Restaurant Funding 2026: Finding Grants in Austria & Germany

Rising energy costs, higher staff costs, investing in a new kitchen or a POS system: the ongoing pressure on restaurant margins is real, and most operators look first at where to cut back. What often gets overlooked: Austria and Germany both offer a substantial range of public funding programmes that subsidise exactly these investments, and many go unused simply because owners don’t know they exist.

The problem is rarely a lack of money, it’s a lack of overview. Funding programmes in both countries are heavily regionalised, change annually, and any complete list would already be outdated the day it’s published. This article instead covers the categories that exist, concrete current examples, and most importantly, how to find out yourself what actually applies to your business.

Four funding categories relevant to restaurants

Despite the sheer number of individual programmes, most restaurant funding falls into four categories.

Takeover and new opening. Grants specifically for businesses starting fresh or taking over an existing one, often with conditions on opening hours or offering.

Investment and modernisation. Classic investment grants for renovation, new equipment, or expansion, usually a percentage of the investment sum with a cap.

Digitalisation. Grants for POS systems, booking tools, webshops, or digital ordering processes, especially common at the state level in Germany.

Energy efficiency. Funding for energy-efficient kitchen equipment, cooling systems, or heating, currently in high demand given rising energy costs.

Austria: examples by state

Funding in Austria mostly runs through the individual states (Bundesländer), supplemented by federal programmes such as aws investment loan guarantees. Three current examples show the range.

Wirtshausprämie Lower Austria. A one-time grant of up to €10,000 for businesses that have taken over or newly opened a pub since 1 January 2026. Requirements: open at least four days a week year-round, classic pub features such as a regulars’ table, hot meals beyond snacks. The deadline runs until the budget is exhausted, but no later than 31 December 2026.

Gastro-Förderung Upper Austria. Up to 15 percent of the assessment basis, capped at €60,000 over two years. Requires an active trade licence, a maximum of 15 full-time-equivalent employees at the location, and no more than 7 locations in total. Covers new establishment, modernisation, quality improvements, and business takeovers, the guideline runs from 2024 through the end of 2026.

Wirtschaftsagentur Wien: Innovative Crafts and Trade. Up to €75,000 per project for small businesses and founders in crafts, local retail (Nahversorgung), or gastronomy introducing innovative products, services, or new technologies. 2026 submission deadlines: 15 August and 31 December.

(Source: WKO: Wirtshausprämie Lower Austria, WKO: Gastro-Förderung Upper Austria, Wirtschaftsagentur Wien)

Germany: examples by state

In Germany, the most practically relevant programmes for restaurants tend to sit at the state (Land) level, with quite different designs.

Digitalbonus Thüringen. Covers up to 50 percent of eligible expenses, capped at €15,000, with a minimum of €5,000 in eligible costs. Explicitly for SMEs in industry, crafts, gastronomy, and freelance professions, for automation, digital products, and cybersecurity.

Digitalbonus.Bayern. Up to €30,000 for businesses with fewer than 50 employees and a maximum of €10 million in revenue, open to any industry and therefore also usable by restaurants, for digitalising products, services, processes, and IT security. The guideline runs through the end of 2027.

These two examples stand in for a broader pattern: almost every German state has its own digitalisation funding programme, each with its own rates, caps, and deadlines.

(Source: Aufbaubank Thüringen: Digitalbonus Thüringen, Digitalbonus.Bayern, detail figures dated May 2025 per source, verify current status before applying)

Finding the funding that fits your business

Because programmes and deadlines change constantly, an official search tool is more reliable than any static list, including this one.

For Austria: The WKO funding finder can be filtered by state, industry, and funding purpose. The Unternehmensserviceportal (USP) adds an overview of the wider funding landscape.

For Germany: The Förderdatenbank des Bundes is the central, continuously updated resource for funding at the federal, state, and EU level, also filterable by industry and region.

Both tools are free and maintained directly by the funding bodies themselves, which means they reflect the actual current state, not a snapshot.

What actually matters when applying

Two mistakes most commonly cost restaurants funding they would otherwise have been eligible for.

Applying too late. Almost every funding body requires the application before the investment or project begins. Order the equipment or start construction first and apply afterwards, and you typically get nothing, no matter how well the project otherwise fits the criteria.

Budget already exhausted. Many programmes, like the Wirtshausprämie in Lower Austria, run “until the budget is exhausted, but no later than” a fixed date. That means applying shortly before the official deadline can still leave you empty-handed, because the funding pool ran out first. Applying early in the funding year is safer than waiting until close to the cutoff.

Using a free initial consultation. Funding bodies like the WKO or Wirtschaftsagentur Wien explicitly recommend getting advice before applying. This usually clarifies within a few days whether a project meets the formal criteria at all, before time goes into an application that was never going to succeed.

The bottom line

Restaurant funding exists in real numbers in both countries, but it’s so regionalised and industry-specific that no single list captures it completely. Knowing your own situation, whether that’s a new opening, modernisation, digitalisation, or energy efficiency, and using the official search tools instead of googling individual blog posts, gets most restaurants to a matching programme before the next big investment is due.

Frequently Asked Questions

What funding is available for restaurants in Austria?

It depends heavily on the state (Bundesland). Examples: the Wirtshausprämie in Lower Austria (up to €10,000 for taking over or opening a pub), the Gastro-Förderung in Upper Austria (up to €60,000 over 2 years), or the Innovative Crafts and Trade grant from Wirtschaftsagentur Wien (up to €75,000). The WKO funding finder shows what’s currently available in your state.

Is there nationwide funding for restaurants in Germany?

Most practically relevant programmes run at the state (Länder) level, such as digitalisation bonuses. The central starting point across federal, state, and EU levels is the Förderdatenbank des Bundes, which can be filtered by industry, state, and funding purpose.

Do I apply for funding before or after making the investment?

Almost always before. Most funding bodies reject applications if the investment or project has already started before the application was submitted or approved. This sequencing is the most common reason otherwise eligible projects get nothing.

What happens if the funding budget is already used up?

Many programmes run “until the budget is exhausted, but no later than” a fixed end date. Applying late means missing out even if the formal deadline hasn’t passed yet. Applying early in the funding year is safer than waiting until shortly before the official cutoff.

Is it worth getting funding advice from the chamber of commerce?

Usually yes, and often free. Funding bodies like the WKO or Wirtschaftsagentur Wien explicitly recommend getting advice before applying, to clarify within days whether a project even meets the formal criteria, before time goes into an application that was never going to succeed.