating in Turkey under the name "GİGEP" describe KOSGEB's Entrepreneur Support Program (Girişimci Destek Programı), the Turkish SME development agency's startup scheme. The acronym does not appear in the official documents; the programme's name is **Girişimci Destek Programı**. This article relies on KOSGEB's Implementation Principles (UE-35, revised 24 May 2024) and its 2026 call announcements; amounts and conditions can change between calls.

## What Does the Programme Offer?

The programme, run by KOSGEB (the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Organization), has two parts: Business Establishment Support and Business Development Support. The figure of TRY 1.5 million in the graphics is only the ceiling of the second one. If a business receives both, total payments cannot exceed TRY 2,000,000 (Implementation Principles, Art. 9/5).

| Support | Amount | Rate and type | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Establishment Support | TRY 10,000 for a sole proprietorship, TRY 20,000 for a capital company (plus TRY 10,000 for young, women, disabled, veteran or first-degree martyr's relative applicants) | 100%, non-repayable | 36 months |
| Establishment, staff support | One month's gross minimum wage cost to the employer per qualifying period | Non-repayable | 3 years, one period a year |
| Business Development Support | Up to TRY 1,500,000 (plus TRY 150,000 for the same groups) | 80%, repayable | 36 months |

## Is It a Grant or a Loan?

Business Development Support is repayable, though no interest or commission applies. Repayment starts after a 6-month grace period following the project end, in 4 equal quarterly instalments, and KOSGEB takes collateral under its own rules before paying out (Arts. 32-33). Establishment Support, by contrast, is non-repayable but small.

## Who Can Apply?

A business can apply for Business Development Support no later than 3 years after its establishment, counted from the start date on the tax plate for a sole proprietorship, or the trade registry date for a company. Sole proprietorships and capital companies both qualify. The other requirements:

- Activity under NACE Rev.2 section C (manufacturing), divisions 61, 62, 63 or 72. General service sectors outside these groups are not covered.
- The entrepreneur has completed KOSGEB's advanced entrepreneurship training.
- The entrepreneur holds at least 50% of the business and can represent it alone.
- From 3 years before the establishment date, the entrepreneur has no other sole proprietorship and no 25%+ stake in another company.
- The entrepreneur or business has not used the earlier Young, Traditional or Advanced Entrepreneur programmes; the programme can be used once.

## Which Costs Are Covered?

Only the items the evaluation panel accepts are supported. Under the Implementation Principles, the cost types are:

- **Personnel:** 80% of the employee's insurable earnings; the monthly cap per person is twice one month's gross minimum wage cost to the employer. The owner, partners and their close relatives are excluded.
- **Machinery, equipment, moulds:** New items; second-hand machinery qualifies only with electric motors of efficiency class IE2 or better.
- **Software:** Licence, cloud access or time-limited licence fees.
- **Services:** Training, consultancy and mentoring, certification, testing and analysis, marketing, design and intellectual property rights. Raw materials and general operating costs are not on this list.

Meals, accommodation and travel are excluded from training and consultancy. If the business owes tax or social security contributions above the legal limits, KOSGEB offsets the debt against the payment first.

## How Does Application Work, and Is a Call Open Now?

Business Development Support applications are electronic, through edevlet.kosgeb.gov.tr, and only during call periods; Establishment Support applications are continuous. In 2026, the first period ran from 3 to 31 January and the second from 20 April to 8 May. We saw no third-period announcement on KOSGEB's website as of 1 October 2026, so confirm whether a call is open on KOSGEB's announcements page.

Evaluation has two stages. Applications with a panel score of 50 or more are ranked, and the jury score then determines which projects are funded; the second-period announcement mentions 500 funded projects nationwide. Women or young entrepreneurs with a jury score of 50 or more who miss the ranking can still use credit financing support up to TRY 1,000,000, where KOSGEB covers 50% of the interest or profit share without repayment. The announcement mentions no bonus-points system, and "only women aged 18-35" is wrong. The Implementation Principles define "young" as under 30 on the application date, and the TRY 150,000 higher ceiling applies to young, women, disabled, veteran or first-degree martyr's relative entrepreneurs.

## Do Not Confuse It With the Income Tax Exemption

This is a project support. The [young entrepreneur income tax exemption](/en/blog/young-entrepreneur-income-tax-exemption) is a separate incentive tied to tax registration, with a different authority, application channel and conditions.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Is GİGEP the same as KOSGEB's Entrepreneur Support Program?
The official documents we reviewed never use the name GİGEP; what the graphics describe matches the Business Development Support of the Entrepreneur Support Program.

### Is the support a grant?
Business Development Support is repayable. Establishment Support and its staff support are non-repayable.

### Can a sole proprietorship apply?
Yes, a business with natural-person status can apply, if it is within 3 years of its establishment and its activity falls under the covered NACE groups.

### Will I get the support if I apply?
No. An application does not bind KOSGEB; the decision depends on the panel and jury scores.

## Eligibility Check Before You Apply
We check your activity code, establishment date and tax and social security status against the programme's conditions, using your registration records. Before you apply, we can look at the right [company formation](/en/services/company-formation) type together, and at the [sole proprietorship setup process](/en/blog/sole-proprietorship-formation-guide); under [tax advisory](/en/services/tax-advisory) we plan the accounting and tax effect of the support. The content of the project application and KOSGEB's decision are not ours to determine.